Alert archive / Florida / Tornado Warnings in 2003

Tornado Warning 5, NWS Melbourne, FL

March 19, 2003Volusia County, Florida

NWS Melbourne, FL issued this tornado warning at Mar 19, 2003, 7:44 PM EST for Volusia County, Florida. It was in force for 31 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
Mar 19, 2003, 7:44 PM EST (00:44 UTC)
Expired
Mar 19, 2003, 8:15 PM EST
In force
31 min
Issued by
NWS Melbourne, FL
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Volusia County, FL

The radar

The Melbourne radar (KMLB), 91 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 00:46 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.

The nearest sounding before it

Cape Canaveral, FL (KXMR), launched 00:00Z, 0.7 hours before the alert went out and 62 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, Cape Canaveral, FL at 00:00Z on 2003-03-20Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 3048 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, Cape Canaveral, FL at 00:00Z on 2003-03-20The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 126 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
3048 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-16 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
701 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
45 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
126 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
130 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
2.7
Supercell composite
9.7

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

882 
WFUS52 KMLB 200044
TORMLB
FLC127-200115-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MELBOURNE FL
743 PM EST WED MAR 19 2003

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MELBOURNE HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  SOUTHEASTERN VOLUSIA COUNTY
  IN EAST CENTRAL FLORIDA

* UNTIL 815 PM EST

* AT 743 PM EST...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  TORNADO 6 MILES WEST OF OAK HILL...OR ABOUT 6 MILES NORTHEAST OF
  MAYTOWN...MOVING EAST AT 20 MPH.

* THE TORNADO IS EXPECTED TO BE...
  NEAR OAK HILL...APOLLO BEACH...ELDORA AT 755 PM EST

IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH OF A TORNADO...THE SAFEST PLACE IS IN A STRONG
BUILDING ON THE LOWEST FLOOR. MOVE TO AN INTERIOR ROOM SUCH AS A
BATHROOM OR CLOSET. KEEP AWAY FROM WINDOWS. IF NECESSARY...GET UNDER
A WORKBENCH OR OTHER PIECE OF STURDY FURNITURE. USE BLANKETS OR
PILLOWS TO COVER YOUR BODY. ABANDON YOUR MOBILE HOME OR RV FOR MORE
SUBSTANTIAL SHELTER. IF YOU ARE CAUGHT OUTSIDE...GET INTO AN
UNFLOODED DITCH OR LOW SPOT AND COVER YOUR HEAD WITH YOUR HANDS AND
ARMS. ABANDON YOUR VEHICLE IF THE TORNADO IS NEARBY.

TORNADOES AT NIGHT ARE DIFFICULT TO SEE. WATCH FOR THE POPPING OF
ELECTRIC LINES AND TRANSFORMERS OR LISTEN FOR THE SOUND OF LOUD
RUMBLING AS THAT OF AN APPROACHING FRIEGHT TRAIN. TORNADOES ARE OFTEN
ASSOCIATED WITH STORMS WHICH ALSO PRODUCE LARGE HAIL AND EXCESSIVE
LIGHTNING.

LAT...LON 2896 8103 2878 8101 2880 8073 2899 8075

$$

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Mar 19, 7:13 PM ESTTornado WarningMLBVolusia32 min
Mar 19, 7:30 PM ESTSpecial Marine WarningMLB90 min
Mar 19, 7:37 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMLBBrevard38 min
Mar 20, 4:54 PM ESTSpecial Marine WarningMLB81 min
Mar 20, 4:58 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMLBVolusia62 min
Mar 20, 6:15 PM ESTSpecial Marine WarningMLB60 min
Mar 20, 6:18 PM ESTSpecial Marine WarningMLB87 min
Mar 20, 6:45 PM ESTSpecial Marine WarningMLB90 min
Mar 20, 6:45 PM ESTSpecial Marine WarningMLB90 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Florida, 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; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.