Alert archive / Florida / Rip Current Statements in 2011

Rip Current Statement 19, NWS Tallahassee, FL

December 21, 2011Bay County, Walton County, Florida

NWS Tallahassee, FL issued this rip current statement at Dec 21, 2011, 2:44 AM CST for Bay County, Walton County, Florida. It was in force for 15 hr.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
Dec 21, 2011, 2:44 AM CST (08:44 UTC)
Expired
Dec 21, 2011, 6:00 PM CST
In force
15 hr
Issued by
NWS Tallahassee, FL

Counties Bay County, FL, Walton County, FL

The radar

The Eglin Afb radar (KEVX), 15 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 08:45 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 nearest sounding before it

Tallahassee Rgnl, FL (KTLH), launched 00:00Z, 8.7 hours before the alert went out and 154 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 2011-12-21Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 2 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 2011-12-21The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 160 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
2 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-44 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
606 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
50 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
160 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
194 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.

160 
WHUS42 KTAE 210844
CFWTAE

COASTAL HAZARD MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TALLAHASSEE FL
344 AM EST WED DEC 21 2011

...A HIGH RIP CURRENT RISK CONTINUES THROUGH 1 PM EST / NOON CST
FOR THE BEACHES OF WALTON AND BAY COUNTIES...

.SOUTHERLY FLOW BETWEEN 10 AND 15 KNOTS WILL MAINTAIN SURF HEIGHTS
OF 3 TO 5 FEET FOR THE FIRST PART OF THE DAY TODAY. THIS WILL
CREATE A HIGH RISK FOR RIP CURRENTS. AS WINDS BEGIN TO
DECREASE...SO WILL THE SURF...THEREBY GRADUALLY REDUCING THE RIP
CURRENT RISK LATER THIS AFTERNOON.

FLZ108-112-211800-
/O.NEW.KTAE.RP.S.0019.111221T0844Z-111221T1800Z/
SOUTH WALTON-COASTAL BAY-
244 AM CST WED DEC 21 2011

...HIGH RIP CURRENT RISK IN EFFECT UNTIL 1 PM EST / NOON CST
TODAY...

* WAVES AND SURF...3 TO 5 FEET ALONG WALTON AND BAY COUNTY BEACHES

* TIMING...INTO THE EARLY AFTERNOON TODAY.

* IMPACTS...SURF HEIGHTS BETWEEN 3 TO 5 FEET WILL CREATE A HIGH
  RISK FOR RIP CURRENTS.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

THERE IS A HIGH RISK OF RIP CURRENTS. RIP CURRENTS ARE POWERFUL
CHANNELS OF WATER FLOWING QUICKLY AWAY FROM SHORE...WHICH OCCUR
MOST OFTEN AT LOW SPOTS OR BREAKS IN THE SANDBAR AND IN THE
VICINITY OF STRUCTURES SUCH AS GROINS...JETTIES AND PIERS. HEED
THE ADVICE OF LIFEGUARDS AND THE BEACH PATROL. PAY ATTENTION TO
FLAGS AND POSTED SIGNS. IF YOU BECOME CAUGHT IN A RIP CURRENT...
DO NOT PANIC. REMAIN CALM AND BEGIN TO SWIM PARALLEL TO SHORE.
ONCE YOU ARE AWAY FROM THE FORCE OF THE RIP CURRENT...BEGIN TO
SWIM BACK TO THE BEACH. DO NOT ATTEMPT TO SWIM DIRECTLY AGAINST A
RIP CURRENT. EVEN A STRONG SWIMMER CAN BECOME EXHAUSTED QUICKLY. 

&&

$$

HARRIGAN
1 follow-up statement
217 
WHUS42 KTAE 211459
CFWTAE

COASTAL HAZARD MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TALLAHASSEE FL
959 AM EST WED DEC 21 2011

...A HIGH RIP CURRENT RISK CONTINUES THROUGH 6 PM CST FOR THE
BEACHES OF WALTON AND BAY COUNTIES...

.SOUTHERLY FLOW AROUND 15 KNOTS WILL MAINTAIN SURF HEIGHTS OF 3
TO 5 FEET FOR MUCH OF THE DAY TODAY. THIS WILL CREATE A
HIGH RISK FOR RIP CURRENTS. AS WINDS BEGIN TO DECREASE...SO WILL
THE SURF...THEREBY GRADUALLY REDUCING THE RIP CURRENT RISK THIS
EVENING.

FLZ108-112-220000-
/O.EXT.KTAE.RP.S.0019.000000T0000Z-111222T0000Z/
SOUTH WALTON-COASTAL BAY-
859 AM CST WED DEC 21 2011

...RIP CURRENT RISK NOW IN EFFECT UNTIL 6 PM CST THIS EVENING...

* WAVES AND SURF...3 TO 5 FEET ALONG WALTON AND BAY COUNTY 
  BEACHES

* TIMING...INTO THE LATE AFTERNOON TODAY.

* IMPACTS...SURF HEIGHTS BETWEEN 3 TO 5 FEET WILL CREATE A HIGH 
  RISK FOR RIP CURRENTS. 

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

THERE IS A HIGH RISK OF RIP CURRENTS. RIP CURRENTS ARE POWERFUL
CHANNELS OF WATER FLOWING QUICKLY AWAY FROM SHORE...WHICH OCCUR
MOST OFTEN AT LOW SPOTS OR BREAKS IN THE SANDBAR AND IN THE
VICINITY OF STRUCTURES SUCH AS GROINS...JETTIES AND PIERS. HEED
THE ADVICE OF LIFEGUARDS AND THE BEACH PATROL. PAY ATTENTION TO
FLAGS AND POSTED SIGNS. IF YOU BECOME CAUGHT IN A RIP CURRENT...
DO NOT PANIC. REMAIN CALM AND BEGIN TO SWIM PARALLEL TO SHORE.
ONCE YOU ARE AWAY FROM THE FORCE OF THE RIP CURRENT...BEGIN TO
SWIM BACK TO THE BEACH. DO NOT ATTEMPT TO SWIM DIRECTLY AGAINST A
RIP CURRENT. EVEN A STRONG SWIMMER CAN BECOME EXHAUSTED QUICKLY.

&&

$$

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Dec 21, 1:42 AM CSTSpecial Marine WarningTAE48 min
Dec 21, 2:28 AM CSTSpecial Weather StatementTAEBay62 min
Dec 21, 3:05 AM CSTAreal Flood AdvisoryTAEBay, Washington3 hr
Dec 21, 4:37 AM CSTSpecial Marine WarningTAE38 min
Dec 21, 5:31 AM CSTAreal Flood AdvisoryTAEHolmes, Walton89 min

Nearby

Rip Current Statements in Florida, 2011Every rip current statement in 2011

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.