Alert archive / Florida / Red Flag Warnings in 2012

Red Flag Warning 13, NWS Tampa Bay, FL

March 25, 2012Polk County, Sumter County, Florida

NWS Tampa Bay, FL issued this red flag warning at Mar 25, 2012, 2:09 PM EDT for Polk County, Sumter County, Florida. It took effect at Mar 25, 2012, 2:27 PM EDT. It was in force for 5 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 25, 2012, 2:09 PM EDT (18:09 UTC)
In effect from
Mar 25, 2012, 2:27 PM EDT
Expired
Mar 25, 2012, 7:00 PM EDT
In force
5 hr
Issued by
NWS Tampa Bay, FL

Counties Polk County, FL, Sumter County, FL

The radar

The Tampa radar (KTBW), 85 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 18:11 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

Tampa Bay, FL (KTBW), launched 12:00Z, 6.2 hours before the alert went out and 86 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, Tampa Bay, FL at 12:00Z on 2012-03-25Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 688 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, Tampa Bay, FL at 12:00Z on 2012-03-25The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 98 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
688 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-7 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
607 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
30 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
98 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
90 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.3
Supercell composite
1.9

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

388 
WWUS82 KTBW 251809
RFWTBW

URGENT - FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAMPA BAY AREA - RUSKIN FL
209 PM EDT SUN MAR 25 2012

...RED FLAG WARNING UNTIL 7 PM TODAY FOR THE NATURE COAST AND
INCLUDING HILLSBOROUGH AND POLK COUNTIES...

.RELATIVE HUMIDITIES WILL BRIEFLY REACH 34 PERCENT OR LOWER 
WITH WINDS REACHING 15 MPH WITH HIGHER GUSTS.

FLZ039-042-043-048-049-051-052-252300-
/O.NEW.KTBW.FW.W.0013.120325T1900Z-120325T2300Z/
LEVY-CITRUS-SUMTER-HERNANDO-PASCO-HILLSBOROUGH-POLK-
209 PM EDT SUN MAR 25 2012

...RED FLAG WARNING IN EFFECT UNTIL 7 PM EDT THIS EVENING FOR...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN TAMPA BAY AREA - RUSKIN FL HAS
ISSUED A RED FLAG WARNING...WHICH IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 7 PM EDT
THIS EVENING. 

* AFFECTED AREA...LEVY...CITRUS...SUMTER...HERNANDO...PASCO... 
  HILLSBOROUGH...POLK. 

* WIND...PERIODS WINDS OF 15 MPH WITH HIGHER GUSTS.

* HUMIDITY...PERIODS OF HUMIDITY DROPPING BELOW 35 PERCENT THROUGH
  THE REST OF THIS AFTERNOON. 

* IMPACTS...ANY FIRES THAT DEVELOP WILL LIKELY SPREAD RAPIDLY. 
  OUTDOOR BURNING IS NOT RECOMMENDED.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A RED FLAG WARNING IS ISSUED WHEN VERY FAVORABLE CONDITIONS FOR
THE SPREAD OF WILDFIRE ARE OCCURRING NOW...OR WILL OCCUR WITHIN
24 HOURS.

&&

$$
1 follow-up statement
654 
WWUS82 KTBW 251827 AAA
RFWTBW

URGENT - FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE...UPDATED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAMPA BAY AREA - RUSKIN FL
227 PM EDT SUN MAR 25 2012

...RED FLAG WARNING UNTIL 7 PM TODAY FOR THE NATURE COAST AND
INCLUDING HILLSBOROUGH AND POLK COUNTIES...

.RELATIVE HUMIDITIES WILL BRIEFLY REACH 34 PERCENT OR LOWER WITH
WINDS REACHING 15 MPH WITH HIGHER GUSTS.

FLZ039-042-043-048-049-051-052-252300-
/O.EXT.KTBW.FW.W.0013.120325T1827Z-120325T2300Z/
LEVY-CITRUS-SUMTER-HERNANDO-PASCO-HILLSBOROUGH-POLK-
227 PM EDT SUN MAR 25 2012

...RED FLAG WARNING NOW IN EFFECT UNTIL 7 PM EDT THIS EVENING
FOR...

* AFFECTED AREA...LEVY...CITRUS...SUMTER...HERNANDO...PASCO... 
  HILLSBOROUGH...POLK. 

* WIND...PERIODS OF WINDS OF 15 MPH WITH HIGHER GUSTS.

* HUMIDITY...PERIODS OF HUMIDITY DROPPING BELOW 35 PERCENT
  THROUGH THE REST OF THIS AFTERNOON. 

* IMPACTS...ANY FIRES THAT DEVELOP WILL LIKELY SPREAD RAPIDLY. 
  OUTDOOR BURNING IS NOT RECOMMENDED.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A RED FLAG WARNING IS ISSUED WHEN VERY FAVORABLE CONDITIONS FOR
THE SPREAD OF WILDFIRE ARE OCCURRING NOW...OR WILL OCCUR WITHIN
24 HOURS.

&&

$$

The office that day

Everything else NWS Tampa Bay, FL issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Mar 25, 6:24 AM EDTSpecial Marine WarningTBW66 min
Mar 25, 6:48 AM EDTSpecial Weather StatementTBWLee72 min
Mar 25, 1:12 PM EDTSpecial Weather StatementTBWHighlands33 min

Nearby

Red Flag Warnings in Florida, 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.