Thunderstorms associated with a westward moving tropical wave developed during the day. Two people on Shell Island were struck by lightning, resulting in one death and one injury.
Every event with a place to put it. 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 episode as NWS TAE wrote it up.
Thunderstorms associated with a westward moving tropical wave developed during the day. Two people on Shell Island were struck by lightning, resulting in one death and one injury. There was also some minor street flooding around Tallahassee due to heavy rain.
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 Aug 5, 5:39 PM EST, 1 hour 41 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TALLAHASSEE FL 639 PM EDT Sun Aug 5 2012 .SYNOPSIS... The large scale longwave pattern is highlighted by ridging over Wrn and Ern states with trough over Cntrl states centered from Great Lakes SWD into Cntrl Gulf of Mex. A weak mid-upper low is forecast to develop overnight near Apalachicola and move towards Pensacola thru Mon eve. At surface, main features are low over Ern Canada with cold front SSW thru Memphis and into TX and a ridge from Atlc well east of Carolinas WSW across SE region south of front. Closer to home, a tropical wave will continue slowly pushing W this eve with axis from SW GA (and eroding S side of ridge) SWD to across the NE Gulf of Mex. Coverage of showers during the eve was not as widespread as expected but ample moisture and lift wrapping around this wave was generating additional showers and isold storms along and just east of I-75 which will move WWD thru the rest of tonight. Some of this activity will likely produce brief heavy rainfall and gusty winds. Latest model guidance packages seem to indicate that the tropical wave will stall over the area through at least Tuesday before washing out in place beyond that point. Some models show nwd extension of TS Ernesto linking to srn end of tropical wave. Aided by weak mid-upper low, this will leave a nice strengthening southerly moisture feed off the Gulf right over our area through that same period. Expect that coverage of shower and thunderstorm activity will be quite elevated with greatest coverage during the day as surface heating provides additional forcing. One thing we will have to be vigilant about is a stationary band of heavy rain where individual storms are training over one area. This occurred on Sunday in Jacksonville and flooding resulted. There is no indication this will happen over our area as yet, but it remains possible. Given the above scenario, Pops for both Monday and Tuesday will remain above climatology values for this time of year. Likewise cloud cover and rain will drop maximum temperatures below normal values. && .NEAR TERM [Through Rest of Tonight]... With the tropical wave lingering over the area overnight, radar indicated a broad swatch of rain with isold tstms slated to move WWD across our area after 8 PM EDT. Inherited 30-40% POPs 00z-06z seem too low and will raise them to 60-40% E-W. After 06z, models place the wave low-level center-of-circulation or trough axis west of Panama City which would allow onshore S-SE flow to develop from PAM east to Apalachee Bay. This could focus an area of low-level convergence near the coast As such, 30-50% NE-SE pop gradient with highest PoPs right along the coast from Bay County east to Jefferson County. Low temperatures and sky cover were nudged up slightly both periods due to expected lingering cloud cover. && .MARINE... An increase in shower and thunderstorm activity is anticipated through Thursday as a weak tropical wave crosses that coastal waters. Wind speeds will increase out of the southeast by midweek. However, they are expected to remain below cautionary levels. && .TAE WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... FL...None. GA...None. AL...None. GM...None. && BLOCK/BARRY/LERICOS
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TALLAHASSEE FL 801 PM EDT SUN AUG 5 2012 ALZ065>069-FLZ007>019-026>029-034-108-112-114-115-118-127-128-134- GAZ120>131-142>148-155>161-GMZ730-750-755-765-770-775-070015- COFFEE-DALE-HENRY-GENEVA-HOUSTON-INLAND WALTON-CENTRAL WALTON- HOLMES-WASHINGTON-JACKSON-INLAND BAY-CALHOUN-INLAND GULF- INLAND FRANKLIN-GADSDEN-LEON-INLAND JEFFERSON-MADISON-LIBERTY- INLAND WAKULLA-INLAND TAYLOR-LAFAYETTE-INLAND DIXIE-SOUTH WALTON- COASTAL BAY-COASTAL GULF-COASTAL FRANKLIN-COASTAL JEFFERSON- COASTAL WAKULLA-COASTAL TAYLOR-COASTAL 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- 801 PM EDT SUN AUG 5 2012 /701 PM CDT SUN AUG 5 2012/ 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...TONIGHT... NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. A WEAK TROPICAL WAVE WILL MOVE WEST ACROSS THE AREA. A GOOD CHANCE OF RAIN AND ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS IS FORECAST FOR OVERNIGHT. SOME STORMS ALONG THE PANHANDLE COAST AND ADJACENT WATERS MAY BE BRIEFLY STRONG TO SEVERE. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY... SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED EACH DAY THROUGH THE UPCOMING WEEK. THE BEST CHANCES WILL BE TODAY WITH SLIGHTLY LOWER PERCENTAGES EACH DAY. WHILE THE THREAT FOR WIDESPREAD SEVERE WEATHER IS LOW...ISOLATED STRONG STORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE EACH AFTERNOON. .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. BLOCK
The Tallahassee radar (KTLH), 10 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 00:18 UTC.
9 heavy rain, 1 lightning. Local standard time, as filed.
A 24 hour rainfall total of 3.35 inches was measured by the Northwest Florida Water Management District rain gauge located at the Lake Jackson holding pond.
A 24 hour rainfall total of 5.64 inches was measured by the Northwest Florida Water Management District rain gauge located at Abundant Life Fellowship.
A 24 hour rainfall total of 3.04 inches was measured by the Northwest Florida Water Management District rain gauge located at the Lake Iamonia outfall on N. Meridian Road.
A 24 hour rainfall total of 4.33 inches was measured by the Northwest Florida Water Management District rain gauge located at Lake Jackson-Miller Landing.
A 24 hour rainfall total of 3.51 inches was measured by the Northwest Florida Water Management District rain gauge located at the Senior Center.
A 24 hour rainfall total of 3.44 inches was measured by the Northwest Florida Water Management District rain gauge located at Wembley Way-Eastgate.
An Oregon Scientific rain gauge located at Treasure Palms with wunderground site identifier KFLPANAM7 measured a rainfall total of 3.29 inches.
The ASOS at the Marianna airport measured 4.60 inches of rain in a 12 hour period. Most of that rain fell in a 5 hour period between 6 am CDT and 11 am CDT.
WJHG-TV reported that two people were struck by lightning on Shell Island near Panama City. A 42 year old father was carrying his 14 year old stepson when the strike occurred. The father was killed on the spot, and the teen later died at a Pensacola hospital.
The Northwest Florida Water Management District rain gauge located at San Luis Mission Park reported 2.00 inches of rain in 1 hour. Some minor street flooding occurred on Pensacola Street around the same time.
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, Bay | 2012-08-06 | 42 | Male | Outside/Open Areas | Direct |
| Lightning, Bay | 2012-08-06 | 14 | Male | Outside/Open Areas | Direct |
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Florida in 2012Every state in 2012This day in weather historyWarnings in Florida, August 2012
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: 388646, 388643, 388644, 388645, 388648, 388649, 388650, 388641, 388634, 388639.