Alert archive / Alabama / Tornado Warnings in 2012
Tornado Warning 20, NWS Birmingham, AL
NWS Birmingham, AL issued this tornado warning at Feb 29, 2012, 4:57 PM CST for Fayette County, Marion County, Walker County, Alabama. It was in force for 14 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 29, 2012, 4:57 PM CST (22:57 UTC)
- Expired
- Feb 29, 2012, 5:11 PM CST
- In force
- 14 min
- Issued by
- NWS Birmingham, AL
- Area
- Storm-based polygon
Counties Fayette County, AL, Marion County, AL, Walker County, AL
The radar
The Columbus AFB radar (KGWX), 66 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 22:58 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 29, 1:48 PM CST | Tornado Watch | SPC | 7 hr |
The nearest sounding before it
Birmingham, AL (KBMX), launched 12:00Z, 11.0 hours before the alert went out and 112 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
- 4 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -427 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 584 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 56 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 236 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 258 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- -0.0
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
976 WFUS54 KBMX 292257 TORBMX ALC057-093-127-292330- /O.NEW.KBMX.TO.W.0020.120229T2257Z-120229T2330Z/ BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED TORNADO WARNING NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL 457 PM CST WED FEB 29 2012 THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN BIRMINGHAM HAS ISSUED A * TORNADO WARNING FOR... NORTHERN FAYETTE COUNTY IN WEST CENTRAL ALABAMA... SOUTHEASTERN MARION COUNTY IN NORTHWEST ALABAMA... WEST CENTRAL WALKER COUNTY IN ALABAMA... * UNTIL 530 PM CST * AT 454 PM CST...THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE INDICATED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO. THIS DANGEROUS STORM WAS LOCATED NEAR GUIN...OR 7 MILES WEST OF WINFIELD...AND MOVING EAST AT 55 MPH. * LOCATIONS IMPACTED INCLUDE... WINFIELD...CARBON HILL...GLEN ALLEN...ELDRIDGE...KANSAS...TUCKER... CEDRUM AREA...TOWNLEY...HOLLY GROVE AND LUPTON. THIS INCLUDES... US 78 EXIT NUMBERS 39 THROUGH 52... PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... TAKE COVER NOW. FOR YOUR PROTECTION MOVE TO AN INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR OF A STURDY BUILDING. && TO REPORT SEVERE WEATHER... CALL 1-800-856-0758. LAT...LON 3397 8737 3375 8741 3390 8795 3397 8795 TIME...MOT...LOC 2257Z 279DEG 46KT 3392 8788 $$ 27
1 follow-up statement
080 WWUS54 KBMX 292311 SVSBMX SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL 511 PM CST WED FEB 29 2012 ALC057-093-127-292320- /O.CAN.KBMX.TO.W.0020.000000T0000Z-120229T2330Z/ FAYETTE AL-MARION AL-WALKER AL- 511 PM CST WED FEB 29 2012 ...THE TORNADO WARNING FOR WEST CENTRAL WALKER...SOUTHEASTERN MARION AND NORTHERN FAYETTE COUNTIES IS CANCELLED... THE TORNADO THREAT HAS DIMINISHED...THEREFORE THE TORNADO WARNING HAS BEEN CANCELLED. HOWEVER...A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR THE AREA FOR THIS STORM THAT HAS PRODUCED DAMAGING WINDS ACROSS LAMAR AND FAYETTE COUNTY. ADDITIONAL STRONG THUNDERSTORMS ARE STILL POSSIBLE...AND A TORNADO WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 9 PM. TO REPORT SEVERE WEATHER...CALL 1-800-856-0758. LAT...LON 3397 8737 3375 8741 3390 8795 3397 8795 TIME...MOT...LOC 2310Z 279DEG 46KT 3389 8768 $$ 27
The office that day
Everything else NWS Birmingham, AL issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 29, 4:29 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Fayette, Lamar, Marion | 46 min |
| Feb 29, 5:01 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Fayette, Walker | 44 min |
| Feb 29, 5:33 PM CST | Special Weather Statement | BMX | Jefferson, Walker | 42 min |
Nearby
Tornado Warnings in Alabama, 2012Every tornado warning in 2012Tornadoes 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.