Florida, 2001

Dense Fog in Florida, February 2, 2001

February 2, 2001 · NWS TBW · 10 events in 10 counties and zones

Widespread dense fog reduced visibility to less than a quarter mile over portions of West Central and most of Southwest Florida.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 5 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.

  • Tornadoes
  • Tropical storms and surge
  • Floods
  • Wind
  • Hail
  • Winter weather
  • Heat and drought
  • Cold
  • Fire, smoke and dust
  • Marine and coastal
  • Other

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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
10

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 TBW wrote it up.

Widespread dense fog reduced visibility to less than a quarter mile over portions of West Central and most of Southwest Florida.

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 Tampa Bay, FL wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 2, 2:20 AM EST, 40 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Feb 2, 2:20 AM EST, 40 minutes before
WEST CENTRAL AND SOUTHWEST FLORIDA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAMPA BAY AREA - RUSKIN FL
220 AM EST FRI FEB 2 2001

IT LOOKS LIKE IT WILL BE A LITTLE HARD TO PIN DOWN JUST EXACTLY
WHERE IT WILL RAIN TODAY.  A WEAK MEANDERING COLD FRONT STRETCHED
FROM NEAR ORLANDO TO JUST SOUTH OF BROOKSVILLE.  TO ITS NORTH THERE
IS OVERRUNNING LIGHT RAIN...TO THE SOUTH FOG LOOKS LIKE IT IS THE
RULE.  IT IS APPARENT THAT THE FRONT WILL DRIFT SOUTH TODAY AND
WITH IT WILL BE THE RAIN...BUT HOW FAR SOUTH AND HOW MUCH RAIN LOOKS
LIKE THE QUESTION.

I WILL ADJUST THE CLOUD COVER IN THE NORTH AND KEEP SOME POPS
THERE...WITH RAIN ALL THE WAY BACK TO PENSACOLA AND ALL MODELS
SHOWING BROKEN/OVERCAST SKIES...ALTHOUGH LIFTING CEILINGS.  MOS
GUIDANCE FOR GNV DOES SHOW SOME TEMPORARY CLEARING...BUT I JUST
DONT BUY IT.  I THINK IT IS BANKING ON THE BUILDING SURFACE RIDGE
TODAY CLEARING IT OUT BUT LOOKING UP STREAM...ALL OF SOUTHERN
LOUISIANA AND TEXAS ARE OVERCAST AND THEY ARE UNDER THE RIDGE IN
FACT NEW ORLEANS IS REPORTING RAIN OUT OF A MID DECK OF CLOUDS.

SO I WILL GO WITH PERSISTENCE...GENERALLY CLOUDY WITH AT LEAST SOME
CHANCE OF RAIN UNTIL MONDAY MORNING WHEN A SHORT WAVE IN THE
GULF MOVES THROUGH.  MODELS ARE CONSISTENT WITH DEVELOPING A SURFACE
LOW IS FORECAST OFF THE EAST COAST AND MOVING IT NORTH.  THEN HIGH
PRESSURE BUILDS INTO THE STATE FOR TUESDAY...ALTHOUGH PRESSURES DO
NOT SEEM TO INCREASE MUCH AND THE LONGWAVE TROUGH ALOFT STAYS TO
OUR WEST.

FOR THE MARINE AREA...WITH THE RIDGE BUILDING ACROSS THE PANHANDLE
AND PUSHING THE FRONT SOUTHWARD...WINDS WILL PICK UP A BIT AS THE
GRADIENT TIGHTENS.  I WILL GO WITH SCEC ACROSS THE AREA.  I NOTICE
THAT THE AVN...WHICH HAS DONE PRETTY WELL WITH THESE SYSTEMS THIS
YEAR HAS SCA CONDITIONS.  BUT THE MODEL SEEMS TO BE OVERESTIMATING
THE WINDS RIGHT NOW SO I WILL HOLD BACK AND LET THE DAY SHIFT
REVISIT THIS THIS MORNING.

PRELYIMINARY NUMBERS

TPA CC 068/051 068/056 070 3223
FMY EE 078/058 075/059 078 1112

.TBW...SCEC BONITA BCH TO SUWANNEE RVR OUT 60 NM INCLUDING TAMPA BAY.

SOBIEN

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

10 dense fog. Local standard time, as filed.

Dense Fog, Pinellas

When
February 2, 3:00 AM EST to 8:30 AM EST
Where
Pinellas forecast zone
Reported by
AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates
27.903, -82.739 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Dense Fog, Charlotte

When
February 2, 3:00 AM EST to 8:30 AM EST
Where
Charlotte forecast zone
Reported by
AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Dense Fog, De Soto

When
February 2, 3:00 AM EST to 8:30 AM EST
Where
De Soto forecast zone
Reported by
AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates
27.186, -81.809 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Dense Fog, Hardee

When
February 2, 3:00 AM EST to 8:30 AM EST
Where
Hardee forecast zone
Reported by
AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates
27.493, -81.810 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Dense Fog, Highlands

When
February 2, 3:00 AM EST to 8:30 AM EST
Where
Highlands forecast zone
Reported by
AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates
27.343, -81.341 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Dense Fog, Hillsborough

When
February 2, 3:00 AM EST to 8:30 AM EST
Where
Hillsborough forecast zone
Reported by
AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Dense Fog, Lee

When
February 2, 3:00 AM EST to 8:30 AM EST
Where
Lee forecast zone
Reported by
AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Dense Fog, Manatee

When
February 2, 3:00 AM EST to 8:30 AM EST
Where
Manatee forecast zone
Reported by
AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Dense Fog, Polk

When
February 2, 3:00 AM EST to 8:30 AM EST
Where
Polk forecast zone
Reported by
AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates
27.949, -81.698 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Dense Fog, Sarasota

When
February 2, 3:00 AM EST to 8:30 AM EST
Where
Sarasota forecast zone
Reported by
AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

What these are

Dense Fog
Fog reducing visibility to a quarter mile or less, filed where it caused accidents or disruption.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Florida in 2001Every state in 2001This day in weather historyWarnings in Florida, February 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: 5235082, 5235083, 5235084, 5235085, 5235086, 5235087, 5235088, 5235089, 5235183, 5235184.