Lightning Strike in Florida, August 31, 2004

Name: Lightning Strike in Florida, August 31, 2004
Start: 2004-08-31T12:35
End: 2004-08-31T12:35
Location: Florida

August 31, 2004 · NWS JAX · 1 event in 1 county or zone

J. Elementary School.

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: 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 JAX wrote it up.

Lightning struck a tree which fell on cars at J.J. Elementary School.

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 Jacksonville, FL wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Aug 31, 8:25 AM EST, 4 hours 10 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 31, 8:25 AM EST, 4 hours 10 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSONVILLE FL
925 AM EDT TUE AUG 31 2004

LO LEVEL SW FLOW A LITTLE LIGHTER TODAY WITH LESS CONVECTION ALONG W
COAST THIS MORNING.  UPPER RIDGE OVER CENTRAL FL WITH POCKET OF
DRIER AIR ALOFT WILL MEAN MOST RAIN COVERAGE TODAY WILL OCCUR FROM
SUWANNEE VALLEY INTO SE GA WHERE SLIGHTLY BETTER MOISTURE AND WEAK
PVA EXISTS.  12Z JAX SOUNDING SHOWS MODIFIED CAPE AROUND 3000 J/KG
AND WITH DRY AIR ALOFT WILL MEAN ISOLATED STRONG STORMS BY LATE THIS
AFTERNOON. EAST COAST SEABREEZE FRONT SHOULD MOVE INLAND WITH
LIGHTER SW WINDS...REACHING ST. JOHNS RIVER IN NE FL AND I-95 IN SE
GA.

MARINE...LIGHT SW FLOW AND GENTLE SEAS TO CONTINUE TODAY.  LITTLE
CHANGE NEEDED.

&&

.JAX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
FL...NONE.
GA...NONE.
&&

MZ/JH

Hazardous weather outlook, Aug 31, 10:12 AM EST, 2 hours 23 minutes before

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSONVILLE FL
1112 AM EDT TUE AUG 31 2004

FLZ020>025-030>033-035>038-040-GAZ132>136-149>154-162>166-011000-
ALACHUA-APPLING-ATKINSON-BACON-BAKER-BRADFORD-BRANTLEY-
CAMDEN (COASTAL)-CAMDEN (INLAND)-CHARLTON-CLAY-CLINCH-COFFEE-
COLUMBIA-DUVAL-ECHOLS-FLAGLER-GILCHRIST-GLYNN (COASTAL)-
GLYNN (INLAND)-HAMILTON-JEFF DAVIS-MARION-NASSAU-PIERCE-PUTNAM-
ST JOHNS-SUWANNEE-UNION-WARE-WAYNE-
1112 AM EDT TUE AUG 31 2004

THIS OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTHEAST FLORIDA AND SOUTHEAST GEORGIA.

.DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT...

...SCATTERED STRONG THUNDERSTORMS EXPECTED THIS AFTERNOON AND
EVENING...

SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED TO DEVELOP THIS AFTERNOON AND
CONTINUE INTO THE EVENING HOURS. PERIODS OF HEAVY RAINFALL...GUSTY
WINDS UP TO 40 MPH...AND SMALL HAIL WILL BE POSSIBLE WITH THESE
STORMS AS THEY TRACK TOWARDS THE NORTHEAST AT 10 TO 15 MPH.
THE GREATEST COVERAGE OF STORMS WILL BE OVER THE SUWANNEE VALLEY
EXTENDING INTO INTERIOR SOUTHEAST GEORGIA THIS AFTERNOON...SHIFTING
TO THE EAST COAST THIS EVENING. ONE OR TWO OF THE STORMS COULD
BECOME SEVERE AS SOME OF THE STRONGER STORMS MERGE LATE IN THE
AFTERNOON ALONG THE I-95 CORRIDOR.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH LABOR DAY...

HURRICANE FRANCES IS FORECAST TO APPROACH THE FLORIDA EAST COAST ON
SATURDAY AND IT IS FORECAST TO BE NEAR THE NORTHEAST FLORIDA AND
SOUTHEAST GEORGIA COAST ON SUNDAY. IT MUST BE REMEMBERED THIS IS AN
OUTLOOK AND ERRORS IN THE OUTLOOK PERIOD CAN BE AS MUCH AS 325 MILES.
AT THIS TIME...IT WOULD BE PRUDENT LOCAL INTERESTS TAKE REASONABLE
PRECAUTIONS.

SOME SUGGESTED ACTIONS...REVIEW YOUR FAMILYS HURRICANE PLAN.
MARINE INTERESTS SHOULD REVIEW THEIR HURRICANE PLANS.

IF THE STORM APPROACHES THE REGION...HIGH TIDES...HEAVY SURF...RIP
CURRENTS AND LARGE BREAKERS AT INLETS WILL DEVELOP WELL AHEAD OF
THE STORM. BEACH-FRONT INTERESTS SHOULD PLAN ON SECURING OBJECTS
VULNERABLE TO SURF ACTION PRIOR TO THE HIGH SURF DEVELOPING.

LOCAL AND MARINE INTERESTS SHOULD CLOSELY MONITOR FORECASTS AND THE
PROGRESS OF THE STORM.

OTHERWISE...SCATTERED AFTERNOON AND EVENING THUNDERSTORMS ARE
EXPECTED EACH DAY.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

ALTHOUGH MOST STORMS ARE EXPECTED TO BE BELOW SEVERE LIMITS...
SPOTTERS ARE REQUESTED TO SELF ACTIVATE IN THE EVENT WARNINGS ARE
ISSUED FOR YOUR AREA. PLEASE RELAY ANY REPORTS OF SEVERE WEATHER OR
FLOODING TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AND LOCAL COUNTY EMERGENCY
MANAGEMENT.

FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION...VISIT THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN
JACKSONVILLE WEBSITE ON THE INTERNET AT WWW.SRH.NOAA.GOV/JAX.

ECZ/ARS

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Aug 31, 11:52 AM EST, 43 minutes before

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSONVILLE FL
1252 PM EDT TUE AUG 31 2004

FLZ022-035-036-311730-
ALACHUA FL-COLUMBIA FL-GILCHRIST FL-
1252 PM EDT TUE AUG 31 2004

...A SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ALERT HAS BEEN ISSUED FOR WESTERN
ALACHUA...SOUTHERN COLUMBIA AND EASTERN GILCHRIST COUNTIES FOR
FREQUENT LIGHTNING...STRONG THUNDERSTORM WINDS AND HAIL VALID UNTIL
130 PM EDT...

AT 1252 PM EDT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
LINE OF STRONG THUNDERSTORMS EXTENDING FROM 2 MILES SOUTHEAST OF
FORT WHITE TO JUST WEST OF HIGH SPRINGS...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 10
MPH. THIS LINE OF STRONG THUNDERSTORMS WILL ALSO AFFECT AREAS AROUND
ICHETUCKNEE SPRINGS STATE...FORT WHITE...HIGH SPRINGS...OLENO STATE
PARK AND ALACHUA THROUGH 130 PM EDT. HAIL UP TO ONE HALF INCH IN
DIAMETER...EXCESSIVE LIGHTNING AND GUSTY WINDS OF 45 TO 55 MPH CAN
BE EXPECTED ALONG WITH POSSIBLE MINOR DAMAGE. HEAVY RAINFALL WILL
PRODUCE PONDING OF WATER ON ROADWAYS AND MINOR FLOODING OF LOW-LYING
AREAS.

REPORT DAMAGE TO THE NEAREST LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY OR YOUR COUNTY
EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT...OR YOU CAN CALL THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE
IN JACKSONVILLE DIRECTLY AT 1-800-499-1594.

ENYEDI

Special weather statement, Aug 31, 12:17 PM EST, 18 minutes before

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSONVILLE FL
117 PM EDT TUE AUG 31 2004

FLZ030-311800-
UNION FL-
117 PM EDT TUE AUG 31 2004

...A SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ALERT HAS BEEN ISSUED FOR UNION COUNTY FOR
STRONG THUNDERSTORM WINDS AND HAIL VALID UNTIL 200 PM EDT...

AT 117 PM EDT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
STRONG THUNDERSTORM CENTERED 8 MILES WEST OF DUKES...OR ABOUT 8 MILES
WEST OF WORTHINGTON SPRINGS...MOVING EAST AT 10 MPH. THIS STRONG
THUNDERSTORM WILL ALSO AFFECT AREAS AROUND AND WEST OF DUKES THROUGH
200 PM EDT. HAIL UP TO ONE HALF INCH IN DIAMETER...EXCESSIVE
LIGHTNING AND GUSTY WINDS OF 45 TO 55 MPH CAN BE EXPECTED ALONG WITH
POSSIBLE MINOR DAMAGE. HEAVY RAINFALL WILL PRODUCE PONDING OF WATER
ON ROADWAYS AND MINOR FLOODING OF LOW-LYING AREAS.

REPORT DAMAGE TO THE NEAREST LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY OR YOUR COUNTY
EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT...OR YOU CAN CALL THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE
IN JACKSONVILLE DIRECTLY AT 1-800-499-1594.

ENYEDI

Special weather statement, Aug 31, 12:28 PM EST, 7 minutes before

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSONVILLE FL
128 PM EDT TUE AUG 31 2004

FLZ022-023-311815-
BAKER FL-COLUMBIA FL-
128 PM EDT TUE AUG 31 2004

...A SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ALERT HAS BEEN ISSUED FOR BAKER AND COLUMBIA
COUNTIES FOR STRONG THUNDERSTORM WINDS AND HAIL VALID UNTIL 215 PM
EDT...

AT 128 PM EDT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
CLUSTER OF STRONG THUNDERSTORMS CENTERED 14 MILES SOUTHWEST OF
TAYLOR...OR ABOUT 14 MILES NORTHEAST OF LAKE CITY...MOVING NORTHEAST
AT 10 MPH. THIS CLUSTER OF STRONG THUNDERSTORMS WILL ALSO AFFECT
AREAS AROUND TAYLOR THROUGH 215 PM EDT. HAIL UP TO ONE HALF INCH IN
DIAMETER...EXCESSIVE LIGHTNING AND GUSTY WINDS OF 40 TO 50 MPH CAN
BE EXPECTED ALONG WITH POSSIBLE MINOR DAMAGE.

REPORT DAMAGE TO THE NEAREST LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY OR YOUR COUNTY
EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT...OR YOU CAN CALL THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE
IN JACKSONVILLE DIRECTLY AT 1-800-499-1594.

SHASHY

The radar

The Jacksonville radar (KJAX), 110 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 17:36 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 lightning. Local standard time, as filed.

Lightning, Alachua

When: August 31, 12:35 PM EST
Where: Alachua County, Gainesville
Reported by: FIRE DEPT/RESCUE SQUAD
Coordinates: 29.675, -82.358 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

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 2004 Every state in 2004 This day in weather history Warnings in Florida, August 2004

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: 5413204.