Alert archive / Alabama / Tornado Warnings in 2012

Tornado Warning 20, NWS Mobile, AL

March 2, 2012Choctaw County, Clarke County, Alabama

NWS Mobile, AL issued this tornado warning at Mar 2, 2012, 5:35 PM CST for Choctaw County, Clarke County, Alabama. It was in force for 19 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: Mar 2, 2012, 5:35 PM CST (23:35 UTC)
Expired: Mar 2, 2012, 5:54 PM CST
In force: 19 min
Issued by: NWS Mobile, AL
Area: Storm-based polygon

Counties Choctaw County, AL, Clarke County, AL

The radar

The Mobile radar (KMOB), 149 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 23:35 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
Mar 2, 4:37 PM CST	Tornado Watch	SPC	7 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Birmingham, AL (KBMX), launched 12:00Z, 11.6 hours before the alert went out and 177 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: 544 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -15 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 530 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 59 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 180 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 204 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.6
Supercell composite: 2.5

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.

269 
WFUS54 KMOB 022335
TORMOB
ALC023-025-030015-
/O.NEW.KMOB.TO.W.0020.120302T2335Z-120303T0015Z/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MOBILE AL
535 PM CST FRI MAR 2 2012

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MOBILE HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  CENTRAL CHOCTAW COUNTY IN SOUTHWEST ALABAMA...
  NORTHWESTERN CLARKE COUNTY IN SOUTHWEST ALABAMA...

* UNTIL 615 PM CST

* AT 530 PM CST...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO 10 MILES SOUTH
  OF BUTLER...OR 6 MILES EAST OF TOXEY...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 35 MPH.

* LOCATIONS IMPACTED INCLUDE...
  THOMASVILLE...

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

THE SAFEST PLACE TO BE DURING A TORNADO IS IN A BASEMENT. GET UNDER A
WORKBENCH OR OTHER PIECE OF STURDY FURNITURE. IF NO BASEMENT IS
AVAILABLE...SEEK SHELTER ON THE LOWEST FLOOR OF THE BUILDING IN AN
INTERIOR HALLWAY OR ROOM SUCH AS A CLOSET. USE BLANKETS OR PILLOWS TO
COVER YOUR BODY AND ALWAYS STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS.

IF IN MANUFACTURED HOMES OR VEHICLES...EVACUATE THEM AND GET INSIDE A
SUBSTANTIAL SHELTER. IF NO SHELTER IS AVAILABLE...LIE FLAT IN THE
NEAREST DITCH OR OTHER LOW SPOT AND COVER YOUR HEAD WITH YOUR HANDS.

A TORNADO WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL MIDNIGHT CST SATURDAY MORNING
FOR SOUTHWESTERN ALABAMA AND NORTHWEST FLORIDA AND SOUTHEAST
MISSISSIPPI.

&&

LAT...LON 3210 8804 3206 8807 3207 8810 3205 8811
      3201 8811 3199 8806 3200 8767 3190 8767
      3188 8817 3192 8829 3201 8830 3209 8817
TIME...MOT...LOC 2335Z 240DEG 32KT 3197 8818

$$

1 follow-up statement

755 
WWUS54 KMOB 022354
SVSMOB

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MOBILE AL
554 PM CST FRI MAR 2 2012

ALC023-025-030004-
/O.CAN.KMOB.TO.W.0020.000000T0000Z-120303T0015Z/
CHOCTAW AL-CLARKE AL-
554 PM CST FRI MAR 2 2012

...THE TORNADO WARNING FOR NORTHWESTERN CLARKE AND CENTRAL CHOCTAW
COUNTIES IS CANCELLED...

A TORNADO WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL MIDNIGHT CST SATURDAY MORNING
FOR SOUTHWESTERN ALABAMA AND NORTHWEST FLORIDA AND SOUTHEAST
MISSISSIPPI.

LAT...LON 3210 8804 3206 8807 3207 8810 3205 8811
      3201 8811 3199 8806 3200 8767 3190 8767
      3188 8817 3192 8829 3201 8830 3209 8817
TIME...MOT...LOC 2354Z 240DEG 32KT 3205 8801

$$

The office that day

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

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Mar 2, 3:40 PM CST	Small Craft Advisory	MOB		26 hr
Mar 2, 3:55 PM CST	Tornado Warning	MOB	Clarke, Wilcox	50 min
Mar 2, 4:26 PM CST	Tornado Warning	MOB	Monroe, Wilcox	49 min
Mar 2, 4:27 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MOB	Choctaw, Clarke	48 min
Mar 2, 4:43 PM CST	Tornado Warning	MOB	Covington	17 min
Mar 2, 4:57 PM CST	Tornado Warning	MOB	Clarke	33 min
Mar 2, 5:03 PM CST	Tornado Warning	MOB	Baldwin, Conecuh, Escambia, Monroe	42 min
Mar 2, 5:16 PM CST	Tornado Warning	MOB	Covington	29 min
Mar 2, 5:17 PM CST	Tornado Warning	MOB	Clarke, Wilcox	58 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Alabama, 2012 Every tornado warning in 2012 Tornadoes 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.