Alert archive / Florida / Tornado Watches in 2024

Tornado Watch 596

August 5, 202429 counties in Florida; 14 counties in Georgia

The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at Aug 5, 2024, 5:57 AM EDT for 29 counties in Florida; 14 counties in Georgia. It was in force for 12 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Aug 5, 2024, 5:57 AM EDT (09:57 UTC)
Expired
Aug 5, 2024, 6:00 PM EDT
In force
12 hr
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
Strongest gust expected
60 kt
All 43 counties

Alachua County, FL, Baker County, FL, Bradford County, FL, Citrus County, FL, Clay County, FL, Columbia County, FL, Duval County, FL, Flagler County, FL, Gilchrist County, FL, Hardee County, FL, Hernando County, FL, Hillsborough County, FL, Lake County, FL, Levy County, FL, Manatee County, FL, Marion County, FL, Nassau County, FL, Orange County, FL, Osceola County, FL, Pasco County, FL, Pinellas County, FL, Polk County, FL, Putnam County, FL, Saint Johns County, FL, Sarasota County, FL, Seminole County, FL, Sumter County, FL, Union County, FL, Volusia County, FL, Brantley County, GA, Bryan County, GA, Camden County, GA, Charlton County, GA, Chatham County, GA, Evans County, GA, Glynn County, GA, Liberty County, GA, Long County, GA, McIntosh County, GA, Pierce County, GA, Tattnall County, GA, Ware County, GA, Wayne County, GA

The radar

The Jacksonville radar (KJAX), 130 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 10:00 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
50%
One or more EF2 to EF5 tornadoes
20%
Ten or more severe wind reports
5%
One or more gusts of 65 knots or more
5%
Ten or more severe hail reports
5%
One or more hailstones of 2 inches or more
5%
Six or more combined severe hail and wind reports
20%

Warnings issued inside it

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Aug 5, 6:01 AM EDTTornado WarningTBWPolk14 min
Aug 5, 7:08 AM EDTFlash Flood WarningJAXColumbia, Gilchrist, Suwannee5 hr
Aug 5, 7:43 AM EDTFlash Flood WarningJAXAlachua, Bradford, Columbia, Gilchrist, Hamilton, Union5 hr
Aug 5, 8:03 AM EDTTornado WarningTBWPolk27 min
Aug 5, 8:55 AM EDTTornado WarningMLBOrange20 min
Aug 5, 9:51 AM EDTFlash Flood WarningJAXBaker, Columbia, Hamilton, Suwannee6 hr
Aug 5, 12:21 PM EDTFlash Flood Warning EmergencyConsiderable damage threatJAXColumbia, Gilchrist, Hamilton, Suwannee6 hr
Aug 5, 3:42 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningJAXBaker, Columbia, Hamilton, Union6 hr
Aug 5, 3:55 PM EDTTornado WarningJAXDuval, Saint Johns20 min
Aug 5, 4:11 PM EDTTornado WarningCHSBryan, Chatham34 min
Aug 5, 4:34 PM EDTFlash Flood Warning EmergencyCatastrophic damage threatJAXBaker, Columbia, Hamilton, Suwannee3 hr
Aug 5, 5:28 PM EDTTornado WarningJAXDuval, Saint Johns32 min
Aug 5, 5:32 PM EDTFlash Flood Warning Considerable damage threatCHSBryan, Bulloch, Chatham, Effingham, Evans, Liberty and 3 more8 hr

Discussions around it

SPC mesoscale discussions over the same counties from four hours before the watch to its end.

The nearest sounding before it

Jacksonville, FL (KJAX), launched 00:00Z, 10.0 hours before the alert went out and 131 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, Jacksonville, FL at 00:00Z on 2024-08-05Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 590 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, Jacksonville, FL at 00:00Z on 2024-08-05The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 162 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
590 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-31 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
733 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
22 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
162 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
201 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.3
Supercell composite
5.1

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted.

391 
WWUS20 KWNS 050955
SEL6  
SPC WW 050955
FLZ000-GAZ000-CWZ000-052000-

URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
Tornado Watch Number 596
NWS Storm Prediction Center Norman OK
555 AM EDT Mon Aug 5 2024

The NWS Storm Prediction Center has issued a

* Tornado Watch for portions of 
  Central and northern Florida
  Southeastern Georgia
  Coastal Waters

* Effective this Monday morning and afternoon from 555 AM until
  400 PM EDT.

* Primary threats include...
  A few tornadoes possible

SUMMARY...Per NHC forecasts, Hurricane Debby should move slowly
northeastward/inland after landfall, to near the FL/GA line during
the duration of this watch.  Associated tornado potential -- mainly
northeast through southeast of center -- should spread over the
watch area and across more of northern FL and southeastern GA
through early/mid afternoon.

The tornado watch area is approximately along and 50 statute miles
east and west of a line from 50 miles east southeast of Saint
Petersburg FL to 50 miles north of Brunswick GA. For a complete
depiction of the watch see the associated watch outline update
(WOUS64 KWNS WOU6).

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...This tornado watch replaces tornado
watch number 595. Watch number 595 will not be in effect after
555 AM EDT. 

AVIATION...Tornadoes and a few severe thunderstorms with hail
surface and aloft to 0 inches. Extreme turbulence and surface wind
gusts to 60 knots. A few cumulonimbi with maximum tops to 450. Mean
storm motion vector 18035.

...Edwards

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Aug 4, 10:11 PM EDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAlachua, Baker, Bradford, Citrus, Clay, Columbia and 22 more2 hr
Aug 5, 12:31 AM EDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAlachua, Baker, Bradford, Citrus, Clay, Columbia and 17 more119 min
Aug 5, 5:09 AM EDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAlachua, Citrus, Gilchrist, Hardee, Hernando, Hillsborough and 8 more96 min
Aug 5, 12:08 PM EDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAlachua, Baker, Bradford, Charlotte, Citrus, Clay and 23 more52 min
Aug 5, 7:13 AM EDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBryan, Camden, Chatham, Glynn, Liberty, McIntosh2 hr
Aug 5, 2:49 PM EDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBryan, Camden, Chatham, Effingham, Glynn, Liberty and 1 more86 min
Aug 5, 3:40 PM EDTTornado WatchSPCBryan, Chatham, Effingham, Liberty, Long, McIntosh9 hr

Nearby

Tornado Watches in Florida, 2024Tornado Watches in Georgia, 2024Every tornado watch in 2024

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.