A nearly stationary weak upper level low pressure area over the Southeast Gulf of Mexico provided a flow of very moist and unstable air to move across South Florida with scattered afternoon showers and thunderstorms.
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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 MFL wrote it up.
A nearly stationary weak upper level low pressure area over the Southeast Gulf of Mexico provided a flow of very moist and unstable air to move across South Florida with scattered afternoon showers and thunderstorms.
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 Miami, FL wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jul 12, 1:25 PM EST, 47 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MIAMI FL 225 PM EDT THU JUL 12 2012 .DISCUSSION...THE MID/UPPER LEVEL CIRCULATION THAT DEVELOPED OVER S FL 24 HOURS AGO IS NOW NORTH OF LAKE OKEE BASED ON VISIBLE AND IR SATELLITE IMAGES DRIFTING SLOWLY TO THE WEST. BOTH THE GFS AND NAM FINALLY INITIALIZED ON THIS FEATURE ALTHOUGH IT APPEARS THAT THEY HAVE THE LOCATION TOO FAR TO THE WEST. AT ANY RATE, THEY BOTH DISSOLVE THE CIRCULATION BY 18Z BUT IT IS STILL QUITE EVIDENT. AT THE SAME TIME, A TUTT LIKE FEATURE CONTINUES TO SPIN JUST NORTHEAST OF THE BAHAMAS AND IS DRIFTING SLOWLY TO THE WEST BENEATH THE LARGER SCALE SUBTROPICAL RIDGE. AT THE SFC, A RIDGE OF HIGH PRESSURE STRETCHES ACROSS N FL AND EXTENDS INTO THE ATLANTIC. A WEAK TROPICAL WAVE ALSO EXTENDS FROM JUST OFF THE SE CST OF THE PENINSULA AND EXTENDS SOUTH ACROSS CENTRAL CUBA. SO A VERY COMPLEX WEATHER PATTERN CONTINUES OVER THE REGION WITH LITTLE HELP FROM MODEL GUIDANCE. THIS ALL ACCOUNTS FOR THE UNSETTLED CONVECTIVE ACTIVITY. AS THE WAVE CONTINUES WEST INTO THE GULF OF MEXICO, THE SFC RIDGE WILL ALSO BUILD WEST STRENGTHENING THE LOW LEVEL EAST WIND FLOW. THE TUTT FEATURE WILL ALSO CONTINUE TO TRACK WESTWARD AND PWAT ESTIMATE SATELLITE IMAGERY SHOWS A DRY SLOT ON ITS WESTERN PERIPHERY AND THIS WILL MOVE ACROSS S FL ON OR ABOUT SATURDAY. AS THIS FEATURE THEN MOVES INTO THE GULF, HIGHER MOISTURE LEVELS WILL ONCE AGAIN RETURN SO ANY TEMPORARY DRYING WILL BE VERY BRIEF. IN THE EXTENDED PERIOD FOR NEXT WEEK, THE SFC RIDGE WILL SHIFT BACK TO THE SOUTH SO THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY WILL REVERT BACK TO SEA BREEZE DRIVEN VARIETY WITH VERY LITTLE MOVEMENT. SO THE ACTION WILL BE MOSTLY CENTERED ACROSS THE INTERIOR AND PERHAPS THE INLAND SUBURBS ALONG BOTH COASTS. && .MARINE...OUTSIDE OF CONVECTIVE ACTIVITY, SIGNIFICANT WEATHER FEATURES WILL BE NON-EXISTENT WITH A LIGHT TO MODERATE EAST WIND AND SEAS OVER THE ATLANTIC RUNNING GENERALLY 4 FT OR LESS. && .FIRE WEATHER...NO CONCERNS WITH AMPLE TROPICAL MOISTURE CONTINUING IN PLACE. && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... WEST PALM BEACH 75 88 76 89 / 40 40 30 30 FORT LAUDERDALE 77 88 79 89 / 40 40 30 30 MIAMI 76 89 78 89 / 40 40 30 30 NAPLES 73 90 75 91 / 30 50 30 30 && .MFL WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... FL...NONE. AM...NONE. GM...NONE. && DISCUSSION/MARINE/FIRE...30/KOB AVIATION/RADAR...15/JR
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK FOR SOUTH FLORIDA...UPDATE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MIAMI FL 900 AM EDT THU JUL 12 2012 AMZ610-630-650-651-670-671-FLZ063-066>075-168-172>174-GMZ656-657-676- 122300- LAKE OKEECHOBEE-BISCAYNE BAY- COASTAL WATERS FROM JUPITER INLET TO DEERFIELD BEACH, FL OUT 20 NM- COASTAL WATERS FROM DEERFIELD BEACH TO OCEAN REEF, FL OUT 20 NM- WATERS FROM JUPITER INLET TO DEERFIELD BEACH, FL EXTENDING FROM 20 NM TO 60 NM- WATERS FROM DEERFIELD BEACH TO OCEAN REEF, FL EXTENDING FROM 20 NM TO THE TERRITORIAL WATERS OF THE BAHAMAS-GLADES-HENDRY- INLAND PALM BEACH-METRO PALM BEACH-COASTAL COLLIER-INLAND COLLIER- INLAND BROWARD-METRO BROWARD-INLAND MIAMI DADE-METRO MIAMI DADE- MAINLAND MONROE-COASTAL PALM BEACH-COASTAL BROWARD- COASTAL MIAMI DADE-FAR SOUTH MIAMI DADE- COASTAL WATERS FROM CHOKOLOSKEE TO BONITA BEACH, FL OUT 20 NM- COASTAL WATERS FROM EAST CAPE SABLE TO CHOKOLOSKEE, FL OUT 20 NM- GULF WATERS FROM CHOKOLOSKEE TO BONITA BEACH, FL EXTENDING FROM 20 TO 60 NM- 900 AM EDT THU JUL 12 2012 ...A FEW STRONG THUNDERSTORMS POSSIBLE TODAY... THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR SOUTH FLORIDA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT THUNDERSTORMS: THERE IS A CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS THE ENTIRE REGION. THE PRIMARY IMPACTS WILL BE OCCASIONAL TO FREQUENT LIGHTNING STRIKES AND LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL. A FEW THUNDERSTORMS MAY ALSO PRODUCE STRONG GUSTY WINDS AND SMALL HAIL. WIND: A FEW THUNDERSTORMS MAY PRODUCE GUSTY WINDS OF 40 TO 50 MPH. HAIL: THE STRONGEST THUNDERSTORMS MAY PRODUCE NICKEL SIZED HAIL, WITH THE GREATEST RISK THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING. FLOODING: SLOW STORM MOTION WILL ALLOW FOR LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL WITH AMOUNTS IN EXCESS OF 2 INCHES POSSIBLE IN A SHORT PERIOD OF TIME, POTENTIALLY RESULTING IN TEMPORARY FLOODING OF LOW LYING AND POORLY DRAINED AREAS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY THERE IS A CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS EACH DAY, ESPECIALLY DURING THE AFTERNOON AND EVENING HOURS. LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL, OCCASIONAL TO FREQUENT LIGHTNING STRIKES, AND GUSTY WINDS ARE POSSIBLE. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT ANTICIPATED, HOWEVER INDIVIDUAL SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT ANY STRONG THUNDERSTORMS TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MIAMI. FOR MORE INFORMATION...VISIT THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MIAMI WEBSITE AT WWW.WEATHER.GOV/MIAMI.
The Melbourne radar (KMLB), 149 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 19:13 UTC.
1 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.
The Glades County Emergency Manager reported a tornado touched down in open country near the intersection of U.S. 27 and State Road 78. There were no reports of injuries, fatalities or damage.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Florida in 2012Every state in 2012This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Florida, 2012Warnings in Florida, July 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: 397347.