Alert archive / Georgia / Tornado Watches in 2000

Tornado Watch 95

March 16, 200020 counties in Florida; 47 counties in Georgia; Beaufort County, Hampton County, Jasper County, South Carolina

The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at Mar 16, 2000, 2:00 PM EST for 20 counties in Florida; 47 counties in Georgia; Beaufort County, Hampton County, Jasper County, South Carolina. It was in force for 6 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Mar 16, 2000, 2:00 PM EST (19:00 UTC)
Expired
Mar 16, 2000, 8:00 PM EST
In force
6 hr
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
All 70 counties

Alachua County, FL, Baker County, FL, Bradford County, FL, Clay County, FL, Columbia County, FL, Dixie County, FL, Duval County, FL, Flagler County, FL, Gilchrist County, FL, Hamilton County, FL, Lafayette County, FL, Levy County, FL, Madison County, FL, Marion County, FL, Nassau County, FL, Putnam County, FL, Saint Johns County, FL, Suwannee County, FL, Taylor County, FL, Union County, FL, Appling County, GA, Atkinson County, GA, Bacon County, GA, Ben Hill County, GA, Berrien County, GA, Bleckley County, GA, Brantley County, GA, Brooks County, GA, Bryan County, GA, Bulloch County, GA, Camden County, GA, Candler County, GA, Charlton County, GA, Chatham County, GA, Clinch County, GA, Coffee County, GA, Cook County, GA, Dodge County, GA, Echols County, GA, Effingham County, GA, Emanuel County, GA, Evans County, GA, Glynn County, GA, Irwin County, GA, Jeff Davis County, GA, Jenkins County, GA, Johnson County, GA, Lanier County, GA, Laurens County, GA, Liberty County, GA, Long County, GA, Lowndes County, GA, McIntosh County, GA, Montgomery County, GA, Pierce County, GA, Pulaski County, GA, Screven County, GA, Tattnall County, GA, Telfair County, GA, Tift County, GA, Toombs County, GA, Treutlen County, GA, Twiggs County, GA, Ware County, GA, Wayne County, GA, Wheeler County, GA, Wilcox County, GA, Beaufort County, SC, Hampton County, SC, Jasper County, SC

The radar

The Moody AFB radar (KVAX), 63 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 19:00 UTC, the scan nearest the moment this went out.

Open the radar archive at this moment

The archived warnings, watches and discussions in force at that minute are drawn over the scan, this one among them.

Warnings issued inside it

7 tornado, severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings for its counties while it was in force.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Mar 16, 3:32 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJAXBacon, Pierce, Ware28 min
Mar 16, 3:51 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJAXDuval39 min
Mar 16, 4:04 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJAXAppling, Bacon, Pierce41 min
Mar 16, 4:19 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJAXPierce, Wayne41 min
Mar 16, 4:28 PM ESTTornado WarningJAXWayne47 min
Mar 16, 4:47 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCHSLong43 min
Mar 16, 5:39 PM ESTTornado WarningJAXNassau51 min

The nearest sounding before it

Jacksonville, FL (KJAX), launched 12:00Z, 7.0 hours before the alert went out and 73 km from the middle of its area. This is the routine balloon launch nearest before it, the air the forecaster had in hand, not a measurement taken for the alert.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Jacksonville, FL at 12:00Z on 2000-03-16Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 241 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Jacksonville, FL at 12:00Z on 2000-03-16The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 122 square meters per square second.193958Sfc1 km3 km6 km9 kmRMLM
The wind turning with height, colored by layer: ground to 1 km, 1 to 3 km, 3 to 6 km, 6 to 10 km.
Mixed-layer CAPE
241 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-33 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
776 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
40 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
122 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
129 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.1
Supercell composite
0.5

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.

445 
WWUS9 KMKC 161829
SEL5  

SEL5  
MKC WW 161829
FLZ000-GAZ000-CWZ000-170100-

URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 95
STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
129 PM EST THU MAR 16 2000

THE STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF

   NORTHERN FLORIDA                            
   CENTRAL AND SOUTHEASTERN GEORGIA                            
   COASTAL WATERS                     

EFFECTIVE THIS THURSDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING FROM 200 PM UNTIL 800
PM EST.

TORNADOES...HAIL TO 1 INCH IN DIAMETER...THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS TO
80 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS.

THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS ALONG AND 90 STATUTE MILES EAST AND WEST
OF A LINE FROM 40 MILES SOUTH OF GAINESVILLE FLORIDA TO 65 MILES
NORTHWEST OF SAVANNAH GEORGIA.

REMEMBER...A TORNADO WATCH MEANS CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR
TORNADOES AND SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IN AND CLOSE TO THE WATCH AREA. 
PERSONS IN THESE AREAS SHOULD BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR THREATENING
WEATHER CONDITIONS AND LISTEN FOR LATER STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE
WARNINGS.

OTHER WATCH INFORMATION...  CONTINUE...WW 94...

DISCUSSION...INTENSE MESOSYSTEM OVER NWRN FL AND SWRN GA IS
EXPECTED TO MOVE EWD AND DEVELOP NEWD WITH TIME.  BOW ECHO OVER
PANHANDLE OF FLORIDA IS LIKELY TO MOVE EWD ACROSS NRN FL AND
POSSIBLY SERN GA WITH RISK OF WIND DAMAGE INCREASING.  EMBEDDED
MESOCYCLONES AND ISOLATED SUPERCELLS AHEAD OF LINE ARE POSSIBLE
WITH A RISK OF TORNADOES.  WWS MAY BE REQUIRED FARTHER NE OVER ERN
CAROLINAS AS AFTERNOON PROGRESSES. 

AVIATION...TORNADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL
SURFACE AND ALOFT TO 1 INCH  EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE WIND
GUSTS TO 70 KNOTS.  A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO 450. 
MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 24035.


...JOHNS

290,0834 324,0833 324,0802 290,0804

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Mar 16, 9:15 AM ESTTornado WatchSPCBay, Calhoun, Escambia, Franklin, Gadsden, Gulf and 10 more6 hr
Mar 16, 4:45 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCAiken, Allendale, Bamberg, Barnwell, Beaufort, Berkeley and 23 more5 hr

Nearby

Tornado Watches in Georgia, 2000Tornado Watches in Florida, 2000Tornado Watches in South Carolina, 2000Every tornado watch in 2000

Sources

The product and its follow-ups from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service and Storm Prediction Center text; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.