A tropical wave moving over the Florida straits enhanced thunderstorm activity over South Florida. Lightning associated with one of these storms struck a boat, causing it to catch fire behind a house in Miami.
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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 tropical wave moving over the Florida straits enhanced thunderstorm activity over South Florida. Lightning associated with one of these storms struck a boat, causing it to catch fire behind a house in Miami.
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 21, 2:47 AM EST, 3 hours 28 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Miami FL 347 AM EDT THU JUL 21 2016 .DISCUSSION... Latest tropical surface analysis and model guidance show a tropical wave currently over the Florida straits which will gradually move eastward across South Florida today. The interaction of the sea breeze and additional lift provided from this wave will enhance thunderstorm activity today across S FL. Current activity over the Atlantic waters is associated to this tropical wave. As the day progress, more convection will develop inland and drift westward especially over the southern counties and the Gulf coast. Weather pattern for the remainder of the week will be influence by a broad upper level ridge dominating the central portion of the CONUS and 500 MB trough extending along the east coast. The trough is expected to dig south along the east coast Thursday into Friday but with most of its energy still remaining to the north. Some slightly cooler air filters into the area aloft which will induce some thunderstorms which some could be strong over the region Friday afternoon. Easterly flow prevails today into Friday allowing moisture over the Atlantic to surge into the peninsula with precipitable waters remaining around 2 inches. The easterly wind will continue to dominate which will keep the sea breeze convection in the interior and west. Weekend: Both the GFS and the ECMWF continue to show upper level ridge stretching eastward dominating the central plains and southeast plains while energy from the trough gets wrap around the southern periphery of the ridge which ends up retrograding westward into the Gulf of Mexico. A more southerly flow develops aloft while a lighter flow remains in the low levels allowing for sea breeze activity to initiate and move in the interior and west. Next week: Ridge weakens keeping a lighter southerly flow over the area with weak shortwave moving across the area through mid week. Winds at the surface will be light enough for afternoon sea breeze to initiate convection in the afternoon. && .MARINE... As ridge begins to build a lighter flow is expected to return by the end of the week and into the weekend. East-southeast flow will be 10kts or less through the period. Seas are 2ft or less for most of the forecast period. Main threat will be continuing scattered showers and storms over the waters, with gusty and erratic winds and locally higher seas near any storms. && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... West Palm Beach 90 80 89 78 / 50 40 50 20 Fort Lauderdale 89 80 89 78 / 40 40 50 30 Miami 90 79 90 79 / 40 40 50 40 Naples 91 76 90 77 / 60 50 60 30 && .MFL Watches/Warnings/Advisories... FL...None. AM...None. GM...None. && SHORT TERM...67 LONG TERM....67
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK FOR SOUTH FLORIDA NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MIAMI FL 700 AM EDT THU JUL 21 2016 AMZ610-630-650-651-670-671-FLZ063-066>075-168-172>174-GMZ656-657-676- 212300- 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 FROM 20 TO 60 NM- WATERS FROM DEERFIELD BEACH TO OCEAN REEF FL FROM 20 TO 60 NM EXCLUDING THE TERRITORIAL WATERS OF 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- WATERS FROM CHOKOLOSKEE TO BONITA BEACH FL FROM 20 TO 60 NM- 700 AM EDT THU JUL 21 2016 ...THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE ACROSS SOUTH FLORIDA TODAY... THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR SOUTH FLORIDA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT THUNDERSTORMS: AFTERNOON AND EVENING THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE ACROSS SOUTH FLORIDA, MAINLY IN THE WESTERN INTERIOR AND GULF COAST. LIGHTNING WILL BE THE PRIMARY THREAT FROM ANY THUNDERSTORMS, ALTHOUGH SOME STORMS MAY ALSO PRODUCE GUSTY WIND. WIND: WIND GUSTS OF 40 TO 50 MPH ARE POSSIBLE WITH THE STRONGER THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS THE INTERIOR AND GULF COAST THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING. TEMPERATURES: THE HEAT INDEX MAY EXCEED 100 DEGREES ACROSS MUCH OF SOUTH FLORIDA THIS AFTERNOON, WITH VALUES POTENTIALLY REACHING ABOVE 105 DEGREES OVER PORTIONS OF INTERIOR COLLIER AND HENDRY COUNTIES. WATERSPOUTS: THERE IS A SLIGHT CHANCE OF WATERSPOUTS ACROSS THE GULF AND ATLANTIC WATERS TODAY. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY SCATTERED TO NUMEROUS THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE EACH DAY THROUGH EARLY NEXT WEEK. STORMS WILL GENERALLY AFFECT THE LOCAL WATERS AND EAST COAST DURING THE NIGHTTIME AND MORNING HOURS, AND SHIFT TO THE INTERIOR AND GULF COAST DURING THE AFTERNOONS AND EVENINGS. THE PRIMARY THREATS WILL BE LIGHTNING AND GUSTY WIND. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION: WIDESPREAD SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT ANTICIPATED, HOWEVER INDIVIDUAL SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT HIGH WIND AND FLOODING TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FORECAST OFFICE IN MIAMI. FOR MORE INFORMATION...VISIT THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MIAMI WEBSITE AT WWW.WEATHER.GOV/MIAMI.
The Miami radar (KAMX), 33 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 11:13 UTC.
1 lightning. Local standard time, as filed.
TV media reported a 39-foot boat caught fire behind a waterfront home. The boat caught fire behind a home in the Bay Point Community. The owner saw lightning strike the boat igniting the fire.
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: 642522.