Alert archive / Alabama / Red Flag Warnings in 2014

Red Flag Warning 16, NWS Mobile, AL

March 31, 20149 counties in Alabama

NWS Mobile, AL issued this red flag warning at Mar 31, 2014, 5:08 AM CDT for 9 counties in Alabama. It took effect at Mar 31, 2014, 2:00 PM CDT. It was in force for 4 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 31, 2014, 5:08 AM CDT (10:08 UTC)
In effect from: Mar 31, 2014, 2:00 PM CDT
Expired: Mar 31, 2014, 6:00 PM CDT
In force: 4 hr
Issued by: NWS Mobile, AL

Counties Butler County, AL, Choctaw County, AL, Clarke County, AL, Conecuh County, AL, Covington County, AL, Crenshaw County, AL, Escambia County, AL, Monroe County, AL, Wilcox County, AL

The radar

The Mobile radar (KMOB), 147 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 10:07 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

Birmingham, AL (KBMX), launched 00:00Z, 10.1 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: 0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL: 2697 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 40 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 9 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 46 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.

575 
WWUS84 KMOB 311008
RFWMOB

URGENT - FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MOBILE AL
508 AM CDT MON MAR 31 2014

...FIRE WEATHER WATCH UPGRADED TO RED FLAG WARNING THIS AFTERNOON
OVER A PORTION OF INTERIOR SOUTHWEST ALABAMA DUE TO A LONG DURATION
OF LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY...

.A RED FLAG WARNING IS NOW IN EFFECT THIS AFTERNOON DUE TO THE LONG
DURATION OF LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY OVER SOUTH CENTRAL ALABAMA AND A
PORTION OF INTERIOR SOUTHWEST ALABAMA.

ALZ051-053>060-312300-
/O.UPG.KMOB.FW.A.0005.140331T1900Z-140331T2300Z/
/O.NEW.KMOB.FW.W.0016.140331T1900Z-140331T2300Z/
CHOCTAW-CLARKE-WILCOX-MONROE-CONECUH-BUTLER-CRENSHAW-ESCAMBIA-
COVINGTON-
508 AM CDT MON MAR 31 2014

...RED FLAG WARNING IN EFFECT FROM 2 PM THIS AFTERNOON TO 6 PM
CDT THIS EVENING FOR A PORTION OF INTERIOR SOUTHWEST ALABAMA DUE TO A
LONG DURATION OF LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MOBILE HAS ISSUED A RED FLAG
WARNING...WHICH IS IN EFFECT FROM 2 PM THIS AFTERNOON TO 6 PM CDT
THIS EVENING. THE FIRE WEATHER WATCH IS NO LONGER IN EFFECT. 

* RELATIVE HUMIDITY: NEAR 20-25 PERCENT

* 20 FOOT WINDS: CALM BECOMING SOUTH 5 TO 10 MPH LATE IN THE
  AFTERNOON.

* DISPERSIONS: NEAR 40 IN THE AFTERNOON.

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

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A RED FLAG WARNING MEANS THAT CONDITIONS WHICH ARE CRITICAL TO
WILDFIRE RISK ARE EITHER OCCURRING NOW...OR WILL SHORTLY. A
COMBINATION OF LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY...AND DRY FUELS CAN CONTRIBUTE
TO EXTREME FIRE BEHAVIOR.

&&

$$

1 follow-up statement

656 
WWUS84 KMOB 311915
RFWMOB

URGENT - FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MOBILE AL
215 PM CDT MON MAR 31 2014

...RED FLAG WARNING IN EFFECT UNTIL 6 PM CDT THIS EVENING FOR SOUTH
CENTRAL AND A PORTION OF INTERIOR SOUTHWEST ALABAMA DUE TO A LONG
DURATION OF RELATIVE HUMIDITIES BELOW CRITICAL LEVELS...

.A RIDGE OF HIGH PRESSURE OVER THE AREA WILL MAINTAIN A LIGHT TO
MODERATE SOUTHERLY FLOW WITH MOISTURE LEVELS INCREASING THROUGH
THURSDAY. RELATIVE HUMIDITIES WILL DROP BELOW CRITICAL LEVELS THIS
AFTERNOON FOR A LONG DURATION ACROSS SOUTH CENTRAL AND A PORTION OF
INTERIOR SOUTHWEST ALABAMA. OTHER CRITERIA WILL NOT BE MET OVER THE
REMAINDER OF THE AREA TODAY. RELATIVE HUMIDITIES WILL REMAIN ABOVE
CRITICAL LEVELS TUESDAY THROUGH THURSDAY.

ALZ051-053>060-312300-
/O.CON.KMOB.FW.W.0016.000000T0000Z-140331T2300Z/
CHOCTAW-CLARKE-WILCOX-MONROE-CONECUH-BUTLER-CRENSHAW-ESCAMBIA-
COVINGTON-
215 PM CDT MON MAR 31 2014

...RED FLAG WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 6 PM CDT THIS EVENING
FOR SOUTH CENTRAL AND A PORTION OF INTERIOR SOUTHWEST ALABAMA DUE TO A
LONG DURATION OF RELATIVE HUMIDITIES BELOW CRITICAL LEVELS...

* RELATIVE HUMIDITY: NEAR 15-20 PERCENT

* 20 FOOT WINDS: SOUTHERLY 5 TO 10 MPH.

* DISPERSIONS: NEAR 40.

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

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A RED FLAG WARNING MEANS THAT CONDITIONS WHICH ARE CRITICAL TO WILDFIRE
RISK ARE EITHER OCCURRING NOW...OR WILL SHORTLY. A COMBINATION OF LOW
RELATIVE HUMIDITY...AND DRY FUELS CAN CONTRIBUTE TO EXTREME FIRE
BEHAVIOR.

&&

$$

Nearby

Red Flag Warnings in Alabama, 2014 Every red flag warning in 2014

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.