Alert archive / Florida / Tornado Watches in 2002

Tornado Watch 701

September 25, 20025 states

The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at Sep 25, 2002, 11:35 PM CDT for 5 states. It was in force for 8 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Sep 25, 2002, 11:35 PM CDT (04:35 UTC)
Expired
Sep 26, 2002, 8:00 AM CDT
In force
8 hr
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
All 32 counties

Baldwin County, AL, Coffee County, AL, Covington County, AL, Dale County, AL, Escambia County, AL, Geneva County, AL, Henry County, AL, Houston County, AL, Mobile County, AL, Bay County, FL, Calhoun County, FL, Escambia County, FL, Gulf County, FL, Holmes County, FL, Jackson County, FL, Okaloosa County, FL, Santa Rosa County, FL, Walton County, FL, Washington County, FL, Clay County, GA, Early County, GA, Jefferson Parish, LA, Orleans Parish, LA, Plaquemines Parish, LA, Saint Bernard Parish, LA, Saint Tammany Parish, LA, George County, MS, Hancock County, MS, Harrison County, MS, Jackson County, MS, Pearl River County, MS, Stone County, MS

Warnings issued inside it

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Sep 25, 11:41 PM CDTTornado WarningLIXJefferson, Lafourche109 min
Sep 26, 12:06 AM CDTTornado WarningTAEBay, Gulf41 days
Sep 26, 1:56 AM CDTFlash Flood WarningLIXHancock, Harrison3 hr
Sep 26, 2:34 AM CDTFlash Flood WarningMOBStone3 hr
Sep 26, 3:22 AM CDTFlash Flood WarningLIXAssumption, Jefferson, Lafourche, Orleans, Plaquemines, Saint Bernard and 4 more4 hr
Sep 26, 4:54 AM CDTFlash Flood WarningLIXHancock, Harrison4 hr
Sep 26, 6:25 AM CDTTornado WarningMOBMobile7 days
Sep 26, 7:41 AM CDTFlash Flood WarningLIXJefferson, Orleans, Plaquemines, Saint Bernard3 hr
Sep 26, 8:00 AM CDTTornado WarningMOBSanta Rosa24 days

The nearest sounding before it

Slidell Radar S, LA (KSIL), launched 00:00Z, 4.6 hours before the alert went out and 166 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 2002-09-26Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 201 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°0°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 2002-09-26The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 365 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
201 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-11 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
461 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
30 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
365 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
455 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
2.4

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WWUS20 KWNS 260442
SEL1  
SPC WW 260435
ALZ000-FLZ000-LAZ000-MSZ000-CWZ000-261300-

URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 701
STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
1135 PM CDT WED SEP 25 2002

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

   southern ALABAMA                            
   western FLORIDA panhandle                            
   southeast LOUISIANA                          
   extreme southeast MISSISSIPPI                        
   COASTAL WATERS                     

EFFECTIVE THIS WEDNESDAY NIGHT AND THURSDAY MORNING FROM 1135 PM
UNTIL 800 AM CDT.

TORNADOES...THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS TO 70 MPH...AND DANGEROUS
LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS.

THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS ALONG AND 65 STATUTE MILES NORTH AND
SOUTH OF A LINE FROM 55 MILES NORTHWEST OF BOOTHVILLE LOUISIANA TO
20 MILES EAST SOUTHEAST OF MARIANNA FLORIDA.

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...THIS TORNADO WATCH REPLACES TORNADO WATCH
NUMBER 700.  WATCH NUMBER 700 WILL NOT BE IN EFFECT AFTER 1135 PM
CDT.

DISCUSSION...tropical storm isidore expected to move nnewd across
sern la tonight.  very favorable shear profiles are in place to
support small scale supercells/tornadoes along gulf coast  to n and
e of center.  so far threat has remained near the coast where the
pure tropical air is located.  however overnight...as isidore
continues nnewd...this airmass will slowly spread nwd across srn al
with threat of isolated tornadoes also developing inland.  


AVIATION...TORNADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH EXTREME
TURBULENCE AND SURFACE WIND GUSTS TO 60 KNOTS.  A FEW CUMULONIMBI
WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO 500.  MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 13040.


...HALES

304,0900 314,0845 294,0845 285,0900

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Sep 26, 3:40 AM CDTTornado WatchSPCBaldwin, Barbour, Bullock, Butler, Choctaw, Clarke and 18 more6 hr
Sep 26, 9:40 AM CDTTornado WatchSPCAutauga, Baldwin, Barbour, Bibb, Bullock, Butler and 34 more6 hr
Sep 26, 3:15 PM CDTTornado WatchSPCAutauga, Barbour, Bibb, Blount, Bullock, Calhoun and 23 more6 hr
Sep 26, 11:10 AM CDTTornado WatchSPCGadsden, Jefferson, Leon, Liberty, Wakulla5 hr
Sep 26, 11:15 AM CDTTornado WatchSPCBaldwin, Bibb, Bleckley, Butts, Chattahoochee, Clay and 50 more7 hr

Nearby

Tornado Watches in Florida, 2002Tornado Watches in Alabama, 2002Tornado Watches in Mississippi, 2002Every tornado watch in 2002

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.