Widespread thunderstorms across the interior portions of the peninsula produced frequent cloud-to-ground lightning. One lightning strike was blamed for destroying a mobile home and damaging four others.
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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 TBW wrote it up.
Widespread thunderstorms across the interior portions of the peninsula produced frequent cloud-to-ground lightning. One lightning strike was blamed for destroying a mobile home and damaging four others.
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 Tampa Bay, FL wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jul 20, 12:51 PM EST, 9 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Tampa Bay Ruskin FL 151 PM EDT WED JUL 20 2016 .AVIATION... 20/18Z-21/18Z. TSRA a bit slower to start today than yesterday but anticipate them impacting the terminals in a 20Z-24Z window..but sooner at LAL. Looking for a limited sea breeze and expect TSRA to move steadily offshore however have tempo MVFR later in the afternoon. VFR over night as clouds slowly clear. && .Prev Discussion... /issued 953 AM EDT WED JUL 20 2016/ MORNING UPDATE... Radar trends this morning suggest shower and thunderstorm activity is struggling as compared to yesterday at this time. This may be due in part to slightly warmer air just above 700mb as analyzed in morning upper air observations. Despite this, we do expect similar conditions to yesterday with thunderstorms developing by around noon and shifting westward through the afternoon hours. Similar to yesterday, any stronger thunderstorms will be capable of locally strong/damaging wind gusts and lots and lots of lightning. We cannot stress enough the need to HEAD INDOORS IF YOU HEAR THUNDER! IF YOU CAN HEAR IT, IT IS CLOSE ENOUGH TO STRIKE YOU! Storms will shift offshore by early evening, with light east winds and clearing conditions overnight. Hot afternoon temperatures can be expected again as the seabreeze is confined to the coast. Expect low to mid 90s most areas with heat indices around 100 degrees. MARINE... High pressure remains over the region with generally light winds and seas, and good boating conditions. The afternoon bay and seabreezes will develop each afternoon along the coast with scattered to numerous thunderstorms moving back over the waters from the east into the evening hours. Wind and seas will be higher in the vicinity of scattered thunderstorms, along with dangerous lightning. FIRE WEATHER... A very warm and moist summer pattern remains in control, maintaining afternoon humidities well above critical levels. Daily rounds of thunderstorms moving from east to west will bring locally strong and gusty winds and frequent lightning through the upcoming weekend. && .Preliminary Point Temps/PoPs... TPA 77 93 77 92 / 20 60 30 50 FMY 76 92 76 91 / 10 60 30 60 GIF 76 93 75 93 / 10 50 20 50 SRQ 77 91 76 91 / 20 60 30 60 BKV 74 94 73 93 / 30 60 30 40 SPG 78 92 78 91 / 30 60 30 50 && .TBW Watches/Warnings/Advisories... FL...None. Gulf waters...None. && AVIATION...09/Rude UPDATE/MARINE/FIRE WEATHER...84/Austin
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAMPA BAY RUSKIN FL 500 AM EDT WED JUL 20 2016 FLZ043-050-052-056-057-061-139-142-148-149-151-155-160-162-165- 239-242-248-249-251-255-260-262-265-GMZ830-836-850-853-856-870- 873-876-210200- SUMTER-PINELLAS-POLK-HARDEE-HIGHLANDS-DESOTO-COASTAL LEVY- COASTAL CITRUS-COASTAL HERNANDO-COASTAL PASCO- COASTAL HILLSBOROUGH-COASTAL MANATEE-COASTAL SARASOTA- COASTAL CHARLOTTE-COASTAL LEE-INLAND LEVY-INLAND CITRUS- INLAND HERNANDO-INLAND PASCO-INLAND HILLSBOROUGH-INLAND MANATEE- INLAND SARASOTA-INLAND CHARLOTTE-INLAND LEE-TAMPA BAY WATERS- CHARLOTTE HARBOR AND PINE ISLAND SOUND- COASTAL WATERS FROM TARPON SPRINGS TO SUWANNEE RIVER FL OUT 20 NM- COASTAL WATERS FROM ENGLEWOOD TO TARPON SPRINGS FL OUT 20 NM- COASTAL WATERS FROM BONITA BEACH TO ENGLEWOOD FL OUT 20 NM- WATERS FROM TARPON SPRINGS TO SUWANNEE RIVER FL OUT 20 TO 60 NM- WATERS FROM ENGLEWOOD TO TARPON SPRINGS FL OUT 20 TO 60 NM- WATERS FROM BONITA BEACH TO ENGLEWOOD FL OUT 20 TO 60 NM- 500 AM EDT WED JUL 20 2016 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR WEST CENTRAL AND SOUTHWEST FLORIDA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT. ...THUNDERSTORM IMPACT... THE DEEP EASTERLY FLOW WILL CONTINUE ACROSS THE REGION WITH SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS MOVING QUICKLY WESTWARD DURING THE AFTERNOON AND EARLY EVENING HOURS. THUNDERSTORMS THAT DEVELOP WILL BE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING STRONG GUSTY WINDS...LOCALLY HEAVY RAINS...AND FREQUENT DEADLY LIGHTNING STRIKES. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY. ...THUNDERSTORM IMPACT... THE EASTERLY FLOW WILL CONTINUE THROUGH FRIDAY WITH SCATTERED TO NUMEROUS AFTERNOON AND EVENING THUNDERSTORMS EACH DAY. THEN OVER THE WEEKEND AN UPPER LEVEL LOW WILL DRIFT SOUTH AND WEST FROM THE WESTERN ATLANTIC OCEAN ACROSS THE FLORIDA PENINSULA AND EVENTUALLY OUT INTO THE GULF OF MEXICO EARLY NEXT WEEK. SOME DRIER AIR WILL MOVE INTO THE REGION ON SATURDAY AHEAD OF THIS SYSTEM LOWERING RAIN CHANCES...ESPECIALLY FROM AROUND THE INTERSTATE 4 CORRIDOR NORTHWARD. THEN FOR SUNDAY THROUGH TUESDAY DEEPER MOISTURE WILL RETURN WITH SCATTERED TO NUMEROUS MAINLY AFTERNOON AND EVENING THUNDERSTORMS EXPECTED EACH DAY. THUNDERSTORMS THAT DEVELOP WILL BE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING STRONG GUSTY WINDS...LOCALLY HEAVY RAINS...AND FREQUENT DEADLY LIGHTNING STRIKES. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED TODAY. PRC
The Tampa radar (KTBW), 103 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 17:58 UTC.
1 lightning. Local standard time, as filed.
Lightning is believed to be the cause of a fire that destroyed one mobile home and damaged four others.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Florida in 2016Every state in 2016This day in weather historyWarnings in Florida, July 2016
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: 638657.