Alert archive / Georgia / Tornado Warnings in 2003

Tornado Warning 15, NWS Tallahassee, FL

March 20, 2003Decatur County, Seminole County, Georgia; Jackson County, Florida

NWS Tallahassee, FL issued this tornado warning at Mar 20, 2003, 3:56 AM EST for Decatur County, Seminole County, Georgia; Jackson County, Florida. It was in force for 49 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 20, 2003, 3:56 AM EST (08:56 UTC)
Expired
Mar 20, 2003, 4:45 AM EST
In force
49 min
Issued by
NWS Tallahassee, FL
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

Counties Jackson County, FL, Decatur County, GA, Seminole County, GA

The radar

The Tallahassee radar (KTLH), 76 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 08:56 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 watch it was issued in

The SPC watch in force over the same counties when this warning went out.

IssuedProductOfficeLasted
Mar 19, 10:25 PM ESTTornado WatchSPC6 hr
Mar 20, 3:40 AM ESTTornado WatchSPC5 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Tallahassee Rgnl, FL (KTLH), launched 00:00Z, 8.9 hours before the alert went out and 77 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 2003-03-20Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1137 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, Tallahassee Rgnl, FL at 00:00Z on 2003-03-20The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 140 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
1137 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-2 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
511 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
61 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
140 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
162 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.9
Supercell composite
4.3

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

774 
WFUS52 KTAE 200856
TORTLH
FLC063-GAC087-253-200945-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TALLAHASSEE FL
355 AM EST THU MAR 20 2003

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN TALLAHASSEE HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  EASTERN JACKSON COUNTY IN FLORIDA
  DECATUR COUNTY IN GEORGIA
  THIS INCLUDES BAINBRIDGE...
  SEMINOLE COUNTY IN GEORGIA
  THIS INCLUDES DONALSONVILLE...

* UNTIL 445 AM EST (345 AM CST)

* AT 248 AM CST NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  DEVELOPING TORNADO 25 MILES SOUTHWEST OF DONALSONVILLE...OR ABOUT
  11 MILES EAST OF MARIANNA...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 50 MPH.

* THE TORNADO WILL BE NEAR...
  DONALSONVILLE BY 410 AM EST...
  WEST BAINBRIDGE BY 420 AM EST...
  BAINBRIDGE BY 425 AM EST...

IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH OF THIS TORNADO...ABANDON YOUR MOBILE HOME FOR
A REINFORCED SHELTER.

LAT...LON 3079 8513 3063 8502 3089 8452 3106 8464
          3105 8495

$$

17-GOULD

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Mar 20, 4:47 AM ESTTornado WarningTAEBaker, Mitchell43 min
Mar 20, 5:31 AM ESTTornado WarningTAEWorth44 min
Mar 20, 11:37 AM ESTTornado WarningTAEColquitt, Cook23 min
Mar 20, 11:53 AM ESTTornado WarningTAEBerrien22 min
Mar 20, 12:17 PM ESTTornado WarningTAEBerrien28 min
Mar 20, 12:15 AM ESTTornado WarningTAEWalton45 min
Mar 20, 12:51 AM ESTSpecial Marine WarningTAE114 min
Mar 20, 2:37 AM ESTTornado WarningTAEBay38 min
Mar 20, 3:19 AM ESTTornado WarningTAEBay, Calhoun, Jackson41 min
Mar 20, 5:44 AM ESTFlash Flood WarningTAEBay3 hr

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Georgia, 2003Tornado 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.