1 heavy rain, 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 Jacksonville, FL wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Mar 20, 2:28 AM EST, 6 hours 32 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSONVILLE FL 228 AM EST THU MAR 20 2003 CURRENTLY RADAR WITHIN THE CWA IS QUIET AFTER EARLIER THUNDERSTORMS MOVED NEWD. ALL EYES ARE FOCUSED ON THE SQUALL LINE AND TOR WATCH BOX OVER THE FL PANHANDLE. THIS IS HEADED OUR WAY WITH THE MAIN PORTION OF THE ENERGY IS MOVING NE AND THUS SE GA WILL HAVE THE GREATEST INSTABILITY DURING THE DAY. LAPS HELICITIES INCREASED LAST HOUR TO 250-300 IN OUR NWRN COUNTIES. SHORT TERM...CAPES AND LI WILL BE 2400-3000J/KG AND -5 TO -8 RESPECTIVELY ACROSS SE GA AND SUWANNEE RIVER BASIN IN EXTREME NE FL. TEMPS WILL REMAIN UNSEASONABLY WARM THROUGH FRIDAY ALTHOUGH NOT QUITE AS WARM ON FRI. SPRINGTIME FRONTS AND SUMMERTIME TEMPS SPELL SEVERE WEATHER AND INDEED THE CWA IS UNDER SLGT RISK WITH NRN TIER IN A MODERATE RISK CATEGORY. OTHERWISE THE EAST COAST WILL BE LOCATION OF SEABREEZE CONVERGENCE AND THUNDERSTORMS AS SLY FLOW OVER THE PENINSULA SHIFTS TO SWLY THIS AFTN EXCEPT ALONG E COAST. WILL GO WITH 50% POPS ACROSS NRN TIER TODAY AND INCREASE TO LIKELY TONIGHT. LIKELY POPS FOR MIDDLE PORTION OF CWA ON FRIDAY AS COLD FRONT MOVES THROUGH DURING THE DAY. IMPROVING CONDITIONS FRIDAY NIGHT/SATURDAY AS FRONT MOVES TO SOUTH FL AND THIS WEEKS ROUND OF SEVERE WX WILL BE FINISHED. EXTENDED...NEXT VIGOROUS SHORT WAVE TROF DIVES FROM PACIFIC NW TO GULF COAST BY SUNDAY PROVIDING SLGT CHNC SHOWERS BY EVENING MAINLY IN FL ZONES. HIGH PRESSURE MOVES IN EARLY NEXT WEEK AND TEMPS RETURN TO MORE SEASONABLE. MARINE...SCA IN EFFECT FOR TODAY. LATEST WINDS AT ST AUGUSTINE BUOY ARE SE 25G29 KT AND SEAS ROSE TO 7 FT. WILL SEPARATE NEAR SHORE AND OFFSHORE WATERS FOR HIGHER WINDS/SEAS OFFSHORE AS WINDS VEER TO W BY SATURDAY. FCSTID = 28 AMG 82 64 78 55 / 50 60 50 20 SSI 75 68 75 59 / 40 50 60 20 JAX 84 67 80 58 / 40 40 60 20 SGJ 81 69 79 61 / 30 30 60 30 GNV 87 67 81 58 / 30 40 60 20 OCF 87 68 82 59 / 30 30 60 30 .JAX... FL...SCA FERNANDINA BCH TO FLAGLER BCH OUT 60 NM. GA...SCA ALTAMAHA SOUND TO FERNANDINA BCH OUT 60 NM. TRABERT/CAMP
FLZ020>025-030>033-035>038-040-GAZ132>136-149>154-162>166-201400- HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSONVILLE FL 533 AM EST THU MAR 20 2003 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTHEAST FLORIDA AND SOUTHEAST GEORGIA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT... ...A TORNADO WATCH IN EFFECT FOR APPLING...ATKINSON...BACON... CLINCH...COFFEE...ECHOLS...JEFF DAVIS...PIERCE...WARE AND WAYNE COUNTIES UNTIL 9 AM EST... SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH LARGE HAIL AND TORNADOES ARE POSSIBLE IN THE WATCH AREA. ELSEWHERE SCATTERED STRONG AND ISOLATED SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WILL DEVELOP TODAY AND CONTINUE THROUGH THE NIGHT. STORMS WILL MOVE TOWARD THE NORTH AND NORTHEAST. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY... THE POTENTIAL FOR SCATTERED STRONG AND ISOLATED SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS EXISTS THROUGH FRIDAY ACROSS THE FORECAST AREA. LOCALIZED HEAVY RAINFALL IS ALSO POSSIBLE. AREA RIVERS WILL LIKELY CONTINUE NEAR OR ABOVE FLOOD STAGE THROUGH THE PERIOD. NO OTHER HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... STORM SPOTTERS ARE REQUESTED TO SELF-ACTIVATE IN THEIR AREA IF WARNINGS ARE ISSUED. FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION...VISIT THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN JACKSONVILLE WEBSITE ON THE INTERNET AT WWW.SRH.NOAA.GOV/JAX. TRABERT
GAZ132-133-201400- SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ALERT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSONVILLE FL 811 AM EST THU MAR 20 2003 ...STRONG THUNDERSTORMS WILL IMPACT COFFEE AND JEFF DAVIS COUNTIES THROUGH 9 AM... AT 811 AM EST NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A LINE OF STRONG THUNDERSTORMS 2 MILES EAST OF AMBROSE...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 35 MPH. THIS LINE OF STRONG THUNDERSTORMS WILL ALSO AFFECT AREAS AROUND AMBROSE...BROXTON...PRIDGEN...DENTON...SNIPESVILLE AND HAZLEHURST THROUGH 900 AM EST. HAIL UP TO ONE HALF INCH IN DIAMETER...EXCESSIVE CLOUD-TO-GROUND LIGHTNING AND GUSTY WINDS OF 45 TO 55 MPH CAN BE EXPECTED ALONG WITH POSSIBLE MINOR DAMAGE. PLEASE SEEK SHELTER IF LIGHTNING IS IN YOUR AREA. BROYLES
GAZ149-201430- SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ALERT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSONVILLE FL 840 AM EST THU MAR 20 2003 ...STRONG THUNDERSTORMS WILL IMPACT NORTHWEST ATKINSON COUNTY THROUGH 930 AM... AT 840 AM EST NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A CLUSTER OF STRONG THUNDERSTORMS CENTERED 5 MILES NORTHWEST OF WILLACOOCHEE...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 30 MPH. THIS CLUSTER OF STRONG THUNDERSTORMS WILL ALSO AFFECT AREAS AROUND WILLACOOCHEE THROUGH 930 AM EST. HAIL UP TO ONE HALF INCH IN DIAMETER...EXCESSIVE CLOUD-TO-GROUND LIGHTNING AND GUSTY WINDS OF 45 TO 55 MPH CAN BE EXPECTED ALONG WITH POSSIBLE MINOR DAMAGE. PLEASE SEEK SHELTER IF LIGHTNING IS IN YOUR AREA. BROYLES
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 heavy rain. Local standard time, as filed.
Excessive rainfall made dirt roads impassable and washed out some dirt roads. 10 County roads closed. School cancelled for next day.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Georgia in 2003Every state in 2003This day in weather historyWarnings in Georgia, March 2003
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: 5341623.