Alert archive / Florida / Tornado Warnings in 2003

Tornado Warning 6, NWS Mobile, AL

March 18, 2003Okaloosa County, Florida

NWS Mobile, AL issued this tornado warning at Mar 18, 2003, 6:23 PM CST for Okaloosa County, Florida. It was in force for 37 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 18, 2003, 6:23 PM CST (00:23 UTC)
Expired
Mar 18, 2003, 7:00 PM CST
In force
37 min
Issued by
NWS Mobile, AL
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Okaloosa County, FL

The nearest sounding before it

Tallahassee Rgnl, FL (KTLH), launched 00:00Z, 0.4 hours before the alert went out and 223 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, Tallahassee Rgnl, FL at 00:00Z on 2003-03-19Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 81 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, Tallahassee Rgnl, FL at 00:00Z on 2003-03-19The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 29 square meters per square second.1939587897Sfc1 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
81 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-48 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1272 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
53 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
29 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
114 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.

168 
WFUS54 KMOB 190023
TORMOB
FLC091-190100-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MOBILE AL
622 PM CST TUE MAR 18 2003

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MOBILE HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  OKALOOSA COUNTY IN NORTHWEST FLORIDA

* UNTIL 700 PM CST

* AT 617 PM CST...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  TORNADO 7 MILES SOUTH OF MARY ESTHER...MOVING NORTH AT 20 MPH.

* THE TORNADO WILL BE NEAR...
  CINCO BAYOU...OCEAN CITY BY 635 PM CST
  SHALIMAR...LAKE LORRAINE BY 640 PM CST
  EGLIN AFB BY 645 PM CST
  POSTIL BY 650 PM 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 3029 8677 3024 8657 3066 8637 3074 8664

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Mar 18, 7:02 PM CSTTornado WarningMOBOkaloosa28 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.