Alert archive / Florida / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2003
Severe Thunderstorm Warning 48, NWS Tampa Bay, FL
NWS Tampa Bay, FL issued this severe thunderstorm warning at May 24, 2003, 7:49 PM EDT for Polk County, Florida. It was in force for 26 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
- May 24, 2003, 7:49 PM EDT (23:49 UTC)
- Expired
- May 24, 2003, 8:15 PM EDT
- In force
- 26 min
- Issued by
- NWS Tampa Bay, FL
- Area
- Counties, with a storm outline in the text
County Polk County, FL
Did it verify
Not verified. The Iowa Environmental Mesonet's Cow found no qualifying storm report inside this severe thunderstorm warning while it was in force. That is not proof nothing happened: reports are thin where few people live.
Cow counts a report within 15 km of the polygon while the warning was in force: a tornado for a tornado warning; hail of 1 inch or more, a gust of 58 mph or more or wind damage for a severe thunderstorm warning; a flash flood report for a flash flood warning.
The nearest sounding before it
Tampa Bay, FL (KTBW), launched 12:00Z, 11.8 hours before the alert went out and 57 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.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 2150 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -6 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 560 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 9 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 41 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 42 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.0
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000 WUUS52 KTBW 242349 SVRTBW FLC105-250015- BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAMPA BAY AREA - RUSKIN FL 748 PM EDT SAT MAY 24 2003 THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN RUSKIN HAS ISSUED A * SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR... WESTERN POLK COUNTY IN FLORIDA. * UNTIL 815 PM EDT * AT 748 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WITH LARGE HAIL...OVER LAKELAND...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 10 MPH. * THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WILL AFFECT... CRYSTAL LAKE BY 815 PM EDT. AT 745 PM EDT...WEATHER SPOTTERS ALSO REPORTED DIME SIZE HAIL IN THE SOUTH LAKELAND AREA MOVE INSIDE A STURDY BUILDING. DAMAGING WIND...LARGE HAIL... TORRENTIAL RAIN...AND DEADLY LIGHTNING ARE EXPECTED. STAY INSIDE AWAY FROM WINDOWS UNTIL THE STORM HAS PASSED. FREQUENT CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING IS OCCURRING WITH THIS STORM. MOVE INDOORS IMMEDIATELY. DO NOT USE ELECTRICAL APPLIANCES OR TELEPHONES. && LAT...LON 2797 8205 2786 8192 2802 8172 2814 8189 $$ 57
What forecasters said that day
The local office's own words before this severe thunderstorm warning went out, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Tampa Bay, FL wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at May 24, 2:45 PM EDT, 5 hours 4 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, May 24, 2:45 PM EDT, 5 hours 4 minutes before
WEST CENTRAL AND SOUTHWEST FLORIDA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAMPA BAY AREA - RUSKIN FL 245 PM EDT SAT MAY 24 2003 CURRENTLY... WEAK LOW PRESSURE AREA CONTINUES THE AREA. DEWPOINTS IN LOWER 70S BUT 60S N AND E OF FA. AFTERNOON CONVECTION DEVELOPED INLAND FROM THE COAST AND CONTINUES TO MOVE EAST. SHORT TERM (TON-MON)...MAIN MID/UPPER TROF STAYS TO WEST WITH WEAK SHORT WAVES ROTATING THROUGH. WEAK SURFACE PATTERN WITH RIDGE TO SOUTH WITH S-W FLOW FAVORS CONVECTION OVER THE WATER AT NIGHT AND DEVELOPMENT INTO INLAND LAND AREAS DURING THE AFTERNOON. EXTENDED (TUE-SAT)...UPPER LEVEL TROUGH WILL REMAIN OVER EASTERN U.S. THROUGH THURSDAY WITH SURFACE RIDGE AXIS REMAINING SOUTH OF THE FORECAST AREA. GFS STILL INDICATING THAT A WEAK COLD FRONT WILL MOVE DOWN THE PENINSULA TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY WITH SCATTERED SHOWERS AND ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS. HIGH PRESSURE WILL THEN BUILD OVER THE FORECAST AREA FOR THE SECOND HALF OF THE WEEK. THIS WILL BRING IN SLIGHTLY DRIER AIR AND WITH RAIN CHANCES GENERALLY LESS THAN 20 PERCENT WILL LEAVE RAIN OUT OF FORECAST AT THIS TIME. TEMPERATURES WILL REMAIN NEAR SEASONAL NORMALS THROUGH THE PERIOD. MARINE... GENERALLY LIGHT FLOW ACROSS THE WATERS. SST WARMING WITH NIGHT TIME CONVECTION. FIRE WEATHER... WIND RH AND DISPERSION BELOW CRITIERIA. CCFTBW TPA BB 074/088 075/088 074 03222 FMY BB 072/091 075/091 074 03222 GIF BB 072/091 074/091 072 03444 SRQ BB 074/086 076/086 073 03222 BKV BB 068/090 069/090 068 03222 .TBW...NONE. CP/PRC
Hazardous weather outlook, May 24, 5:40 AM EDT, 14 hours 9 minutes before
FLZ039-042-043-048>052-055>057-060>062-065-241600- HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAMPA BAY AREA - RUSKIN FL 540 AM EDT SAT MAY 24 2003 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR WEST CENTRAL AND SOUTHWEST FLORIDA. .DAY ONE...TODAY: SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL DEVELOP ACROSS THE AREA AGAIN TODAY...FIRST ALONG THE COAST EARLY THIS MORNING THEN INLAND BY LATE MORNING. A WATERSPOUT OR TWO IS POSSIBLE THIS MORNING WITH THE COASTAL SHOWERS. MARINERS AND COASTAL RESIDENTS SHOULD MONITOR THE WEATHER FOR WATERSPOUT DEVELOPMENT. THE MAIN THREATS FROM TODAYS STORMS WILL BE FREQUENT DANGEROUS LIGHTNING AND BECAUSE THE STORMS WILL MOVE VERY SLOWLY...LOCALIZED VERY HEAVY RAIN AND MINOR FLOODING IS POSSIBLE. WHEN SKIES DARKEN...MOVE INDOORS. IF THERE IS TIME...UNPLUG APPLIANCES AND ELECTRICAL EQUIPMENT. WAIT UNTIL THE STORM ENDS BEFORE USING THE TELEPHONE OR RUNNING WATER. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY: ALTHOUGH AFTERNOON SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE THROUGH THE PERIOD HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS NOT EXPECTED. .SPOTTER CALL TO ACTION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED.
In the hours before
Special weather statement, May 24, 7:04 PM EDT, 45 minutes before
FLZ052-242345- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAMPA BAY AREA - RUSKIN FL 704 PM EDT SAT MAY 24 2003 ...FUNNEL CLOUDS ARE POSSIBLE IN WESTERN POLK COUNTY... AT 653 PM EDT...POLK COUNTY FIRE RESCUE ALONG WITH SKYWARN SPOTTERS REPORTED A FUNNEL CLOUD ALONG HIGHWAY 60 SOUTHWEST OF MULBERRY. DOPPLER RADAR SHOWED AN AREA OF THUNDERSTORMS OVER WESTERN POLK COUNTY NEAR MULBERRY MOVING NORTHEAST AT 10 MPH. FUNNEL CLOUDS CAN BECOME BRIEF...SMALL...BUT DANGEROUS TORNADOES. MOVE INDOORS IMMEDIATELY...AND STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS. THIS THUNDERSTORM WILL AFFECT WILLOW OAK...MULBERRY...LAKELAND THROUGH 745 PM EDT. MCMICHAEL
Special weather statement, May 24, 7:07 PM EDT, 42 minutes before
FLZ052-242345- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT...CORRECTED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAMPA BAY AREA - RUSKIN FL 707 PM EDT SAT MAY 24 2003 ...FUNNEL CLOUDS ARE POSSIBLE IN WESTERN POLK COUNTY... AT 653 PM EDT...POLK COUNTY FIRE RESCUE ALONG WITH SKYWARN SPOTTERS REPORTED A FUNNEL CLOUD ALONG HIGHWAY 60 SOUTHWEST OF MULBERRY. DOPPLER RADAR SHOWED AN AREA OF THUNDERSTORMS OVER WESTERN POLK COUNTY NEAR MULBERRY MOVING NORTHEAST AT 10 MPH. FUNNEL CLOUDS CAN BECOME BRIEF...SMALL...BUT DANGEROUS TORNADOES. MOVE INDOORS IMMEDIATELY...AND STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS. THIS THUNDERSTORM WILL AFFECT WILLOW OAK...MULBERRY...LAKELAND HIGHLANDS THROUGH 745 PM EDT. MCMICHAEL
Nearby
Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Florida, 2003Every severe thunderstorm warning 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.