Funnel Cloud in Florida, March 28, 2002

Name: Funnel Cloud in Florida, March 28, 2002
Start: 2002-03-28T14:15
End: 2002-03-28T14:15
Location: Florida

March 28, 2002 · NWS TBW · 1 event in 1 county or zone

A "whirlwind", occurring when a fairly strong sea breeze interacted with mechanical atmospheric mixing under clear, dry conditions, produced considerable damage at a home in the Town 'N' Country section of Hillsborough County. Three cement support poles were lifted from the ground, and a metal rod was reportedly driven through the home's roof.

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
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The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: $7,000
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 happened

The episode as NWS TBW wrote it up.

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 Mar 28, 1:03 PM EST, 1 hour 12 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Mar 28, 1:03 PM EST, 1 hour 12 minutes before

WEST CENTRAL AND SOUTHWEST FLORIDA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAMPA BAY AREA - RUSKIN FL
103 PM EST THU MAR 28 2002

GENERALLY QUIET SPRING WX TO CONTINUE THROUGH THE WEEKEND AND INTO
EARLY NEXT WEEK.  SYNOPTICALLY...FLAT RIDGING WITH SLIGHTLY ABOVE
NORMAL H50 HEIGHTS WILL CONTINUE.  WEAK SHORT WAVES WILL MOVE
THROUGH FROM TIME TO TIME...CAUSING SOME FLUCTUATION IN LOW LEVEL
MOISTURE PATTERN.  A SINGLE STRONG WAVE LATE IN THE SHORT-TERM
PERIOD WILL ONLY ACT TO FLATTEN THE RIDGE AS IT CRUISES BY TO OUR N.

MODELS ARE IN GOOD AGREEMENT WITH THE BIG PICTURE.  THE ONLY
DIFFERENCE IS IN THE FRI-SAT TIME FRAME.  ETA BRINGS SHEAR AXIS
ACROSS THE CWFA ON FRI...ENHANCING LOW LEVEL MOISTURE
RETURN/CONVERGENCE ACROSS THE CENTRAL CWFA...THEN MOVES IT EAST BY
EARLY SAT.  THE AVN HAS A MUCH WEAKER WAVE ON FRI...AND SAVES THE
BETTER SHEAR AXIS UNTIL SATURDAY.  PREFER A BLEND OF THE MODELS...
HERE.  SINCE WAVES ARE EMBEDDED WITHIN GENERAL RIDGING...AND DEEP
MOISTURE IS LACKING...THE EFFECT ON SENSIBLE WX WILL BE MINIMAL.

SHORT TERM:
AS LOW LEVEL RIDGES PUSH E...WINDS WILL VEER TO E THEN SE OR S...
QUICKLY RETURNING LATE APRIL-LIKE DWPTS TO THE REGION.  MESO-ETA
BOLDLY BRINGING LAYER OF H95-H85 MOISTURE BACK TONIGHT ON ESE FLOW...
ESPECIALLY THROUGH INTERIOR ZONES.  BELIEVE THIS IS OVERDONE...BUT
WOULD NOT BE SURPRISED TO SEE SOME CLDS DEVELOP AROUND THE INVERSION
LAYER.  WILL ADD P/CLDY CENTRAL AND S.

AS FOR FRI...A STRAY SHOWER NOT OUT OF THE QUESTION OVER INLAND
PORTIONS WITH SHORT WAVE...WEAK CONVERGENCE...AND LOW LEVEL
MOISTURE.  HOWEVER...ONLY THE ETA IS SHOWING THIS BOLD SOLUTION
(IMPLYING ISOLD SHOWERS) WHICH MAY BE RELATED TO TIMING/STRENGTH OF
SHEAR AXIS.  PREFER TO LEAVE OUT MENTION FOR ONE MORE RUN.  BY
SATURDAY...ENOUGH RETURN MOISTURE SHOULD BE IN PLACE TO LEAVE IN
MENTION OF PCPN...MAINLY AWAY FROM THE COAST.  STILL...NOT ENOUGH
TO RUIN ANYBODYS PLANS.

EXTENDED:
SHORT WAVE IN TEXAS AT THE BEGINNING OF THE PERIOD FORECAST TO
DEFLECT THROUGH THE SE U.S. WITH FL ONLY RECEIVING A GLANCING BLOW.
SUNDAY/MONDAY WOULD BE THE BEST CHC FOR PCPN...MAINLY OVER
INTERIOR SECTIONS AS S/SW FLOW DOMINATES THE LOW LEVELS.  HOWEVER...
AIR MASS DOESNT CHANGE MUCH ON TUES/WED...SO GIVEN POSSIBLE TIMING
ERRORS PREFER TO LEAVE IN SMALL CHC FOR PCPN EACH DAY.  MODELS HAVE
BACKED OFF NEXT FRONT UNTIL THURS (FOR NOW).  WILL SHIFT SLIGHTLY
MORE PESSIMISTIC FCST BACK A DAY.  THROUGH IT ALL...TEMPS WILL
REMAIN 2-5 DEG ABOVE NORMAL.

MARINE:
QUIET THROUGH SATURDAY...WITH JUST A SLIGHT PICKUP IN S FLOW ON
SUNDAY.

FIRE WX:
RED FLAG CONDS ON THE DOORSTEP OF THE NATURE COAST FOR THIS
AFTERNOON...BUT RETURN OF U50S-L60S DWPTS EVERYWHERE ON FRIDAY
SHOULD PRECLUDE HIGHLITES.

PRELIM NUMBERS:
BKV 050/086 056/085 0-02
TPA 061/084 064/084 0-01
GIF 060/087 063/087 01-2
SRQ 060/083 063/083 0001
FMY 061/087 063/087 0102

.TBW...RED FLAG WARNING THROUGH SUNSET LEVY AND SUMTER COUNTIES AND
       INLAND AREAS OF CITRUS HERNANDO AND PASCO COUNTIES.
    ...FIRE WEATHER WATCH THROUGH SUNSET FOR INLAND PORTIONS OF
       HILLSBOROUGH MANATEE SARASOTA AND CHARLOTTE COUNTIES AND ALL
       OF POLK HARDEE AND DESOTO COUNTIES.

88/GOLDSMITH

The radar

The Tampa radar (KTBW), 23 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 19:15 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 funnel cloud. Local standard time, as filed.

Funnel Cloud, Hillsborough

When: March 28, 2:15 PM EST
Where: Hillsborough County, 5 mi NW of Tampa
Property damage: $7,000
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 27.906, -82.347 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Funnel Cloud: A rotating column of cloud extending from a thunderstorm that did not reach the ground.

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

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Florida in 2002 Every state in 2002 This day in weather history Warnings in Florida, March 2002

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: 5281102.