Alert archive / Florida / Tornado Watches in 2003

Tornado Watch 163

April 25, 20034 counties in Alabama; 13 counties in Florida; Decatur County, Grady County, Seminole County, Georgia

The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at Apr 25, 2003, 6:05 AM CDT for 4 counties in Alabama; 13 counties in Florida; Decatur County, Grady County, Seminole County, Georgia. It was in force for 6 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Apr 25, 2003, 6:05 AM CDT (11:05 UTC)
Expired
Apr 25, 2003, 12:00 PM CDT
In force
6 hr
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center

Counties Coffee County, AL, Covington County, AL, Geneva County, AL, Houston County, AL, Bay County, FL, Calhoun County, FL, Franklin County, FL, Gadsden County, FL, Gulf County, FL, Holmes County, FL, Jackson County, FL, Leon County, FL, Liberty County, FL, Okaloosa County, FL, Wakulla County, FL, Walton County, FL, Washington County, FL, Decatur County, GA, Grady County, GA, Seminole County, GA

Warnings issued inside it

7 tornado, severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings for its counties while it was in force.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Apr 25, 6:25 AM CDTTornado WarningMOBCovington35 min
Apr 25, 6:52 AM CDTTornado WarningTAECoffee, Geneva38 min
Apr 25, 6:54 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMOBOkaloosa51 min
Apr 25, 7:52 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTAEHolmes, Jackson, Washington23 min
Apr 25, 9:13 AM CDTTornado WarningTAEDecatur, Grady47 min
Apr 25, 10:03 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTAEFranklin, Gulf42 min
Apr 25, 10:42 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTAELiberty, Wakulla33 min

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, 11.1 hours before the alert went out and 133 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 2003-04-25Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 0 joules per kilogram.LCL10008507005003002001001 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 2003-04-25The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 93 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
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL
1277 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
33 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
93 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
208 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.

000 
WWUS20 KWNS 251107
SEL3  
SPC WW 251105
ALZ000-FLZ000-GAZ000-CWZ000-251700-

URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 163 
NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK 
605 AM CDT FRI APR 25 2003

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

       SOUTHEAST ALABAMA
       FLORIDA PANHANDLE
       EXTREME SOUTHWEST GEORGIA
	 COASTAL WATERS       

EFFECTIVE THIS FRIDAY MORNING FROM 605 AM UNTIL 
1200 PM CDT.

TORNADOES...HAIL TO 2 INCHES IN DIAMETER...THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS
TO 70 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS.

THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS ALONG AND 55 STATUTE MILES NORTH AND
SOUTH OF A LINE FROM 5 MILES WEST OF CRESTVIEW FLORIDA TO 20 MILES
SOUTH SOUTHEAST OF TALLAHASSEE FLORIDA.

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.




DISCUSSION...CLUSTER OF THUNDERSTORMS NEAR MOB AND OVER JUST
OFFSHORE WILL TRACK EASTWARD TOWARD THE FL PANHANDLE DURING THE NEXT
FEW HOURS.  SURFACE WARM FRONT LIES IN THIS REGION...WHERE EARLIER
STORM PRODUCED A TORNADO.  THESE NEW STORMS MAY ALSO INTERACT WITH
THE BOUNDARY AND INTENSIFY RAPIDLY.  ORGANIZATION OF STORMS INTO
SMALL BOW SEGMENTS MAY ALSO OCCUR WITH AN ENHANCED THREAT OF
DAMAGING WINDS.

AVIATION...TORDADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL
SURFACE AND ALOFT TO 2 INCHES. EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE WIND
GUSTS TO 60 KNOTS. A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO 500.
MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 24035.


...HART

313,0863 305,0841 292,0841 295,0863

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Apr 25, 1:15 AM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCChoctaw, Clarke, Greene, Hale, Marengo, Pickens and 2 more90 min
Apr 25, 3:05 AM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBaldwin, Bibb, Butler, Choctaw, Clarke, Conecuh and 17 more85 min
Apr 25, 5:40 AM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBaldwin, Coffee, Covington, Dale, Escambia, Geneva and 2 more65 min
Apr 25, 7:41 AM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCHouston94 min
Apr 25, 11:04 AM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCColbert, Franklin, Lauderdale, Marion, Winston116 min
Apr 25, 12:45 PM CDTTornado WatchSPCAutauga, Bibb, Blount, Bullock, Butler, Calhoun and 45 more5 hr
Apr 25, 12:59 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAutauga, Bibb, Blount, Chilton, Choctaw, Coosa and 15 more2 hr
Apr 25, 3:08 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAutauga, Bibb, Blount, Bullock, Calhoun, Chambers and 24 more2 hr
Apr 25, 5:16 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAutauga, Barbour, Bibb, Bullock, Butler, Chilton and 15 more59 min
Apr 25, 5:40 PM CDTTornado WatchSPCBarbour, Bullock, Butler, Choctaw, Clarke, Coffee and 10 more5 hr
Apr 25, 9:22 AM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCGadsden, Hamilton, Jefferson, Leon, Liberty, Madison and 1 more113 min
Apr 25, 10:45 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCBaker, Columbia, Hamilton, Jefferson, Lafayette, Madison and 3 more5 hr
Apr 25, 12:01 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAlachua, Baker, Bradford, Citrus, Clay, Columbia and 15 more119 min
Apr 25, 1:15 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCAlachua, Bradford, Citrus, Clay, Duval, Flagler and 10 more5 hr
Apr 25, 2:17 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAlachua, Bradford, Citrus, Clay, Duval, Flagler and 10 more118 min
Apr 25, 5:35 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCCitrus, Hernando, Lake, Orange, Pasco, Seminole and 2 more55 min
Apr 25, 5:00 PM CDTTornado WatchSPCBarrow, Bartow, Bibb, Butts, Carroll, Catoosa and 51 more5 hr

Nearby

Tornado Watches in Florida, 2003Tornado Watches in Alabama, 2003Tornado Watches in Georgia, 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.