Alert archive / Massachusetts / Red Flag Warnings in 2012

Red Flag Warning 1, NWS Boston/Norton, MA

March 23, 2012Essex County, Middlesex County, Massachusetts

NWS Boston/Norton, MA issued this red flag warning at Mar 23, 2012, 4:02 AM EDT for Essex County, Middlesex County, Massachusetts. It took effect at Mar 23, 2012, 11:00 AM EDT. It was in force for 9 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 23, 2012, 4:02 AM EDT (08:02 UTC)
In effect from
Mar 23, 2012, 11:00 AM EDT
Expired
Mar 23, 2012, 8:00 PM EDT
In force
9 hr
Issued by
NWS Boston/Norton, MA

Counties Essex County, MA, Middlesex County, MA

The radar

The Boston radar (KBOX), 67 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 08:02 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

Chatham, MA (KCHH), launched 00:00Z, 8.0 hours before the alert went out and 138 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, Chatham, MA at 00:00Z on 2012-03-23Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 4 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, Chatham, MA at 00:00Z on 2012-03-23The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 87 square meters per square second.193958Sfc1 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
4 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-365 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1073 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
17 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
87 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
62 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.

122 
WWUS81 KBOX 230802
RFWBOX

URGENT - FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAUNTON MA
402 AM EDT FRI MAR 23 2012

...A RED FLAG WARNING IS IN EFFECT FOR LATE THIS MORNING THROUGH
THIS EVENING FOR SOUTHEASTERN NEW HAMPSHIRE AND NORTHEASTERN
MASSACHUSETTS...

.ABOVE NORMAL TEMPERATURES...VERY LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITIES...AND
WINDS GUSTING BETWEEN 25 AND 30 MPH AND LITTLE TO NO RAIN OVER THE
LAST TWO WEEKS WILL RESULT IN CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS
THIS AFTERNOON.

MAZ002>004-007-012-014-NHZ011-230915-
/O.CAN.KBOX.FW.A.0001.120323T1500Z-120324T0000Z/
WESTERN FRANKLIN MA-EASTERN FRANKLIN MA-NORTHERN WORCESTER MA-
EASTERN ESSEX MA-SOUTHERN WORCESTER MA-SOUTHEAST MIDDLESEX MA-
CHESHIRE NH-
402 AM EDT FRI MAR 23 2012

...FIRE WEATHER WATCH IS CANCELLED FOR WESTERN AND CENTRAL 
MASSACHUSETTS... 

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN TAUNTON HAS CANCELLED THE FIRE
WEATHER WATCH. 

WHILE DRY CONDITIONS EXIST ACROSS WESTERN AND CENTRAL MASSACHUSETTS...
NORTHERLY WINDS WILL BE IN THE 10 TO 15 MPH RANGE.

$$

MAZ005-006-026-NHZ012-015-231615-
/O.UPG.KBOX.FW.A.0001.120323T1500Z-120324T0000Z/
/O.NEW.KBOX.FW.W.0001.120323T1500Z-120324T0000Z/
CENTRAL MIDDLESEX MA-WESTERN ESSEX MA-NORTHERN MIDDLESEX MA-
EASTERN HILLSBOROUGH NH-WESTERN AND CENTRAL HILLSBOROUGH NH-
402 AM EDT FRI MAR 23 2012

...RED FLAG WARNING IN EFFECT FROM 11 AM THIS MORNING TO 8 PM EDT
THIS EVENING FOR SOUTHEASTERN NEW HAMPSHIRE AND NORTHEASTERN 
MASSACHUSETTS... 

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN TAUNTON HAS ISSUED A RED FLAG
WARNING...WHICH IS IN EFFECT FROM 11 AM THIS MORNING TO 8 PM EDT
THIS EVENING. THE FIRE WEATHER WATCH IS NO LONGER IN EFFECT. 

* WINDS...NORTHWEST 10 TO 15 MPH WITH GUSTS UP TO 30 MPH.

* TIMING...LATE THIS MORNING THROUGH EARLY THIS EVENING.

* RELATIVE HUMIDITY...AS LOW AS 21 PERCENT.

* TEMPERATURES...IN THE UPPER 60S TO LOW 70S.

* LIGHTNING...IS NOT EXPECTED ON FRIDAY.

* IMPACTS...WITH CONDITIONS EXCEEDING CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER
  THRESHOLDS AND DRY SURFACE FUELS...ANY GRASS OR BRUSH FIRES THAT
  IGNITE COULD SPREAD AND BECOME OUT OF CONTROL RAPIDLY.  


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 AND LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY WILL CREATE AN ELEVATED
FIRE SPREAD POTENTIAL.

&&

$$

RLG
1 follow-up statement
781 
WWUS81 KBOX 240007
RFWBOX

URGENT - FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAUNTON MA
807 PM EDT FRI MAR 23 2012

...RED FLAG WARNING HAS EXPIRED...

MAZ005-006-026-NHZ012-015-240115-
/O.EXP.KBOX.FW.W.0001.000000T0000Z-120324T0000Z/
CENTRAL MIDDLESEX MA-WESTERN ESSEX MA-NORTHERN MIDDLESEX MA-
EASTERN HILLSBOROUGH NH-WESTERN AND CENTRAL HILLSBOROUGH NH-
807 PM EDT FRI MAR 23 2012

...RED FLAG WARNING HAS EXPIRED FOR SOUTHEASTERN NEW HAMPSHIRE AND 
NORTHEASTERN MASSACHUSETTS...  

WINDS HAVE DIMINISHED NOW THAT THE SUN HAS SET AND FIRE WEATHER
POTENTIAL HAS DIMINISHED AS WELL.

$$

RLG

Nearby

Red Flag Warnings in Massachusetts, 2012Red Flag Warnings in New Hampshire, 2012Every 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.