Funnel Cloud in U.S. Virgin Islands, February 19, 2002

Name: Funnel Cloud in U.S. Virgin Islands, February 19, 2002
Start: 2002-02-19T14:40
End: 2002-02-19T14:50
Location: U.S. Virgin Islands

February 19, 2002 · NWS SJU · 1 event in 1 county or zone

A pilot reported two funnel clouds about 25 miles northwest of St. Croix.

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
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 happened

The episode as NWS SJU wrote it up.

A pilot reported two funnel clouds about 25 miles northwest of St. Croix. Movement was not determined.

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 San Juan, PR wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 19, 11:59 AM AST, 2 hours 41 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Feb 19, 11:59 AM AST, 2 hours 41 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN JUAN PR
1159 AM AST TUE FEB 19 2002

COLD FRONT CONTINUES MOVING SLOWLY SOUTHEAST ACROSS FA AT THIS TIME
AND EXPECT THIS TREND TO CONTINUE THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT.
LOOKING FOR CONTINUATION OF CONSIDERABLE CLOUDINESS...SCATTERED TO
NUMEROUS SHOWERS AND POSSIBLY A THUNDERSTORM...AND INCREASINGLY
BREEZY CONDITIONS. INHERITED ZFP HAD A PRETTY GOOD HANDLE ON
EXPECTED WEATHER FOR THIS AFTERNOON...BUT SENT A FAST UPDATE TO
ALTER SKY COVER AND POPS AND TO FRESHEN WORDING IN MOST ZONES...AND
TO INSERT HSA HEADLINE. BASED ON CURRENT AND EXPECTED MARINE
CONDITIONS...DECIDED TO ISSUE HSA FOR LATE THIS AFTERNOON AND
TONIGHT...WITH THIS PACKAGE TO GIVE PUBLIC A HEADS UP ON SITUATION.

FOR COASTAL WATERS...MADE A FEW MINOR ALTERATIONS TO PREVIOUS CWF...
MAINLY TO HEADLINES...OTHERWISE NO CHANGES.

EQUIPMENT: NO PROBLEMS AT THIS TIME.

.SJU...
.PR...SCA AMZ710...720 AND PARTS OF AMZ730 AND 740. HSA ALL
      NORTHWEST THROUGH NORTH FACING COASTS OF
      PRZ001-002-005-008-010-012-013.
.VI...AMZ710...720 AND PART OF AMZ730. HSA NORTHWEST THROUGH NORTH
      FACING COASTS OF VIZ001-002.

SEELEY

WRITTEN TEXT FORECASTS (IN ENGLISH OR SPANISH)...SATELLITE IMAGERY
...DOPPLER RADAR DATA...AND A VIRTUAL LIBRARY OF WEATHER INFORMATION
CAN BE FOUND AT THE NWS SAN JUAN WEB SITE AT:

HTTP://WWW.SRH.NOAA.GOV/SJU (ALL LOWER CASE).

Event by event

1 funnel cloud. Local standard time, as filed.

Funnel Cloud, St. Croix

When: February 19, 2:40 PM AST to 2:50 PM AST
Where: St. Croix County, St. Croix
Reported by: AIRPLANE PILOT

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 U.S. Virgin Islands in 2002 Every state in 2002 This day in weather history Warnings in U.S. Virgin Islands, February 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: 5282869.