Dense Fog in Florida, February 27, 2001

Name: Dense Fog in Florida, February 27, 2001
Start: 2001-02-27T07:00
End: 2001-02-27T08:30
Location: Florida

February 27, 2001 · NWS TBW · 6 events in 6 counties and zones

Patchy dense fog reduced visibility to less than a quarter mile over portions of West Central Florida.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 2 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

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 6

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.

Patchy dense fog reduced visibility to less than a quarter mile over portions of West Central 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 27, 2:10 AM EST, 4 hours 50 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Feb 27, 2:10 AM EST, 4 hours 50 minutes before

WEST CENTRAL AND SOUTHWEST FLORIDA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAMPA BAY AREA  RUSKIN FL
210 AM EST TUE FEB 27 2001

FEBRUARY GOING OUT LIKE A LAMB FROM CENTRAL FL S...WITH CONTINUED
BALMY WX...SOME 10 DEG ABOVE NORMAL IN MOST LOCATIONS.

MODELS WERE IN EXCELLENT AGREEMENT THROUGH THE SHORT TERM...WITH
NGM/AVN NOW BACKING OFF A BIT ON SFC NE FLOW SINCE YESTERDAY.

SHORT TERM FCST/DISC:
SLOWLY FALLING H50 HEIGHTS...A RESULT OF WEAK IMPULSES N OF THE
REGION FLATTENING THE PERSISTENT RIDGE...WILL PRODUCE WEAK SFC LOWS
JUST N OF THE STATE AND PUSH SFC HIGH TOWARD THE FL STRAITS.  IN
BETWEEN...INCREASING SFC-H85  W FLOW WILL PUSH WARMEST TEMPS INTO OUR
CENTRAL COS AND TO THE ATLC COAST.  THIS WILL ALSO TEND TO PIN ANY
RAIN TO THE ATLC COASTAL ZONES AS WELL...ESP WED/THU.

FOR TODAY...EXPECT ISOLD INTERIOR SHWRS AS HEAT TROUGH DEVELOPS ONCE
AGAIN.  WILL LEAVE MENTION OUT OF COASTAL COS...THOUGH CARRY A
SHADOW 10 POP IN THE CCF.  P/CLOUDY WITH PATCHY F TONIGHT...THEN
P/SUNNY AND NO POP WED.

EXTENDED:
MORE OF THE SAME ON THURS.  AVN HAS BACKED UP TIMING OF NEXT SYSTEM
ON FRI...SO WILL TAKE OUT PCPN MENTION CNTL/S AND LEAVE IN N.
MODELS MAY BE COMING TOGETHER ON A WEEKEND SOLN...WHICH INDICATES A
POTENTIAL PATTERN SHIFT.  00Z NOGAPS AND AVN INDICATE DEVELOPING
LOW IN THE W GULF LATE SAT WITH A SLOW TREK NE.  ALOFT...UPPER RIDGE
SHIFTS E...ALLOWING DEEP SW FLOW TO OVERSPREAD REGION.  SUCH A
TREND WOULD HELP THE PCPN MECHANISM...BUT IT'S A BIT TOO SOON TO PIN
HOPES.

WILL REMOVE RAIN CHC S 1/3 SAT...OTHERWISE CURR WEEKEND EFP WILL
HOLD.

MARINE:  QUIET AS FAR AS WINDS GO.  STRATUS/PTCHY SEA FOG WHICH
DEVELOPED LATE MON MORNING HAS NOW SLID INTO THE S WATERS.  WILL HAVE
TO MONITOR FOR REDEVELOPMENT OVERNIGHT INTO EARLY WED AS LIGHT S/SW
FLOW TAKES OVER...RIDING OVER WATER TEMPS STILL IN THE 60S JUST
OFFSHORE.  WILL CALL IT PATCHY EVERYWHERE FOR NOW.
g
FIRE WX:  NO RH PROBLEMS ANTICIPATED...BUT SPORADIC BRUSHFIRES STILL
ONGOING...ESP S 1/2 WHERE CONDS CONTINUE TO WORSEN.

PRELIM NUMBERS:
TPA BB 081/063/079/065 10-0
FMY BB 084/062/082/062 1010 88

.TBW...NONE.

GOLDSMITH

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Feb 27, 5:15 AM EST, 1 hour 45 minutes before

FLZ039-042-043-048>052-055>057-060>062-065-271300-

WEST CENTRAL AND SOUTHWEST FLORIDA HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAMPA BAY AREA - RUSKIN FL
515 AM EST TUE FEB 27 2001

NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED TODAY.

BSG

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

6 dense fog. Local standard time, as filed.

Dense Fog, Levy

When: February 27, 7:00 AM EST to 8:30 AM EST
Where: Levy forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Dense Fog, Citrus

When: February 27, 7:00 AM EST to 8:30 AM EST
Where: Citrus forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Dense Fog, Hernando

When: February 27, 7:00 AM EST to 8:30 AM EST
Where: Hernando forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Dense Fog, Pasco

When: February 27, 7:00 AM EST to 8:30 AM EST
Where: Pasco forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Dense Fog, Polk

When: February 27, 7:00 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, Sumter

When: February 27, 7:00 AM EST to 8:30 AM EST
Where: Sumter forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates: 28.705, -82.081 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

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

Every storm in Florida in 2001 Every state in 2001 This day in weather history Warnings 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: 5235341, 5235342, 5235343, 5235344, 5235345, 5235346.