Alert archive / Alabama / Tornado Warnings in 2003

Tornado Warning 2, NWS Birmingham, AL

February 22, 2003Blount County, Etowah County, Alabama

NWS Birmingham, AL issued this tornado warning at Feb 22, 2003, 3:49 AM CST for Blount County, Etowah County, Alabama. It was in force for 26 min. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Feb 22, 2003, 3:49 AM CST (09:49 UTC)
Expired
Feb 22, 2003, 4:15 AM CST
In force
26 min
Issued by
NWS Birmingham, AL
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

Counties Blount County, AL, Etowah County, AL

The watch it was issued in

The SPC watch in force over the same counties when this warning went out.

IssuedProductOfficeLasted
Feb 22, 3:35 AM CSTTornado WatchSPC2 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Birmingham, AL (KBMX), launched 00:00Z, 9.8 hours before the alert went out and 124 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, Birmingham, AL at 00:00Z on 2003-02-22Temperature 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, Birmingham, AL at 00:00Z on 2003-02-22The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 151 square meters per square second.19395878Sfc1 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
779 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
50 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
151 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
186 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

170 
WFUS54 KBMX 220949
TORBHM
ALC009-055-221015-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
348 AM CST SAT FEB 22 2003

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN BIRMINGHAM HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  BLOUNT COUNTY IN ALABAMA
  ETOWAH COUNTY IN NORTHEAST ALABAMA

* UNTIL 415 AM CST

* AT 347 AM CST...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  TORNADO OVER SUSAN MOORE...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 50 MPH.

* LOCATIONS NEAR THE PATH OF THIS TORNADO INCLUDE...ALTOONA...
MOUNTAINBORO...SARDIS CITY...SNEAD...SUSAN MOORE AND WALNUT GROVE.

THIS STORM SHOWS STRONG ROTATION AND MAY PRODUCE A TORNADO AT ANY
TIME. DO NOT WAIT. GO TO A SAFE PLACE NOW PUT AS MANY WALLS BETWEEN
YOU AND THE OUTSIDE AS POSSIBLE.

TAKE COVER NOW TORNADOES AT NIGHT ARE EXTREMELY DANGEROUS. DO NOT 
WAIT UNTIL YOU SEE OR HEAR THE TORNADO...IT MAY BE TOO LATE.

CALL 1-800-856-0758 TO REPORT SEVERE WEATHER.

LAT...LON 3407 8658 3393 8645 3437 8570 3455 8586

$$

The office that day

Everything else NWS Birmingham, AL issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Feb 21, 9:28 PM CSTFlash Flood WarningBMXLamar, Marion3 hr
Feb 21, 11:19 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXMontgomery41 min
Feb 21, 11:42 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXLamar, Pickens48 min
Feb 22, 12:20 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXFayette40 min
Feb 22, 12:26 AM CSTFlash Flood WarningBMXLamar, Marion, Pickens4 hr
Feb 22, 12:31 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXTallapoosa44 min
Feb 22, 12:41 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXAutauga34 min
Feb 22, 12:49 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXElmore26 min
Feb 22, 12:49 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXRandolph41 min
Feb 22, 1:09 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXLamar, Marion36 min
Feb 22, 1:48 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXMarion12 min
Feb 22, 2:33 AM CSTTornado WarningBMXChilton27 min
Feb 22, 2:39 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXTuscaloosa, Walker36 min
Feb 22, 2:41 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXTuscaloosa34 min
Feb 22, 2:55 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXJefferson50 min
Feb 22, 2:59 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXMontgomery31 min
Feb 22, 3:05 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXShelby25 min
Feb 22, 3:21 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXSt. Clair24 min
Feb 22, 3:25 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXBlount35 min
Feb 22, 4:30 AM CSTFlash Flood WarningBMXFayette, Lamar, Marion, Pickens6 hr

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Alabama, 2003Every tornado warning in 2003Tornadoes in 2003

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.