Alert archive / Alabama / Tornado Warnings in 2009

Tornado Warning 8, NWS Mobile, AL

February 27, 2009Wilcox County, Alabama

NWS Mobile, AL issued this tornado warning at Feb 27, 2009, 6:46 PM CST for Wilcox County, Alabama. It was in force for 59 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: Feb 27, 2009, 6:46 PM CST (00:46 UTC)
Expired: Feb 27, 2009, 7:45 PM CST
In force: 59 min
Issued by: NWS Mobile, AL
Area: Storm-based polygon

County Wilcox County, AL

The radar

The Birmingham radar (KBMX), 122 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 00:47 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.

Issued	Product	Office	Lasted
Feb 27, 12:38 PM CST	Tornado Watch	SPC	7 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Birmingham, AL (KBMX), launched 00:00Z, 0.8 hours before the alert went out and 122 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: 30 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -66 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 539 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 44 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: -133 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 61 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 
WFUS54 KMOB 280046
TORMOB
ALC131-280145-
/O.NEW.KMOB.TO.W.0008.090228T0046Z-090228T0145Z/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MOBILE AL
646 PM CST FRI FEB 27 2009

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MOBILE HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  NORTH CENTRAL WILCOX COUNTY IN SOUTH CENTRAL ALABAMA...

* UNTIL 745 PM CST

* AT 638 PM CST...THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE INDICATED A SEVERE
  THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO 18 MILES NORTHWEST
  OF ALBERTA...MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 35 MPH.

* THE TORNADO WILL OTHERWISE REMAIN OVER MAINLY RURAL AREAS OF THE
  INDICATED COUNTY.

THIS STORM HAS A HISTORY OF PRODUCING BASEBALL SIZED DIAMTER HAIL 
WHILE OVER MARENGO COUNTY. 

THE SAFEST PLACE TO BE DURING A TORNADO IS ON THE LOWEST FLOOR OF A
STURDY BUILDING...PREFERABLY IN AN INTERIOR HALLWAY OR A ROOM SUCH AS
A CLOSET OR BATHROOM. IF POSSIBLE...GET UNDER A WORKBENCH OR OTHER
PIECE OF STURDY FURNITURE. USE BLANKETS OR PILLOWS TO COVER YOUR BODY
AND ALWAYS STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS. IN ADDITION TO THE TORNADO...THIS
STORM IS CAPABLE OF PRODUCING LARGE DAMAGING HAIL OR DAMAGING
STRAIGHT LINE WINDS.

IF YOU ARE IN MOBILE HOME...EVACUATE IT AND GET ON THE LOWEST FLOOR
OF A NEARBY STURDY BUILDING OR IN AN UNDERGROUND STORM SHELTER. IF NO
SUBSTANTIAL SHELTER IS AVAILABLE AND A TORNADO IS FAST APPROACHING...
SEEK SHELTER IN A CULVERT...DITCH OR LOW DEPRESSION AND COVER YOUR
HEAD WITH YOUR HANDS.

A TORNADO WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 800 PM CST FRIDAY EVENING FOR
SOUTHWESTERN ALABAMA.

LAT...LON 3225 8741 3223 8737 3221 8736 3221 8732
      3217 8729 3215 8725 3210 8721 3209 8718
      3207 8717 3203 8720 3223 8753 3227 8753
      3228 8751 3228 8743
TIME...MOT...LOC 0045Z 295DEG 30KT 3238 8757

$$

1 follow-up statement

000 
WWUS54 KMOB 280128
SVSMOB

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MOBILE AL
728 PM CST FRI FEB 27 2009

ALC131-280145-
/O.CON.KMOB.TO.W.0008.000000T0000Z-090228T0145Z/
WILCOX AL-
724 PM CST FRI FEB 27 2009

...A TORNADO WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 745 PM CST FOR NORTH
CENTRAL WILCOX COUNTY...

AT 721 PM CST...THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CONTINUED TO INDICATE A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO.  THIS TORNADO WAS
9 MILES NORTHEAST OF REHOBOTH AND WAS MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 30 MPH.

ALTHOUGH THE STRONGEST RADAR INDICATED CIRCULATION WAS JUST EAST 
OF THE WILCOX AND DALLAS COUNTY LINE....SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WINDS 
WILL AFFECT THE WILCOX AND DALLAS BORDER REGION THROUGH 745 PM.

THE SAFEST PLACE TO BE DURING A TORNADO IS ON THE LOWEST FLOOR OF A
STURDY BUILDING...PREFERABLY IN AN INTERIOR HALLWAY OR A ROOM SUCH AS
A CLOSET OR BATHROOM. IF POSSIBLE...GET UNDER A WORKBENCH OR OTHER
PIECE OF STURDY FURNITURE. USE BLANKETS OR PILLOWS TO COVER YOUR BODY
AND ALWAYS STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS. IN ADDITION TO THE TORNADO...THIS
STORM IS CAPABLE OF PRODUCING LARGE DAMAGING HAIL OR DAMAGING 
STRAIGHT LINE WINDS.

A TORNADO WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 800 PM CST FRIDAY EVENING FOR
SOUTHWESTERN ALABAMA.

LAT...LON 3206 8720 3220 8741 3223 8737 3221 8736
      3221 8732 3217 8729 3215 8725 3210 8721
      3210 8720 3207 8717 3206 8718
TIME...MOT...LOC 0124Z 295DEG 30KT 3224 8722

$$

The office that day

Everything else NWS Mobile, AL issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Feb 28, 10:34 AM CST	River Flood Warning	MOB	Choctaw, Clarke, Washington	10 days
Feb 28, 10:34 AM CST	River Flood Warning	MOB	Choctaw, Clarke, Washington	10 days
Feb 28, 3:02 PM CST	Wind Advisory	MOB	Butler, Choctaw, Clarke, Conecuh, Covington, Crenshaw and 4 more	27 hr
Feb 28, 3:18 PM CST	Gale Watch	MOB		7 hr

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Alabama, 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; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.