Alert archive / Alabama / Tornado Warnings in 2012

Tornado Warning 90, NWS Mobile, AL

December 20, 2012Baldwin County, Mobile County, Alabama

NWS Mobile, AL issued this tornado warning at Dec 20, 2012, 6:56 AM CST for Baldwin County, Mobile County, Alabama. It was in force for 34 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
Dec 20, 2012, 6:56 AM CST (12:56 UTC)
Expired
Dec 20, 2012, 7:30 AM CST
In force
34 min
Issued by
NWS Mobile, AL
Area
Storm-based polygon

Counties Baldwin County, AL, Mobile County, AL

The radar

The Mobile radar (KMOB), 59 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 12:56 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.

IssuedProductOfficeLasted
Dec 20, 4:23 AM CSTTornado WatchSPC9 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Slidell Radar S, LA (KSIL), launched 12:00Z, 0.9 hours before the alert went out and 195 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, Slidell Radar S, LA at 12:00Z on 2012-12-20Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1181 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Slidell Radar S, LA at 12:00Z on 2012-12-20The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 275 square meters per square second.1939587897Sfc1 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
1181 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-4 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
506 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
47 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
275 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
310 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
2.0
Supercell composite
9.6

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

135 
WFUS54 KMOB 201256
TORMOB
ALC003-097-201330-
/O.NEW.KMOB.TO.W.0090.121220T1256Z-121220T1330Z/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MOBILE AL
656 AM CST THU DEC 20 2012

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MOBILE HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  NORTHWESTERN BALDWIN COUNTY IN SOUTHWEST ALABAMA...
  NORTHERN MOBILE COUNTY IN SOUTHWEST ALABAMA...

* UNTIL 730 AM CST

* AT 651 AM CST...A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A
  TORNADO WAS LOCATED 9 MILES NORTHWEST OF SATSUMA...OR NEAR
  CHUNCHULA...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 45 MPH.

* LOCATIONS IMPACTED INCLUDE...
  MOVICO...             MOUNT VERNON...       GULFCREST...
  CHUNCHULA...          CALVERT...            BUCKS...
  AXIS...

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A TORNADO WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL NOON CST THURSDAY FOR
SOUTHWESTERN ALABAMA AND NORTHWEST FLORIDA AND SOUTHEAST MISSISSIPPI.

&&

LAT...LON 3094 8832 3115 8809 3115 8802 3117 8799
      3115 8796 3116 8793 3115 8790 3116 8789
      3115 8787 3117 8788 3116 8788 3117 8786
      3121 8787 3121 8785 3123 8786 3122 8784
      3124 8784 3113 8771 3081 8817
TIME...MOT...LOC 1256Z 226DEG 41KT 3095 8815

$$
1 follow-up statement
828 
WWUS54 KMOB 201313
SVSMOB

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MOBILE AL
713 AM CST THU DEC 20 2012

ALC003-097-201330-
/O.CON.KMOB.TO.W.0090.000000T0000Z-121220T1330Z/
BALDWIN AL-MOBILE AL-
713 AM CST THU DEC 20 2012

...A TORNADO WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 730 AM CST FOR
NORTHEASTERN MOBILE AND NORTHWESTERN BALDWIN COUNTIES...

AT 710 AM CST...A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO 
WAS LOCATED 8 MILES NORTH OF CREOLA...OR NEAR BUCKS...MOVING
NORTHEAST AT 45 MPH.

LOCATIONS IMPACTED INCLUDE...
  MOVICO...             MOUNT VERNON...       CALVERT...
  BUCKS...              AXIS...

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A TORNADO WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL NOON CST THURSDAY FOR
SOUTHWESTERN ALABAMA AND NORTHWEST FLORIDA AND SOUTHEAST MISSISSIPPI.

&&

LAT...LON 3102 8823 3115 8809 3115 8802 3117 8799
      3115 8796 3116 8793 3115 8787 3117 8788
      3117 8786 3121 8787 3121 8785 3123 8786
      3122 8784 3124 8784 3113 8771 3087 8808
TIME...MOT...LOC 1314Z 226DEG 41KT 3103 8797

$$

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Dec 20, 2:51 AM CSTGale WarningMOB30 hr
Dec 20, 2:51 AM CSTSmall Craft AdvisoryMOB33 hr
Dec 20, 4:11 AM CSTTornado WarningMOBMobile64 min
Dec 20, 4:42 AM CSTTornado WarningMOBMobile36 min
Dec 20, 4:49 AM CSTTornado WarningMOBChoctaw30 min
Dec 20, 5:14 AM CSTTornado WarningMOBBaldwin46 min
Dec 20, 5:29 AM CSTTornado WarningMOBWashington46 min
Dec 20, 5:38 AM CSTTornado WarningMOBChoctaw, Clarke, Washington52 min
Dec 20, 5:45 AM CSTTornado WarningMOBBaldwin, Mobile39 min
Dec 20, 6:03 AM CSTTornado WarningMOBClarke28 min
Dec 20, 6:06 AM CSTTornado WarningMOBWashington22 min
Dec 20, 6:08 AM CSTTornado WarningMOBBaldwin21 min
Dec 20, 6:11 AM CSTTornado WarningMOBConecuh, Escambia, Monroe49 min
Dec 20, 6:39 AM CSTTornado WarningMOBConecuh, Monroe35 min
Dec 20, 6:40 AM CSTTornado WarningMOBWashington50 min
Dec 20, 7:02 AM CSTTornado WarningMOBBaldwin, Mobile58 min
Dec 20, 7:06 AM CSTSpecial Marine WarningMOB84 min
Dec 20, 7:18 AM CSTTornado WarningMOBClarke, Washington42 min
Dec 20, 7:19 AM CSTTornado WarningMOBConecuh, Escambia, Monroe56 min
Dec 20, 7:25 AM CSTTornado WarningMOBClarke, Wilcox50 min
Dec 20, 7:36 AM CSTTornado WarningMOBBaldwin, Clarke, Monroe42 min
Dec 20, 7:52 AM CSTTornado WarningMOBBaldwin53 min
Dec 20, 8:10 AM CSTTornado WarningMOBWilcox32 min
Dec 20, 8:14 AM CSTTornado WarningMOBConecuh, Monroe33 min
Dec 20, 8:15 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMOBChoctaw, Clarke17 min
Dec 20, 8:26 AM CSTSpecial Marine WarningMOB94 min
Dec 20, 8:27 AM CSTTornado WarningMOBEscambia63 min
Dec 20, 8:29 AM CSTTornado WarningMOBEscambia46 min
Dec 20, 9:11 AM CSTTornado WarningMOBEscambia25 min
Dec 20, 9:25 AM CSTTornado WarningMOBCovington55 min
Dec 20, 9:28 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMOBWilcox15 min
Dec 20, 9:30 AM CSTSpecial Marine WarningMOB60 min
Dec 20, 9:49 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMOBWilcox26 min
Dec 20, 9:50 AM CSTTornado WarningMOBCovington, Crenshaw16 min
Dec 20, 10:23 AM CSTSpecial Marine WarningMOB82 min
Dec 20, 11:34 AM CSTSpecial Marine WarningMOB61 min
Dec 20, 2:19 PM CSTFire Weather WatchMOBButler, Conecuh, Covington, Crenshaw, Escambia, Monroe and 1 more16 hr
Dec 20, 2:19 PM CSTRed Flag WarningMOBButler, Choctaw, Clarke, Conecuh, Covington, Crenshaw and 4 more27 hr

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.