Alert archive / Alabama / Red Flag Warnings in 2012

Red Flag Warning 14, NWS Birmingham, AL

March 6, 201239 counties in Alabama

NWS Birmingham, AL issued this red flag warning at Mar 6, 2012, 3:53 AM CST for 39 counties in Alabama. It took effect at Mar 6, 2012, 11:00 AM CST. It was in force for 7 hr. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued: Mar 6, 2012, 3:53 AM CST (09:53 UTC)
In effect from: Mar 6, 2012, 11:00 AM CST
Expired: Mar 6, 2012, 6:00 PM CST
In force: 7 hr
Issued by: NWS Birmingham, AL

All 39 counties

Autauga County, AL, Barbour County, AL, Bibb County, AL, Blount County, AL, Bullock County, AL, Calhoun County, AL, Chambers County, AL, Cherokee County, AL, Chilton County, AL, Clay County, AL, Cleburne County, AL, Coosa County, AL, Dallas County, AL, Elmore County, AL, Etowah County, AL, Fayette County, AL, Greene County, AL, Hale County, AL, Jefferson County, AL, Lamar County, AL, Lee County, AL, Lowndes County, AL, Macon County, AL, Marengo County, AL, Marion County, AL, Montgomery County, AL, Perry County, AL, Pickens County, AL, Pike County, AL, Randolph County, AL, Russell County, AL, Shelby County, AL, St. Clair County, AL, Sumter County, AL, Talladega County, AL, Tallapoosa County, AL, Tuscaloosa County, AL, Walker County, AL, Winston County, AL

The radar

The Birmingham radar (KBMX), 22 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 09:59 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

Birmingham, AL (KBMX), launched 00:00Z, 9.9 hours before the alert went out and 23 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: 0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL: 3108 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 39 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 9 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: -34 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.

454 
WWUS84 KBMX 060953
RFWBMX

URGENT - FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
353 AM CST TUE MAR 6 2012

...ANOTHER DRY DAY IN STORE FOR CENTRAL ALABAMA...

.RELATIVE HUMIDITY VALUES WILL DROP TO 25 PERCENT OR BELOW FOR
AROUND 4 TO 6 HOURS THIS AFTERNOON. ADDITIONALLY...A FEW WIND
GUSTS MAY REACH 20 TO 25 MPH.

ALZ011>015-017>050-070000-
/O.NEW.KBMX.FW.W.0014.120306T1700Z-120307T0000Z/
MARION-LAMAR-FAYETTE-WINSTON-WALKER-BLOUNT-ETOWAH-CALHOUN-
CHEROKEE-CLEBURNE-PICKENS-TUSCALOOSA-JEFFERSON-SHELBY-ST. CLAIR-
TALLADEGA-CLAY-RANDOLPH-SUMTER-GREENE-HALE-PERRY-BIBB-CHILTON-
COOSA-TALLAPOOSA-CHAMBERS-MARENGO-DALLAS-AUTAUGA-LOWNDES-ELMORE-
MONTGOMERY-MACON-BULLOCK-LEE-RUSSELL-PIKE-BARBOUR-
353 AM CST TUE MAR 6 2012

...RED FLAG WARNING IN EFFECT FROM 11 AM THIS MORNING TO 6 PM CST
THIS EVENING FOR ALL OF CENTRAL ALABAMA...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN BIRMINGHAM HAS ISSUED A RED FLAG
WARNING...WHICH IS IN EFFECT FROM 11 AM THIS MORNING TO 6 PM CST
THIS EVENING. 

* WINDS...SOUTHEAST 10 TO 15 MPH WITH GUSTS UP TO 25 MPH.

* RELATIVE HUMIDITY...AS LOW AS 18 PERCENT.

* IMPACTS...THE COMBINATION OF A DRY AIRMASS AND WINDY 
  CONDITIONS WILL RESULT IN CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS. 
  OUTDOOR BURNING IS NOT RECOMMENDED.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A RED FLAG WARNING MEANS THAT CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS
ARE EITHER OCCURRING NOW...OR WILL SHORTLY. A COMBINATION OF
STRONG WINDS...LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY...AND WARM TEMPERATURES WILL
CREATE EXPLOSIVE FIRE GROWTH POTENTIAL. 

FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON THE FIRE CONDITIONS...PLEASE
CONTACT THE ALABAMA FORESTRY COMMISSION AT
WWW.FORESTRY.ALABAMA.GOV.

&&

$$

Nearby

Red Flag Warnings in Alabama, 2012 Every red flag warning in 2012

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.