Alert archive / Alabama / Tornado Watches in 2001

Tornado Watch 66

March 14, 20015 states

The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at Mar 14, 2001, 9:30 PM CST for 5 states. It was in force for 6 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Mar 14, 2001, 9:30 PM CST (03:30 UTC)
Expired
Mar 15, 2001, 3:00 AM CST
In force
6 hr
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
All 57 counties

Autauga County, AL, Baldwin County, AL, Barbour County, AL, Bullock County, AL, Butler County, AL, Choctaw County, AL, Clarke County, AL, Coffee County, AL, Conecuh County, AL, Covington County, AL, Crenshaw County, AL, Dale County, AL, Dallas County, AL, Elmore County, AL, Escambia County, AL, Geneva County, AL, Lee County, AL, Lowndes County, AL, Macon County, AL, Marengo County, AL, Mobile County, AL, Monroe County, AL, Montgomery County, AL, Perry County, AL, Pike County, AL, Russell County, AL, Sumter County, AL, Washington County, AL, Wilcox County, AL, Escambia County, FL, Okaloosa County, FL, Santa Rosa County, FL, Walton County, FL, Muscogee County, GA, Jefferson Parish, LA, Lafourche Parish, LA, Orleans Parish, LA, Plaquemines Parish, LA, Saint Bernard Parish, LA, Saint Charles Parish, LA, Saint Tammany Parish, LA, Terrebonne Parish, LA, Clarke County, MS, Forrest County, MS, George County, MS, Greene County, MS, Hancock County, MS, Harrison County, MS, Jackson County, MS, Jasper County, MS, Jones County, MS, Lamar County, MS, Lauderdale County, MS, Pearl River County, MS, Perry County, MS, Stone County, MS, Wayne County, MS

The radar

The Mobile radar (KMOB), 48 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 03:33 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

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Mar 14, 10:31 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANForrest14 min
Mar 14, 10:41 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLIXLafourche, Terrebonne64 min
Mar 14, 11:02 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLIXJefferson, Saint Charles58 min
Mar 15, 12:32 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMOBSanta Rosa28 min
Mar 15, 12:53 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMOBOkaloosa37 min
Mar 15, 1:46 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXElmore, Tallapoosa29 min
Mar 15, 1:50 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTAEGeneva25 min
Mar 15, 2:03 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXChambers, Lee42 min

The nearest sounding before it

Slidell Radar S, LA (KSIL), launched 00:00Z, 3.5 hours before the alert went out and 103 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, Slidell Radar S, LA at 00:00Z on 2001-03-15Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 0 joules per kilogram.LCL10008507005003002001001 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, Slidell Radar S, LA at 00:00Z on 2001-03-15The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 86 square meters per square second.1939587897117Sfc1 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
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL
1032 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
96 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
86 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
749 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.1

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WWUS9 KMKC 150327
SEL6  

SEL6  
MKC WW 150316
ALZ000-FLZ000-LAZ000-MSZ000-CWZ000-150900-

URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 66
STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
916 PM CST WED MAR 14 2001

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

   CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN ALABAMA                            
   WESTERN FLORIDA PANHANDLE                            
   SOUTHEAST LOUISIANA                          
   SOUTHEAST MISSISSIPPI                        
   COASTAL WATERS                     

EFFECTIVE THIS WEDNESDAY NIGHT AND THURSDAY MORNING FROM 930 PM
UNTIL 300 AM CST.

 ...THIS IS A PARTICULARLY DANGEROUS SITUATION...
 
DAMAGING TORNADOES...HAIL TO 1 INCH IN DIAMETER... THUNDERSTORM
WIND GUSTS TO 70 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN
THESE AREAS.

THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS ALONG AND 120 STATUTE MILES EAST AND WEST
OF A LINE FROM 30 MILES SOUTH SOUTHEAST OF BOOTHVILLE LOUISIANA TO
25 MILES NORTH NORTHEAST OF SELMA ALABAMA.

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 64...WW 65

DISCUSSION...LATEST SURFACE OBSERVATIONS SHOW SURFACE WARM FRONT 
ATTM ABOUT 60 NMI S OF MOBILE BAY...MOVING NWD AT ABOUT 25-30 KTS.
PRESSURE FALL AXIS OVER SE LA/AL SUGGESTS CONTINUED NWD MOTION NEXT
SEVERAL HOURS...ALLOWING AIR MASS RECOVERY ALONG THE CNTRL GULF
COAST.  THREAT WILL INCREASE FOR SURFACE-BASED SUPERCELLS NEXT FEW
HOURS AS SW MID LEVEL FLOW REMAINS AOA 80 KT...AND LOW LEVEL WINDS
VEER TO A MORE SLY COMPONENT.  

AVIATION...TORNADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL
SURFACE AND ALOFT TO 1 INCH...EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE WIND
GUSTS TO 60 KNOTS.  A FEW CUMUhLONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO 500. 
MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 23045.

...CORFIDI

;324,0844 285,0871 285,0911 324,0885;

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Mar 15, 1:30 AM CSTTornado WatchSPCAutauga, Barbour, Bullock, Butler, Coffee, Covington and 12 more6 hr
Mar 15, 6:00 AM CSTTornado WatchSPCColumbia, Dixie, Franklin, Gadsden, Gulf, Hamilton and 8 more6 hr
Mar 15, 12:00 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCAlachua, Baker, Bradford, Clay, Columbia, Dixie and 9 more5 hr

Nearby

Tornado Watches in Alabama, 2001Tornado Watches in Mississippi, 2001Tornado Watches in Louisiana, 2001Every tornado watch in 2001

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.