High Wind in Florida, August 19, 2001

Name: High Wind in Florida, August 19, 2001
Start: 2001-08-19T14:00
End: 2001-08-19T15:00
Location: Florida

August 19, 2001 · NWS MOB · 2 events in 2 counties and zones

High winds from a line of thunderstorms over Pensacola Bay caused several boats to run aground. Wind gusts were estimated at 40 to 45 knots.

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: $15,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 2

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

What happened

The episode as NWS MOB wrote it up.

High winds from a line of thunderstorms over Pensacola Bay caused several boats to run aground. Wind gusts were estimated at 40 to 45 knots. Several of the boats suffered damage when they ran aground.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Mobile, AL wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Aug 19, 1:59 AM CST, 12 hours 1 minute earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 19, 1:59 AM CST, 12 hours 1 minute before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MOBILE AL
259 AM CDT SUN AUG 19 2001

SERIES OF MID/UPPER LEVEL SHORTWAVES WILL CONTINUE TO MOVE ACROSS
THE AREA THROUGH MONDAY.  DIFFICULT TO PICK ANY PREFERRED AREA FOR
PRECIP TODAY AND TONIGHT WITH SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES WITH THESE
FEATURES IN MODELS SO WILL STAY WITH GOOD CHANCE POPS TODAY AND
SLIGHT CHANCE TO CHANCE POPS TONIGHT.  MODEL SOUNDINGS SHOW DRYING
SLOWLY CONTINUING ALOFT AS THE UPPER TROF NEARS...SO ISOLATED
STRONG/SEVERE STORMS ARE AGAIN POSSIBLE THROUGH THIS
EVENING...MAINLY OVER INLAND ZONES NEAR WHERE SPC HAS OUTLOOKED A
SLIGHT RISK AND DRIEST AIR IS EXPECTED TO EXIST ALOFT.

AS THE H5 TROF MOVES ACROSS THE AREA ON MONDAY...A WEAKENING FRONT
IS PROGGED TO MOVE NEAR THE GULF COAST PER THE AVN AND HPC WHILE THE
ETA TAKES IT JUST INTO THE NORTHERN PORTION OF THE FORECAST AREA.
WILL STAY WITH THE PREVIOUS SHIFTS THINKING AND LIMIT THE FRONTS
SOUTHERN ADVANCE TO OVER OUR NORTHERN AREA BY MONDAY NIGHT.
ALTHOUGH GENERAL DRYING OCCURS...MODEL SOUNDINGS STILL SHOW
SUFFICIENT DEPTH OF MOISTURE THROUGH H8 TO SUPPORT CONVECTION FROM
SEA BREEZE ACTIVITY AND ALONG THE WEAK FRONT.  EXPECT COASTAL
COUNTIES TO HAVE THE BEST COVERAGE...WHERE HIGHER CAPES AND BETTER
MOISTURE DEPTH WILL BE LOCATED.  ISOLATED SEVERE STORMS WILL AGAIN
BE A RISK...BUT LOOKS TO BE MORE OVER THE SOUTHERN PORTION OF THE
FORECAST AREA.

EXTENDED RANGE...WILL HAVE TO CONTINUE TO MONITOR CHANTAL...BUT
OTHERWISE CURRENT EXTENDED PACKAGE LOOKS GOOD FOR AUGUST CLIMO.

FIRE AND MARINE...NO HIGHLIGHTS.  WEST TO SOUTHWEST WINDS NEAR 10
KNOTS THROUGH MONDAY NIGHT WITH SEAS 2 FEET OR LESS.

PRELIM CCF NUMBERS...
MOB TB 091/074 092/073 093 295242
PNS TB 090/074 091/073 092 295242
DTS TB 089/076 090/076 090 295242
GZH TB 091/070 092/069 093 295332
2R0 TB 091/070 092/067 093 295332
61A TB 091/070 092/067 093 295332

.MOB...
AL...NONE.
FL...NONE.
MS...NONE.

Event by event

2 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.

High Wind, Coastal Santa Rosa

When: August 19, 2:00 PM CST to 3:00 PM CST
Where: Coastal Santa Rosa forecast zone
Measured: 40 kt (46 mph)
Property damage: $10,000
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER

High Wind, Coastal Escambia

When: August 19, 2:00 PM CST to 3:00 PM CST
Where: Coastal Escambia forecast zone
Measured: 40 kt (46 mph)
Property damage: $5,000
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER

What these are

High Wind: Sustained non-thunderstorm winds of 40 mph or more for an hour, or gusts of 58 mph or more.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Florida in 2001 Every state in 2001 This day in weather history Warnings in Florida, August 2001

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5264845, 5264846.