Alert archive / Alabama / Tornado Watches in 2020
Tornado Watch 23
The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at Feb 5, 2020, 4:25 PM CST for 34 counties in Alabama; 10 counties in Mississippi; 10 counties in Tennessee. It was in force for 5 hr.
The area
The outline as issued.
The facts
- Issued
- Feb 5, 2020, 4:25 PM CST (22:25 UTC)
- Expired
- Feb 5, 2020, 9:19 PM CST
- In force
- 5 hr
- Issued by
- the Storm Prediction Center
- Largest hail expected
- 1.5 in
- Strongest gust expected
- 65 kt
All 54 counties
Bibb County, AL, Blount County, AL, Calhoun County, AL, Cherokee County, AL, Chilton County, AL, Colbert County, AL, Cullman County, AL, Dallas County, AL, DeKalb County, AL, Etowah County, AL, Fayette County, AL, Franklin County, AL, Greene County, AL, Hale County, AL, Jackson County, AL, Jefferson County, AL, Lamar County, AL, Lauderdale County, AL, Lawrence County, AL, Limestone County, AL, Madison County, AL, Marengo County, AL, Marion County, AL, Marshall County, AL, Morgan County, AL, Perry County, AL, Pickens County, AL, Shelby County, AL, St. Clair County, AL, Sumter County, AL, Talladega County, AL, Tuscaloosa County, AL, Walker County, AL, Winston County, AL, Alcorn County, MS, Calhoun County, MS, Chickasaw County, MS, Itawamba County, MS, Lee County, MS, Monroe County, MS, Pontotoc County, MS, Prentiss County, MS, Tishomingo County, MS, Union County, MS, Bedford County, TN, Coffee County, TN, Franklin County, TN, Giles County, TN, Hardin County, TN, Lawrence County, TN, Lincoln County, TN, Marshall County, TN, Moore County, TN, Wayne County, TN
The radar
The Birmingham radar (KBMX), 75 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 22:25 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.
What SPC expected
The probabilities SPC published with the watch, for the watch area over its life.
- Two or more tornadoes
- 60%
- One or more EF2 to EF5 tornadoes
- 40%
- Ten or more severe wind reports
- 70%
- One or more gusts of 65 knots or more
- 30%
- Ten or more severe hail reports
- 20%
- One or more hailstones of 2 inches or more
- 10%
- Six or more combined severe hail and wind reports
- 80%
Warnings issued inside it
10 tornado, severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings for its counties while it was in force.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 5, 4:45 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MEG | Alcorn, Lee, Prentiss, Tishomingo | 30 min |
| Feb 5, 4:53 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | HUN | Colbert, Franklin, Lauderdale | 52 min |
| Feb 5, 4:56 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MEG | Itawamba, Lee, Pontotoc, Prentiss, Tishomingo | 49 min |
| Feb 5, 5:08 PM CST | Tornado Warning | HUN | Colbert, Lauderdale | 37 min |
| Feb 5, 5:08 PM CST | Tornado Warning | MEG | Tishomingo | 19 min |
| Feb 5, 5:50 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | OHX | Giles, Lawrence, Wayne | 40 min |
| Feb 5, 6:26 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | OHX | Bedford, Giles, Marshall | 34 min |
| Feb 5, 6:29 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | HUN | Franklin, Lincoln, Moore | 46 min |
| Feb 5, 6:34 PM CST | Tornado Warning | OHX | Bedford, Marshall | 26 min |
| Feb 5, 6:48 PM CST | Tornado Warning | OHX | Bedford, Coffee, Rutherford | 15 min |
Discussions around it
SPC mesoscale discussions over the same counties from four hours before the watch to its end.
The nearest sounding before it
Birmingham, AL (KBMX), launched 12:00Z, 10.4 hours before the alert went out and 74 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.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 125 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -55 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 669 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 52 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 274 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 280 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.1
- Supercell composite
- 0.4
The text
As transmitted.
920
WWUS20 KWNS 052222
SEL3
SPC WW 052222
ALZ000-MSZ000-TNZ000-060500-
URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
Tornado Watch Number 23
NWS Storm Prediction Center Norman OK
425 PM CST Wed Feb 5 2020
The NWS Storm Prediction Center has issued a
* Tornado Watch for portions of
Northern and Central Alabama
Northeast Mississippi
Southern Middle Tennessee
* Effective this Wednesday afternoon and evening from 425 PM
until 1100 PM CST.
* Primary threats include...
A few tornadoes likely with a couple intense tornadoes possible
Scattered damaging winds likely with isolated significant gusts
to 75 mph possible
Isolated large hail events to 1.5 inches in diameter possible
SUMMARY...Multiple supercells should move east-northeast from
northern and central Mississippi across the Tennessee Valley through
this evening. A few tornadoes, a couple of which could be strong,
along with damaging winds are the primary threats.
The tornado watch area is approximately along and 65 statute miles
east and west of a line from 10 miles west of Selma AL to 50 miles
north northeast of Muscle Shoals AL. For a complete depiction of the
watch see the associated watch outline update (WOUS64 KWNS WOU3).
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
REMEMBER...A Tornado Watch means conditions are favorable for
tornadoes and severe thunderstorms in and close to the watch
area. Persons in these areas should be on the lookout for
threatening weather conditions and listen for later statements
and possible warnings.
&&
OTHER WATCH INFORMATION...CONTINUE...WW 22...
AVIATION...Tornadoes and a few severe thunderstorms with hail
surface and aloft to 1.5 inches. Extreme turbulence and surface wind
gusts to 65 knots. A few cumulonimbi with maximum tops to 500. Mean
storm motion vector 25045.
...GramsSPC that day
Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 5, 11:16 AM CST | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Baldwin, Clarke, Conecuh, Escambia, Mobile, Monroe and 1 more | 119 min |
| Feb 5, 3:47 PM CST | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Bibb, Blount, Calhoun, Cherokee, Chilton, Clay and 28 more | 118 min |
| Feb 5, 5:06 PM CST | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Choctaw, Clarke, Marengo, Sumter, Washington | 84 min |
| Feb 5, 5:50 PM CST | Tornado Watch | SPC | Choctaw, Clarke, Washington | 6 hr |
| Feb 5, 10:28 AM CST | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Adams, Attala, Choctaw, Claiborne, Clay, Copiah and 19 more | 92 min |
| Feb 5, 11:49 AM CST | Tornado Watch | SPC | Adams, Amite, Attala, Carroll, Choctaw, Claiborne and 40 more | 6 hr |
| Feb 5, 1:19 PM CST | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Pearl River, Pike, Walthall | 86 min |
| Feb 5, 1:39 PM CST | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Adams, Attala, Choctaw, Claiborne, Copiah, Franklin and 12 more | 96 min |
| Feb 5, 3:41 PM CST | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Adams, Amite, Attala, Choctaw, Claiborne, Copiah and 26 more | 64 min |
Nearby
Tornado Watches in Alabama, 2020Tornado Watches in Mississippi, 2020Tornado Watches in Tennessee, 2020Every tornado watch in 2020
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.