Alert archive / Florida / Tornado Warnings in 2009

Tornado Warning 3, NWS Miami, FL

May 20, 2009Palm Beach County, Florida

NWS Miami, FL issued this tornado warning at May 20, 2009, 12:04 PM EDT for Palm Beach County, Florida. It was in force for 26 min. 1 report came from inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The outline as issued, with what was reported inside it.

The facts

Issued: May 20, 2009, 12:04 PM EDT (16:04 UTC)
Expired: May 20, 2009, 12:30 PM EDT
In force: 26 min
Issued by: NWS Miami, FL
Area: Storm-based polygon

County Palm Beach County, FL

The radar

The Miami radar (KAMX), 112 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 16:03 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.

What was reported inside it

Time	Report	Where	Remark
May 20, 12:25 PM EDT	HAIL 0.25	Lantana, FL	PEA SIZED HAIL WAS REPORTED ALONG FEDERAL HIGHWAY IN LANTANA.

Local storm reports filed while the alert was in force, from inside its polygon or its counties.

The nearest sounding before it

Miami, FL (KMFL), launched 12:00Z, 4.1 hours before the alert went out and 86 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-p

Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.

Hodograph

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: 1791 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -13 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 761 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 24 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 65 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 85 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.4
Supercell composite: 2.2

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WFUS52 KMFL 201604
TORMFL
FLC099-201630-
/O.NEW.KMFL.TO.W.0003.090520T1604Z-090520T1630Z/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MIAMI FL
1204 PM EDT WED MAY 20 2009

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MIAMI HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  EAST CENTRAL PALM BEACH COUNTY IN SOUTH FLORIDA.

* UNTIL 1230 PM EDT

* AT 1202 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR WAS
  TRACKING A TORNADO NEAR OCEAN RIDGE...MOVING NORTHWEST AT 15 MPH.


* THE TORNADO WILL BE NEAR...
  OCEAN RIDGE...
  BOYNTON BEACH...
  LAKE WORTH...
  AND SURROUNDING COMMUNITIES.

THE PUBLIC REPORTED A TORNADO NEAR I95 AND BOYNTON BEACH BLVD.

WHEN A TORNADO WARNING IS ISSUED BASED ON DOPPLER RADAR...IT MEANS
THAT STRONG ROTATION HAS BEEN DETECTED IN THE STORM. A TORNADO MAY
ALREADY BE ON THE GROUND...OR COULD POSSIBLY DEVELOP ANYTIME. IF YOU
ARE IN THE PATH OF THIS DANGEROUS STORM...MOVE INDOORS AND TO THE
LOWEST LEVEL OF THE BUILDING. STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS. IF DRIVING...DO
NOT SEEK SHELTER UNDER A HIGHWAY OVERPASS.

LAT...LON 2655 8004 2651 8004 2650 8005 2651 8010
      2666 8006 2664 8003 2655 8003
TIME...MOT...LOC 1604Z 126DEG 14KT 2654 8002

$$

GR

1 follow-up statement

343 
WWUS52 KMFL 201625
SVSMFL

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MIAMI FL
1225 PM EDT WED MAY 20 2009

FLC099-201634-
/O.EXP.KMFL.TO.W.0003.000000T0000Z-090520T1630Z/
PALM BEACH FL-
1225 PM EDT WED MAY 20 2009

...THE TORNADO WARNING FOR EAST CENTRAL PALM BEACH COUNTY WILL EXPIRE
AT 1230 PM EDT...

NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR INDICATED THAT THE TORNADO HAS 
DISSIPATED WITH THE STORM OVER BOYNTON BEACH. THUS THE TORNADO 
WARNING WILL EXPIRE AT 1230 PM EDT.

LAT...LON 2655 8004 2651 8004 2650 8005 2651 8010
      2666 8006 2664 8003 2655 8003
TIME...MOT...LOC 1624Z 126DEG 14KT 2658 8009

$$

BAXTER

The office that day

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

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
May 20, 1:05 AM EDT	Special Marine Warning	MFL		25 min
May 20, 3:35 AM EDT	Coastal Flood Statement	MFL	Broward, Miami-Dade, Palm Beach	16 hr
May 20, 9:43 AM EDT	Special Marine Warning	MFL		32 min
May 20, 10:45 AM EDT	Special Marine Warning	MFL		60 min
May 20, 11:41 AM EDT	Special Marine Warning	MFL		64 min
May 20, 12:24 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	MFL	Palm Beach	51 min
May 20, 12:30 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	MFL	Palm Beach	30 min
May 20, 12:33 PM EDT	Special Marine Warning	MFL		57 min
May 20, 12:39 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	MFL	Broward	66 min
May 20, 12:46 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	MFL	Palm Beach	19 min
May 20, 12:52 PM EDT	Special Marine Warning	MFL		113 min
May 20, 1:20 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MFL	Palm Beach	13 min
May 20, 1:22 PM EDT	Special Marine Warning	MFL		53 min
May 20, 1:30 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MFL	Palm Beach	30 min
May 20, 1:35 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	MFL	Glades	55 min
May 20, 1:54 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MFL	Glades	18 min
May 20, 1:58 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MFL	Palm Beach	21 min
May 20, 2:17 PM EDT	Special Marine Warning	MFL		58 min
May 20, 2:35 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	MFL	Glades	55 min
May 20, 2:38 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	MFL	Palm Beach	67 min
May 20, 2:41 PM EDT	Special Marine Warning	MFL		94 min
May 20, 3:01 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MFL	Hendry, Palm Beach	35 min
May 20, 3:12 PM EDT	Special Marine Warning	MFL		32 min
May 20, 3:15 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	MFL	Broward	60 min
May 20, 4:10 PM EDT	Special Marine Warning	MFL		80 min
May 20, 4:11 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	MFL	Hendry	64 min
May 20, 5:19 PM EDT	Special Marine Warning	MFL		94 min
May 20, 5:34 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	MFL	Broward	56 min
May 20, 5:57 PM EDT	Special Marine Warning	MFL		53 min
May 20, 6:30 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	MFL	Palm Beach	60 min
May 20, 6:44 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	MFL	Broward	61 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Florida, 2009 Every tornado warning in 2009 Tornadoes in 2009

Sources

The product and its follow-ups from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service and Storm Prediction Center text; local storm reports from the same archive; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.