Lightning Strike in Florida, June 21, 2001

Name: Lightning Strike in Florida, June 21, 2001
Start: 2001-06-21T15:30
End: 2001-06-21T15:30
Location: Florida

June 21, 2001 · NWS MLB · 1 event in 1 county or zone

1 lightning, as filed by the National Weather Service.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 1 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: 5
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 1

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 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 Melbourne, FL wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jun 21, 1:15 PM EST, 2 hours 15 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jun 21, 1:15 PM EST, 2 hours 15 minutes before

EAST CENTRAL FLORIDA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MELBOURNE FL
215 PM EDT THU JUN 21 2001

CONVECTION IS SPARKING ALONG THE EAST AND WEST COAST SEA BREEZES AS
EACH BOUNDARY PUSHES INLAND TOWARD A POSSIBLE COLLISION LATER THIS
EVENING OVER THE INTERIOR. WILL CONTINUE THE SCATTERED EVENING POPS
ALREADY IN THE FORECAST FOR THE INTERIOR AND NORTH COAST AS STEERING
FLOW SHOULD BEGIN TO BRING THE CONVECTION BACK TOWARD THE VOLUSIA
COAST.

FRI...RIDGE AXIS WILL GET SUPPRESSED TO S FL FRI RETURNING US TO AN
OFFSHORE FLOW REGIME AND CONVECTION PUSHING BACK TO THE EAST COAST.
H85 SW FLOW WILL NOT BE STRONG ENOUGH TO HOLD OFF THE EAST COAST SEA
BREEZE FRI BUT WILL DELAY IT ESP N OF THE CAPE. PRESENCE OF THIS
BOUNDARY WILL INCREASE THE COVERAGE AND INTENSITY OF STORMS NEAR THE
COAST LATE. WITH MODELS FORECASTING DEEP LAYER MOISTURE (JUST UNDER
2" PRECIP WATER)...SKIES SHOULD QUICKLY BECOME MOSTLY CLOUDY. WILL
CONTINUE LIKELY POPS AREA WIDE.

SAT...H85 FLOW INCREASES AND WILL DELAY THE SEA BREEZE ONSET...
POSSIBLY PREVENTING IT N OF THE CAPE. WHILE MODELS INDICATE MOISTURE
WILL NOT BE AS PLENTIFUL...IT WILL BE SUFFICIENT (PWATS 1.75")...
PLUS AVN INTRODUCES SOME MID LEVEL SUPPORT IN THE FORM OF TRAILING
VORT ENERGY SWINGING ACROSS THE PENINSULA. ETA'S TIMING OF THIS
SHORTWAVE IS A LITTLE SLOWER. WILL UNDERCUT THE MAV POPS AND LEAN
TOWARD THE 60% FWC POPS.

EXTENDED...WEAK COLD FRONT/TROUGH STALLS NORTH OF FL SUN AND
DISSIPATES MON. THIS ALLOWS THE RIDGE AXIS TO MOVE BACK NORTH TO
NORTH FLORIDA...AND REDEVELOP SYNOPTIC SCALE ONSHORE FLOW. THIS FLOW
PATTERN FAVORS LATE NIGHT/EARLY MORNING COASTAL SHOWERS FOR THE
COAST AND AFTERNOON CONVECTION FOR THE INTERIOR.

MARINE...AS RIDGE AXIS PUSHES SOUTH OF THE MARINE AREA TONIGHT AND
FRI...SYNOPTIC FLOW WILL BECOME INCREASINGLY OFFSHORE. SEA BREEZE
WILL DEVELOP FRI ALONG THE ENTIRE COAST...BUT WILL BE DELAYED AND
POSSIBLY INHIBITED N OF THE CAPE SAT. STORMS WILL MOVE OFF THE
PENINSULA AND ACROSS THE INTRACOASTAL AND NEAR SHORE WATERS FRI AND
SAT.

DAB TT 071/089 072/089 071 3646
MCO TT 072/090 073/089 072 3646
MLB TT 072/089 072/0z89 072 2646

.MLB...NONE.

PUBLIC/MARINE...KELLY
AVIATION/FIRE WX...GITTINGER

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Jun 21, 10:36 AM EST, 4 hours 54 minutes before

FLZ041-044>047-053-054-058-059-064-141-144-147-212000-

EAST CENTRAL FLORIDA HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MELBOURNE FL
1136 AM EDT THU JUN 21 2001

...LIGHTNING SAFETY AWARENESS WEEK CONTINUES...

...A FEW STRONG LIGHTNING STORMS EXPECTED OVER THE INTERIOR...

THE EAST COAST SEA BREEZE BOUNDARY WILL SPARK SCATTERED LIGHTNING
STORMS AS IT PUSHES INLAND. THE HIGHEST COVERAGE IS EXPECTED OVER
SOUTHERN SECTIONS WHERE DEEPER MOISTURE IS PRESENT. STRONG STORMS ARE
POSSIBLE WHERE THE SEA BREEZE INTERACTS WITH LAKE BREEZES AND THE
WEST COAST BREEZE. THE THREAT OF HAIL AND WIND GUSTS NEAR 50 MPH WILL
BE GREATER THAN IT WAS YESTERDAY...WITH INTERIOR SECTIONS BEING THE
MORE VULNERABLE.

A FEW STORMS MAY PRODUCE EXCESSIVE LIGHTNING...WITH 12 OR MORE CLOUD
TO GROUND STRIKES PER MINUTE. IT IS IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER THAT ALL
LIGHTNING STORMS ARE POTENTIAL KILLERS...REGARDLESS OF THE FLASH
RATE. MOVE INDOORS AT THE FIRST SIGN OF THREATENING SKIES AS
LIGHTNING CAN STRIKE WELL BEYOND THE AUDIBLE RANGE OF THUNDER.

LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL AROUND 2 TO 3 INCHES MAY OCCUR IN A FEW SLOW
MOVING STORMS. IN THAT EVENT...PONDING OF WATER ON ROADS AND POOR
DRAINAGE AREAS WILL RESULT.

SEVERAL RIP CURRENT RESCUES HAVE OCCURRED THE LAST COUPLE OF DAYS
ALONG THE VOLUSIA COUNTY COAST. REMEMBER TO ASK THE BEACH PATROL
ABOUT SWIMMING HAZARDS WHEN YOU ARRIVE AT THE BEACH AND ALWAYS SWIM
WITHIN SIGHT OF A LIFEGUARD.

FOR MARINE INTERESTS...SOME STORMS MAY DEVELOP AND DRIFT TOWARD THE
EAST COAST...MAINLY DURING THE LATE AFTERNOON AND EARLY EVENING
HOURS NORTH OF CAPE CANAVERAL. BOATERS AND BEACH VISITORS SHOULD
KEEP A CLOSE WATCH ON THE WEATHER TODAY AND REMAIN ALERT FOR STORMS
APPROACHING FROM THE WEST.  PLAN TO TAKE SHELTER BEFORE THE STORMS
ARE OVERHEAD.  WIND GUSTS OVER 35 KNOTS...AND FREQUENT LIGHTNING
STRIKES WILL LIKELY ACCOMPANY THE STRONGER STORMS.

THE GRAPHICAL VERSION OF THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS AVAILABLE
AT: HTTP://WWW.SRH.NOAA.GOV/MLB/HWOFILES/HWOMAIN.HTML

KELLY

The radar

The Melbourne radar (KMLB), 126 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 20:28 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 lightning. Local standard time, as filed.

Lightning, Lake

When: June 21, 3:30 PM EST
Where: Lake County, Fruitland Park
Injuries: 5 direct, 0 indirect
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 28.762, -81.711 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Five teenage boys were injured as they passed by a large tree that was struck by lightning. All five were knocked to the ground and were transported by ambulance to a local hospital. One boy received a serious cut on his neck from flying chips of wood when the tree was struck. The other four received minor injuries.

What these are

Lightning: A lightning strike that killed, injured or caused damage.

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, June 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: 5259550.