Alert archive / Georgia / Tornado Watches in 2003

Tornado Watch 15

February 21, 200311 counties in Alabama; 9 counties in Florida; 27 counties in Georgia

The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at Feb 21, 2003, 11:40 PM CST for 11 counties in Alabama; 9 counties in Florida; 27 counties in Georgia. It was in force for 6 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Feb 21, 2003, 11:40 PM CST (05:40 UTC)
Expired
Feb 22, 2003, 6:00 AM CST
In force
6 hr
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
All 47 counties

Barbour County, AL, Bullock County, AL, Coffee County, AL, Dale County, AL, Geneva County, AL, Henry County, AL, Houston County, AL, Lee County, AL, Macon County, AL, Pike County, AL, Russell County, AL, Bay County, FL, Calhoun County, FL, Gadsden County, FL, Gulf County, FL, Holmes County, FL, Jackson County, FL, Liberty County, FL, Walton County, FL, Washington County, FL, Baker County, GA, Bibb County, GA, Calhoun County, GA, Chattahoochee County, GA, Clay County, GA, Crawford County, GA, Decatur County, GA, Dougherty County, GA, Early County, GA, Harris County, GA, Lee County, GA, Macon County, GA, Marion County, GA, Miller County, GA, Mitchell County, GA, Muscogee County, GA, Peach County, GA, Quitman County, GA, Randolph County, GA, Schley County, GA, Seminole County, GA, Stewart County, GA, Sumter County, GA, Talbot County, GA, Taylor County, GA, Terrell County, GA, Webster County, GA

Discussions around it

SPC mesoscale discussions over the same counties from four hours before the watch to its end.

The nearest sounding before it

Tallahassee Rgnl, FL (KTLH), launched 00:00Z, 5.7 hours before the alert went out and 136 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 2003-02-22Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 662 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 2003-02-22The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 61 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
662 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-19 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
557 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
52 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
61 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
65 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.3
Supercell composite
1.9

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WWUS20 KWNS 220537
SEL5
SPC WW 220540
ALZ000-FLZ000-GAZ000-CWZ000-221200-

URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 15
STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
1140 PM CST FRI FEB 21 2003

THE STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF

   SOUTHEAST ALABAMA                            
   FLORIDA PANHANDLE                            
   SOUTHWEST GEORGIA                            
   COASTAL WATERS                     

EFFECTIVE THIS FRIDAY NIGHT AND SATURDAY MORNING FROM 1140 PM UNTIL
600 AM CST.

TORNADOES...HAIL TO 1 INCH IN DIAMETER...THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS TO
70 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS.

THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS ALONG AND 65 STATUTE MILES EAST AND WEST
OF A LINE FROM 30 MILES SOUTH OF PANAMA CITY FLORIDA TO 25 MILES
NORTH NORTHEAST OF COLUMBUS GEORGIA.

REMEMBER...A TORNADO WATCH MEANS CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR
TORNADOES AND SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IN AND CLOSE TO THE WATCH AREA. 
PERSONS IN THESE AREAS SHOULD BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR THREATENING
WEATHER CONDITIONS AND LISTEN FOR LATER STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE
WARNINGS.

OTHER WATCH INFORMATION...  CONTINUE...WW 13...WW 14...

DISCUSSION...AIR MASS WILL CONTINUE DESTABILIZING ACROSS REGION AS
VERY STRONG SLY LOW LEVEL FLOW AND NWD MOTION OF WARM FRONT SUPPORT
MID/UPPER 60F SURFACE DEW POINTS SPREADING ACROSS WW OVERNIGHT. 
LOW LEVEL SHEAR REMAINS VERY STRONG AND WILL BE SUPPORTIVE OF
SUPERCELLS AND A FEW TORNADOES...AS CONVECTION GRADUALLY INCREASES
THROUGH THE EARLY MORNING HOURS.


AVIATION...TORNADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL
SURFACE AND ALOFT TO 1 INCH...EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE WIND
GUSTS TO 60 KNOTS.  A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO 500. 
MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 22050.


...EVANS

325,0833 294,0843 294,0864 325,0855

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Feb 21, 7:26 PM CSTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBaldwin, Clarke, Mobile, Washington2 hr
Feb 21, 8:15 PM CSTTornado WatchSPCBaldwin, Butler, Clarke, Conecuh, Covington, Crenshaw and 4 more6 hr
Feb 21, 9:03 PM CSTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAutauga, Bibb, Blount, Chilton, Choctaw, Coosa and 22 more3 hr
Feb 21, 9:30 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCAutauga, Bibb, Calhoun, Chilton, Choctaw, Clay and 20 more7 hr
Feb 21, 10:22 PM CSTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBaldwin, Butler, Clarke, Conecuh, Covington, Crenshaw and 4 more113 min
Feb 21, 10:40 PM CSTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAutauga, Bibb, Calhoun, Chilton, Choctaw, Clay and 20 more2 hr
Feb 21, 11:14 PM CSTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBlount, Calhoun, Cherokee, Cleburne, Cullman, DeKalb and 16 more4 hr
Feb 22, 12:35 AM CSTTornado WatchSPCAutauga, Baldwin, Bibb, Bullock, Butler, Calhoun and 37 more5 hr
Feb 22, 2:47 AM CSTMesoscale DiscussionSPCCalhoun, Cherokee, Cleburne, DeKalb, Etowah, Jackson and 4 more3 hr
Feb 22, 3:35 AM CSTTornado WatchSPCBlount, Calhoun, Chambers, Cherokee, Chilton, Clay and 12 more2 hr
Feb 22, 3:51 AM CSTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAutauga, Baldwin, Barbour, Bibb, Bullock, Butler and 43 more114 min
Feb 22, 5:19 AM CSTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBarbour, Henry, Houston, Russell56 min
Feb 22, 5:50 AM CSTTornado WatchSPCHenry, Houston5 hr
Feb 22, 9:14 AM CSTMesoscale DiscussionSPCDeKalb, Jackson, Marshall2 hr
Feb 22, 10:35 AM CSTTornado WatchSPCDeKalb, Jackson5 hr
Feb 21, 6:18 PM CSTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBaker, Bradford, Clay, Columbia, Duval, Hamilton and 7 more3 hr
Feb 22, 9:59 AM CSTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBaker, Duval, Nassau61 min
Feb 22, 10:55 AM CSTTornado WatchSPCAlachua, Baker, Bradford, Clay, Columbia, Duval and 6 more5 hr
Feb 22, 11:55 AM CSTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBrevard, Charlotte, DeSoto, Glades, Hardee, Highlands and 11 more3 hr
Feb 22, 12:33 PM CSTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBrevard, Charlotte, DeSoto, Dixie, Glades, Hardee and 13 more117 min
Feb 22, 12:49 PM CSTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAlachua, Bradford, Clay, Duval, Nassau, Putnam and 1 more116 min
Feb 22, 2:48 PM CSTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBrevard, Charlotte, DeSoto, Flagler, Hardee, Highlands and 14 more27 min
Feb 22, 2:31 PM CSTMesoscale DiscussionSPCCatoosa, Murray, Walker, Whitfield119 min

Nearby

Tornado Watches in Georgia, 2003Tornado Watches in Alabama, 2003Tornado Watches in Florida, 2003Every tornado watch 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.