Two men died when lightning struck their fishing boat on Choctwahatchee Bay.
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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 episode as NWS TAE wrote it up.
Two men died when lightning struck their fishing boat on Choctwahatchee Bay.
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 Tallahassee, FL wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jun 21, 1:15 PM CST, 1 hour 45 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TALLAHASSEE FL 315 PM EDT SAT JUN 21 2008 .SHORT TERM...(TONIGHT THROUGH MONDAY NIGHT)...SO FAR TODAY MOST OF THE CONVECTION HAS OCCURRED ACROSS THE COASTAL WATERS AND SOUTHEAST BIG BEND. CURRENTLY...ONLY ISOLATED TO SCATTERED STORMS WERE OVER THE LAND AREAS BUT A FEW HAVE BEEN STRONG WITH DIME SIZE HAIL BEING REPORTED IN JEFFERSON COUNTY. SHORT WAVE CLEARLY EVIDENT IN THE WATER VAPOR IMAGERY MOVING ACROSS NORTHEAST GEORGIA. WILL KEEP CHANCE OF POPS IN THE FORECAST FOR THIS EVENING WITH SLIGHT POP ALL ZONES OVERNIGHT. THE SHORT TERM MODELS SHOW THE DEEPEST MOISTURE AND BEST LIFT WILL ARRIVE ON SUNDAY AS THE UPPER TROUGH DEEPENS WITH AXIS STAYING WEST OF OUR CWA. MODEL SOUNDINGS ACROSS THE AREA SHOW PWAT VALUES INCREASING TO AROUND TWO INCHES BY SUNDAY AFTERNOON. FOR OUR SEA BREEZE CLIMATOLOGY THIS WILL YIELD ANOTHER DISTURBED DAY WITH LIKELY POPS THROUGHOUT MOST OF OUR CWA. AS THE UPPER TROUGH BEGINS TO SWING EAST MONDAY THROUGH MONDAY NIGHT...THE NAM AND GFS SHOW SOME SIGNIFICANT MID TO UPPER LEVEL DRY AIR FILTERING IN FROM NORTHWEST TO SOUTHEAST. THE ECMWF IS STILL THE MOST BULLISH ON SCOURING OUT THE DEEP LAYER MOISTURE ACROSS OUR AREA DURING THAT TIME FRAME. WILL TAPER MONDAYS POPS FROM MID RANGE CHANCE (40%) NW TO LIKELY (60-70%) E-SE AND THEN DOWN TO SLIGHT ACROSS THE BOARD FOR MONDAY NIGHT. && .LONG TERM...(TUESDAY THROUGH FRIDAY)...STILL EXPECTING A GRADUAL CHANGE IN THE LARGER SCALE PATTERN AS WE GO THROUGH NEXT WEEK. A FINAL...RELATIVELY VIGOROUS SHORT WAVE WILL ROUND THE BOTTOM OF THE EASTERN U.S. TROUGH BY TUESDAY...AND PROGRESS EASTWARD INTO THE WESTERN ATLANTIC. AS THE MEAN TROUGH OVER THE EASTERN U.S. BEGINS TO SHIFT EASTWARD...THE FLOW ALOFT WILL BECOME MORE ZONAL. HEIGHTS WILL GRADUALLY RISE OVER THE SOUTHEAST U.S. STARTING THE MIDDLE OF THE WEEK...AS WEAK RIDGING BEGINS TO DEVELOP ALOFT AND AT THE SURFACE. THE RESULT WILL BE A RETURN TO SIGNIFICANTLY DRIER CONDITIONS AND HIGHER TEMPERATURES. && .AVIATION...OUTSIDE OF A BRIEF THUNDERSTORM AT PFN EARLIER TODAY... THE SCT TO NUMEROUS SHOWERS AND STORMS HAVE REMAINED GENERALLY TO THE SOUTH OF THE TAF SITES THIS AFTERNOON...WITH THE BULK OF THE STORMS IMPACTING THE COASTAL WATERS AND THE EXTREME SE FL BIG BEND. FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE AFTERNOON...DID LEAVE IN TSRA TEMPOS FOR TLH...PFN...AND VLD...BUT NOW ANTICIPATE THAT DHN AND ABY WILL REMAIN DRY. OVERNIGHT...COULD SEE SOME MINOR VIS RESTRICTIONS...BUT DO NOT EXPECT ANYTHING LOWER THAN MVFR AT THIS TIME. && .MARINE...WINDS AND SEAS STAY BELOW HEADLINE CRITERIA THROUGH THE PERIOD AS THE PRESSURE GRADIENT ACROSS THE LOCAL WATERS REMAINS WEAK. SCATTERED TO NUMEROUS SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS CAN BE EXPECTED THROUGH MONDAY BECOMING ISOLATED TUESDAY THROUGH THURSDAY. && .FIRE WEATHER...INCREASING MOISTURE AND RAIN CHANCES WILL KEEP THE CONDITIONS WILL ABOVE CRITICAL THRESHOLDS AT LEAST INTO EARLY NEXT WEEK. && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... TALLAHASSEE 71 87 70 88 69/ 40 70 40 60 20 PANAMA CITY 73 86 74 87 74/ 30 70 40 50 20 DOTHAN 71 89 71 89 71/ 30 50 30 40 20 ALBANY 70 91 70 90 69/ 40 70 30 50 20 VALDOSTA 69 88 71 88 70/ 40 70 30 60 20 CROSS CITY 70 86 71 86 69/ 40 70 40 70 20 && .TAE WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... AL...NONE. GA...NONE. FL...NONE. GM...NONE. && PUBLIC/MARINE...BARRY AVIATION/FIRE WX...GOULD LONG TERM...DUVAL
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TALLAHASSEE FL 504 AM EDT SAT JUN 21 2008 ALZ065>069-FLZ007>019-026>029-034-GAZ120>131-142>148-155>161- GMZ730-750-755-765-770-775-221000- COFFEE-DALE-HENRY-GENEVA-HOUSTON-INLAND WALTON-COASTAL WALTON- HOLMES-WASHINGTON-JACKSON-BAY-CALHOUN-GULF-FRANKLIN-GADSDEN-LEON- JEFFERSON-MADISON-LIBERTY-WAKULLA-TAYLOR-LAFAYETTE-DIXIE-QUITMAN- CLAY-RANDOLPH-TERRELL-DOUGHERTY-LEE-WORTH-TURNER-TIFT-BEN HILL- IRWIN-EARLY-MILLER-BAKER-MITCHELL-COLQUITT-COOK-BERRIEN-SEMINOLE- DECATUR-GRADY-THOMAS-BROOKS-LOWNDES-LANIER- APALACHEE BAY OR COASTAL WATERS FROM KEATON BEACH TO OCHLOCKONEE RIVER FL OUT TO 20 NM- COASTAL WATERS FROM APALACHICOLA TO DESTIN FL OUT 20 NM- COASTAL WATERS FROM OCHLOCKONEE RIVER TO APALACHICOLA FL OUT TO 20 NM- COASTAL WATERS FROM SUWANNEE RIVER TO KEATON BEACH OUT 20 NM- WATERS FROM APALACHICOLA TO DESTIN FL FROM 20 TO 60 NM- WATERS FROM SUWANNEE RIVER TO APALACHICOLA FL FROM 20 TO 60 NM- 504 AM EDT SAT JUN 21 2008 /404 AM CDT SAT JUN 21 2008/ THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR SOUTHEAST ALABAMA... SOUTHWEST AND SOUTH CENTRAL GEORGIA...AND THE FLORIDA BIG BEND AND PANHANDLE...AND ADJACENT COASTAL WATERS. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT... SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL DEVELOP ACROSS THE AREA TODAY. ALTHOUGH A WIDESPREAD SEVERE WEATHER EVENT IS NOT ANTICIPATED...A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM OR TWO CANNOT BE RULED OUT LATER THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING. THE MAIN THREAT WITH THE STORMS THAT DO DEVELOP WILL BE FREQUENT LIGHTNING...HEAVY DOWNPOURS...AND GUSTY WINDS. THESE STORMS MAY CONTINUE INTO THE LATE EVENING HOURS ACROSS PORTIONS OF THE AREA. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY... SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS WILL DEVELOP ONCE AGAIN ON SUNDAY WITH LOCALLY HEAVY RAIN POSSIBLE ACROSS THE AREA. ISOLATED TO SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED EACH AFTERNOON NEXT WEEK. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED. FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION...VISIT THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WEBSITE ON THE INTERNET AT WEATHER.GOV...THEN CLICK ON YOUR AREA OF INTEREST ON THE NATIONAL MAP.
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TALLAHASSEE FL 227 PM EDT SAT JUN 21 2008 FLZ018-019-211900- JEFFERSON-MADISON- 227 PM EDT SAT JUN 21 2008 ...A SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ALERT IS IN EFFECT FOR NORTHEASTERN JEFFERSON AND EXTREME WESTERN MADISON COUNTIES IN THE FLORIDA BIG BEND... * UNTIL 300 PM EDT AT 224 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A STRONG THUNDERSTORM NEAR MONTICELLO...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 5 MPH. DIME SIZE HAIL...AND WINDS 30 TO 40 MPH ARE EXPECTED WITH THIS STORM. RELAY REPORTS OF SIGNIFICANT WEATHER TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN TALLAHASSEE AT (8 5 0) 9 4 2 8 8 3 3. OR...YOU MAY CONTACT THE NEAREST LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY OR YOUR COUNTY EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT. THEY WILL RELAY YOUR REPORT TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE. 8-JAMSKI
The Eglin Afb radar (KEVX), 41 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 21:00 UTC.
1 lightning. Local standard time, as filed.
Two Walton County men were killed when lightning struck their fishing boat on Choctawhatchee Bay.
As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.
| Event | Date | Age | Sex | Where | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lightning, Walton | 2008-06-21 | 21 | Male | Boating | Direct |
| Lightning, Walton | 2008-06-21 | 17 | Male | Boating | Direct |
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Florida in 2008Every state in 2008This day in weather historyWarnings in Florida, June 2008
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: 111912.