1 dust devil, as filed by the National Weather Service.
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.
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.
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 Apr 22, 8:20 AM EST, 2 hours 55 minutes earlier.
WEST CENTRAL AND SOUTHWEST FLORIDA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAMPA BAY AREA - RUSKIN FL
920 AM EDT MON APR 22 2002
DEEP LAYERED DRYING...STRONG SUBSIDENCE INVERSION 855MB AND WARM
MID LEVEL TEMPERATURES VIA 12Z RAOB DATA WILL PRECLUDE ANY PRECIP
CHANCES ACROSS THE FORECAST AREA TODAY. DRY AIR ALOFT SHOULD MIX DOWN
MAKING FOR A RATHER HOT AFTERNOON IN MOST PLACES WITH READINGS
APPROACHING THE LOWER AND MIDDLE 90S IN MOST LOCATIONS EXCEPT THE
IMMEDIATE COASTAL AREAS WHERE AFTERNOON SEA BREEZES WILL MAKE THINGS
A BIT MORE COMFORTABLE. ONGOING ZONE PACKAGE COVERS ALL OF THIS...SO
NO UPDATES ARE PLANNED. TRANQUIL CONDITIONS TO CONTINUE OVER THE
ENTIRE MARINE AREA WITH NO CHANGES EXPECTED IN THE 1030 AM UPDATE.
FIRE WEATHER...TEMPERATURES CLIMBING INTO THE LOWER AND MIDDLE 90S
COMBINED WITH DEW POINTS IN THE LOWER 60S SHOULD SUPPORT RH VALUES
OF 30-35% OVER INTERIOR ZONES FOR 2 TO 4 HOURS THIS AFTERNOON...SO
ONGOING FIRE WEATHER WATCH WILL REMAIN IN PLACE FOR THESE AREAS.
.TBW...FIRE WX WATCH THIS AFTERNOON FOR POLK...HARDEE...HIGHLANDS...
AND DESOTO COUNTIES.
...FIRE WX WATCH TUESDAY INLAND CITRUS...HERNANDO...PASCO...
HILLSBOROUGH...MANATEE...AND ALL OF LEVY...SUMTER...POLK...
HIGHLANDS...HARDEE...AND DESOTO COUNTIES.
MCMICHAELThe national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 dust devil. Local standard time, as filed.
A small dust devil developed in the vicinity of a prescribed forest burn. No damage was reported. The event occurred with clear, dry weather.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Florida in 2002Every state in 2002This day in weather historyWarnings in Florida, April 2002
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: 5285327.