Alert archive / Florida / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2003

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 48, NWS Melbourne, FL

May 17, 2003Lake County, Florida

NWS Melbourne, FL issued this severe thunderstorm warning at May 17, 2003, 5:43 PM EDT for Lake County, Florida. It was in force for 62 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
May 17, 2003, 5:43 PM EDT (21:43 UTC)
Expired
May 17, 2003, 6:45 PM EDT
In force
62 min
Issued by
NWS Melbourne, FL
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Lake County, FL

The radar

The Tampa radar (KTBW), 118 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 21:47 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.

Did it verify

Not verified. The Iowa Environmental Mesonet's Cow found no qualifying storm report inside this severe thunderstorm warning while it was in force. That is not proof nothing happened: reports are thin where few people live.

Cow counts a report within 15 km of the polygon while the warning was in force: a tornado for a tornado warning; hail of 1 inch or more, a gust of 58 mph or more or wind damage for a severe thunderstorm warning; a flash flood report for a flash flood warning.

The nearest sounding before it

Tampa Bay, FL (KTBW), launched 12:00Z, 9.7 hours before the alert went out and 119 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, Tampa Bay, FL at 12:00Z on 2003-05-17Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 858 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, Tampa Bay, FL at 12:00Z on 2003-05-17The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity -13 square meters per square second.1939Sfc1 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
858 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-71 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1039 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
15 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
-13 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
50 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
-0.4

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WUUS52 KMLB 172143
SVRMLB
FLC069-172245-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MELBOURNE FL
541 PM EDT SAT MAY 17 2003

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MELBOURNE HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  LAKE COUNTY
  IN EAST CENTRAL FLORIDA

* UNTIL 645 PM EDT

* AT 536 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM 6 MILES NORTHEAST OF GROVELAND.  THE STORM WAS
  NEARLY STATIONARY.

* OTHER LOCATIONS IN THE WARNING INCLUDE CLERMONT

SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS PRODUCE DAMAGING WINDS IN EXCESS OF 58 MILES AN
HOUR...DESTRUCTIVE HAIL...DEADLY LIGHTNING AND VERY HEAVY RAIN. IF
THE STORM APPROACHES YOU...MOVE TO AN INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST
FLOOR.

LAT...LON 2872 8170 2872 8190 2846 8195 2847 8164

$$

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before this severe thunderstorm warning went out, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Melbourne, FL wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at May 17, 3:04 PM EDT, 2 hours 39 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, May 17, 3:04 PM EDT, 2 hours 39 minutes before
EAST CENTRAL FLORIDA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MELBOURNE FL
200 PM EDT SAT MAY 17 2003

SEA BREEZE NOW MOVING WEST THRU THE COASTAL CTYS ATTM. LOW LEVEL
RIDGE AXIS OVER SRN AREAS FAVORING FASTER INLAND PUSH IN THIS AREA.
DESPITE UPPER ANTICYCLONIC FLOW CONVECTION IS UNDERWAY AND MAY
RESULT IN FAIRLY HIGH COVERAGE OVER THE INTERIOR AND S WHERE
MOISTURE VALUES ARE GREATER. STEERING FLOW IS MINIMAL AND ACTVTY
SHOULD BE FOCUSED ALONG SEA BREEZE AND ANY MESO-BNDRYS THAT FORM.
WILL UP POPS FOR EVE ACTVTY OVER THE INTERIOR...ESP S.

MODELS INITIALIZED CUTOFF OVER THE LOWER MISS VLY QUITE WELL BUT
IMMEDIATELY DROP IT SOUTHWARD...WHICH IS CURRENTLY NOT HAPPENING AS
THE FEATURE CONTINUES TO SHIFT E. THIS TREND COMPLICATES FCST AS TO
HOW FEATURE INTERACTS WITH MESO-SCALE RIDGE OVER THE STATE AND ANY N
BRANCH WAVES IF ITS FCST PLACEMENT PROVES TO BE INCORRECT. THUS FAR
ETA AND GFS GUIDANCE RELATIVELY CONSISTENT. FNTL BNDRY/BACKDOOR CD
FNT OFF THE CAROLINA COAST IS NEARLY STATIONARY ATTM. SHORT WAVE
OVER THE GRT LAKES IS EXPECTED TO MOVE TO THE MID ATLC COAST AND
RAPIDLY DEVELOP SFC WAVE ALONG PERSISTENT BNDRY. THIS LOW LEVEL WAVE
IS FCST TO PUSH BACKDOOR FNT THRU THE SE ON TUESDAY. RATE OF SFC
DEVELOPMENT AND ADVANCMENT OF FNT VERY MUCH IN QUESTION. ABV FACTORS
MAKE FOR A RELATIVELY LOW CONFIDENCE FCST.

SUNDAY...BROAD LOW LEVEL RIDGE WILL CONTINUE TO BE ACROSS FCST AREA.
RELATIVELY WEAK STEERING FLOW AND SEA BREEZE DEVELOPMENT SHOULD
AGAIN FAVOR THE INTERIOR FOR AFTN/EVE SHRA/TS.

MONDAY...RIDGE BREAKS DOWN AS SFC WAVE BEGINS TO DEVELOP OFF THE
CAROLINA COAST. FNTL BNDRY MAY BE ON DOORSTEP FROM THE NE LATE IN
THE DAY. SYNOPTIC BNDRY AND SEA BREEZE SHOULD BOTH PROVIDE FOCUS FOR
CONVECTION. STEERING FLOW IS LIGHT/VRBL BUT BECOMES MAINLY E-W AS
MID LEVEL RIDGE FOLDS OVER TOP OF WEAKENING CUTOFF OVER THE GULF. AS
MENTIONED ABV EXACT SCENARIO FOR THIS FEATURE IS HIGHLY UNCERTAIN.

TUESDAY/EXTENDED...DEEP ERLY FLOW DEVELOPS AS BACKDOOR FNTL BNDRY
BECOMES DIFFUSE AND GETS RUN OVER BY LARGE SFC ANTICYCLONE MOVING
OFF THE E COAST. GFS GUIDANCE SHOWS SUBTANTIAL AMTS OF DRY AIR
MOVING IN FROM THE E. WILL DELAY DRYING SOME BUT LOWER POPS AND
RESTICT TO INTERIOR ON WEDNESDAY.

MARINE...SFC RIDGE WILL REMAIN OVER SRN WATERS ON SUNDAY. SEA BREEZE
CIRCUALTION EXPECTED DURING THE AFTN OCCURING FIRST S OF THE CAPE.
BACKDOOR CD FNT HUNG UP OFF THE S CAROLINA COAST NOW FCST TO PUSH
INTO AREA FROM THE NE ON TUESDAY.

PRELIM...
DAB WW 071/089 070/087 073 05131
MCO WW 072/091 071/090 071 05232
MLB WW 074/089 073/088 073 05-21

.MLB...NONE.

PUBLIC/MARINE...BLOTTMAN
AVIATION/FIRE...WIMMER
Hazardous weather outlook, May 17, 5:45 AM EDT, 11 hours 58 minutes before
AMZ550-555-570-575-FLZ041-044>047-053-054-058-059-064-141-144-147-
171900-

EAST CENTRAL FLORIDA HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MELBOURNE FL
545 AM EDT SAT MAY 17 2003

.DAY ONE...TODAY:

ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED THIS AFTERNOON AND EARLY EVENING
AS SEA AND LAKE BREEZE BOUNDARIES INTERACT.  THE GREATEST CHANCES
SHOULD BE OVER INTERIOR SECTIONS.  STORM MOTION WILL BE SLOW TODAY...
MAINLY TOWARDS THE SOUTH OR SOUTHEAST.  THE MAIN THREAT SHOULD BE
FROM LIGHTNING STRIKES.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY

SCATTERED AFTERNOON STORMS FAVORING THE INTERIOR ARE EXPECTED SUNDAY
AND MONDAY.  A WEAK SURFACE BOUNDARY IS FORECAST TO DROP INTO THE
STATE TUESDAY...WHICH MAY LEAD TO A LITTLE MORE COVERAGE OF STORMS.
STORM CHANCES MAY DIMINISH A LITTLE MID WEEK...THEN INCREASE AGAIN
BY THE END OF THE WEEK.

INCREASING SWELLS BY TUESDAY OR WEDNESDAY MAY RESULT IN AN ELEVATED
RIP CURRENT RISK.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT ANTICIPATED TODAY.

FOR A GRAPHICAL VERSION OF THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...GO TO
WWW.WEATHER.GOV AND CLICK ON EAST CENTRAL FLORIDA.

RL

In the hours before

Special weather statement, May 17, 3:20 PM EDT, 2 hours 23 minutes before
FLZ058-059-064-172000-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MELBOURNE FL
320 PM EDT SAT MAY 17 2003

...STRONG STORMS CAPABLE OF PRODUCING WINDS OVER 40 MPH AND FREQUENT
LIGHTNING WESTERN SAINT LUCIE AND INDIAN RIVER COUNTIES...

AT 315 PM...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED
THUNDERSTORMS ALONG THE SEA BREEZE IN WESTERN INDIAN RIVER AND
SAINT LUCIE COUNTIES CAPABLE OF PRODUCING HEAVY RAIN...FREQUENT
LIGHTNING AND WIND GUSTS OVER 40 MPH AS THEY MOVE SLOWLY WEST.

PERSONS IN EAST CENTRAL FLORIDA SHOULD REMAIN ALERT TO THE APPROACH
OF THUNDERSTORMS AND TAKE SHELTER BEFORE STORMS ARE OVERHEAD.

WIMMER

The office that day

Everything else NWS Melbourne, FL issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 17, 4:20 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMLBVolusia55 min
May 17, 4:56 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMLBSeminole49 min
May 17, 5:21 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMLBOrange54 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Florida, 2003Every severe thunderstorm warning 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; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.