Alert archive / Florida / Tornado Warnings in 2003

Tornado Warning 5, NWS Mobile, AL

March 17, 2003Escambia County, Florida; Baldwin County, Alabama

NWS Mobile, AL issued this tornado warning at Mar 17, 2003, 3:11 AM CST for Escambia County, Florida; Baldwin County, Alabama. It was in force for 34 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 17, 2003, 3:11 AM CST (09:11 UTC)
Expired
Mar 17, 2003, 3:45 AM CST
In force
34 min
Issued by
NWS Mobile, AL
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

Counties Baldwin County, AL, Escambia County, FL

The radar

The Mobile radar (KMOB), 82 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 09:11 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

Slidell Radar S, LA (KSIL), launched 00:00Z, 9.2 hours before the alert went out and 208 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 2003-03-17Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 59 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 2003-03-17The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 10 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
59 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-8 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
622 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
26 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
10 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
22 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.

055 
WFUS54 KMOB 170911
TORMOB
ALC003-FLC033-170945-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MOBILE AL
310 AM CST MON MAR 17 2003

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MOBILE HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  SOUTHERN BALDWIN COUNTY IN SOUTHWEST ALABAMA
  SOUTHERN ESCAMBIA COUNTY IN NORTHWEST FLORIDA

* UNTIL 345 AM CST

* AT 305 AM CST...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  TORNADO 5 MILES SOUTH OF ALABAMA POINT...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 25
  MPH.

* THE TORNADO WILL BE NEAR...
  ALABAMA POINT...CASWELL BY 315 AM CST
  JOSEPHINE BY 320 AM CST
  PERDIDO KEY...PERDIDO BEACH BY 325 AM CST
  JOHNSONS BEACH BY 330 AM CST

IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH OF A TORNADO...ABANDON VEHICLES AND TRAILER
HOMES AND SEEK A REINFORCED SHELTER UNTIL THE STORM HAS PASSED.

LAT...LON 3021 8771 3007 8751 3041 8720 3039 8756

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Mar 17, 2:15 AM CSTSpecial Marine WarningMOB90 min
Mar 17, 2:15 AM CSTSpecial Marine WarningMOB90 min
Mar 17, 4:45 AM CSTSpecial Marine WarningMOB2 hr

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Florida, 2003Tornado 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; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.