Alert archive / Alabama / Tornado Watches in 2022

Tornado Watch 39

March 9, 202213 counties in Alabama; 10 counties in Florida

The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at Mar 9, 2022, 1:21 AM CST for 13 counties in Alabama; 10 counties in Florida. It was in force for 8 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Mar 9, 2022, 1:21 AM CST (07:21 UTC)
Expired
Mar 9, 2022, 8:54 AM CST
In force
8 hr
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
Largest hail expected
1 in
Strongest gust expected
60 kt
All 23 counties

Baldwin County, AL, Barbour County, AL, Butler County, AL, Coffee County, AL, Conecuh County, AL, Covington County, AL, Crenshaw County, AL, Dale County, AL, Escambia County, AL, Geneva County, AL, Houston County, AL, Mobile County, AL, Pike County, AL, Bay County, FL, Calhoun County, FL, Escambia County, FL, Gulf County, FL, Holmes County, FL, Jackson County, FL, Okaloosa County, FL, Santa Rosa County, FL, Walton County, FL, Washington County, FL

The radar

The Mobile radar (KMOB), 103 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 07:24 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
40%
One or more EF2 to EF5 tornadoes
20%
Ten or more severe wind reports
30%
One or more gusts of 65 knots or more
20%
Ten or more severe hail reports
10%
One or more hailstones of 2 inches or more
10%
Six or more combined severe hail and wind reports
50%

Warnings issued inside it

9 tornado, severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings for its counties while it was in force.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Mar 9, 1:38 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMOBConecuh, Monroe52 min
Mar 9, 1:58 AM CSTTornado WarningMOBButler, Conecuh28 min
Mar 9, 3:56 AM CSTTornado WarningBMXPike33 min
Mar 9, 4:14 AM CSTTornado WarningTAEHolmes, Walton61 min
Mar 9, 4:47 AM CSTTornado WarningBMXBarbour58 min
Mar 9, 4:53 AM CSTTornado WarningTAEHolmes, Jackson, Washington46 min
Mar 9, 5:24 AM CSTTornado WarningTAEJackson53 min
Mar 9, 7:00 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTAECalhoun, Franklin, Gulf, Liberty, Wakulla30 min
Mar 9, 8:25 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTAEBay, Franklin, Gulf, Liberty35 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

Slidell Radar S, LA (KSIL), launched 00:00Z, 7.4 hours before the alert went out and 250 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 00:00Z on 2022-03-09Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 23 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 00:00Z on 2022-03-09The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 283 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
23 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-360 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
510 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
53 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
283 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
311 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
1.9

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted.

869 
WWUS20 KWNS 090718
SEL9  
SPC WW 090718
ALZ000-FLZ000-CWZ000-091400-

URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
Tornado Watch Number 39
NWS Storm Prediction Center Norman OK
125 AM CST Wed Mar 9 2022

The NWS Storm Prediction Center has issued a

* Tornado Watch for portions of 
  Southern Alabama
  Western Panhandle of Florida
  Coastal Waters

* Effective this Wednesday morning from 125 AM until 800 AM CST.

* Primary threats include...
  A couple tornadoes possible
  Isolated damaging wind gusts to 70 mph possible

SUMMARY...Scattered thunderstorms will spread across the watch area
through the early morning hours along and south of a front.  A few
more supercells are possible, with a tornado and damaging-wind
threat.

The tornado watch area is approximately along and 45 statute miles
north and south of a line from 60 miles west of Pensacola FL to 55
miles east northeast of Crestview FL. For a complete depiction of
the watch see the associated watch outline update (WOUS64 KWNS
WOU9).

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.

&&

AVIATION...Tornadoes and a few severe thunderstorms with hail
surface and aloft to 1 inch. Extreme turbulence and surface wind
gusts to 60 knots. A few cumulonimbi with maximum tops to 450. Mean
storm motion vector 25025.

...Edwards

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Mar 8, 9:50 PM CSTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBaldwin, Mobile3 hr
Mar 9, 12:58 AM CSTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBaldwin, Covington, Escambia, Geneva, Mobile2 hr
Mar 9, 3:28 AM CSTMesoscale DiscussionSPCCoffee, Covington, Crenshaw, Dale, Geneva, Pike92 min
Mar 9, 5:18 AM CSTTornado WatchSPCHenry7 hr
Mar 9, 7:15 AM CSTMesoscale DiscussionSPCHouston2 hr
Mar 9, 4:47 AM CSTMesoscale DiscussionSPCGadsden, Hamilton, Jefferson, Leon, Liberty, Madison and 2 more118 min
Mar 9, 9:15 AM CSTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBaker, Bradford, Clay, Columbia, Duval, Gilchrist and 9 more90 min
Mar 9, 5:03 PM CSTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBrevard, Citrus, Flagler, Hernando, Lake, Levy and 8 more117 min

Nearby

Tornado Watches in Alabama, 2022Tornado Watches in Florida, 2022Every tornado watch in 2022

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.