High pressure was north of the region with breezy easterly winds over SE GA and NE FL which combined with low inland humidity which created Elevated Fire Danger across the area. Several wildfires developed in the afternoon.
Every event with a place to put it; 2 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. 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 JAX wrote it up.
High pressure was north of the region with breezy easterly winds over SE GA and NE FL which combined with low inland humidity which created Elevated Fire Danger across the area. Several wildfires developed in the afternoon.
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 Jacksonville, FL wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Apr 20, 8:51 AM EST, 3 hours 46 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Jacksonville FL
951 AM EDT Thu Apr 20 2023
...New UPDATE, AVIATION...
.UPDATE...
Issued at 945 AM EDT Thu Apr 20 2023
Current forecast was on track with little change. Sfc high pressure
center at 1025 mb was located near Savannah at 13z and will push
offshore during the day. Breezier easterly winds expected today,
under sunny to mostly sunny skies, with only a few cumulus today
and some thin high clouds. After a cool start with low temps in
the lower 50s, max temps on track for the mid/upper 80s inland as
low level temps increase from yesterday, but the onshore flow at
the beach will keep the highs there close to 80 deg. Some fog is
expected tonight given enough low level moisture advecting in from
the Atlantic. Best fog chances are over most of the southeast GA
area.
On the marine forecast side, winds will increase to about 10-15
kt today with seas building upwards of 3-4 ft, a bit higher for
parts of the offshore northeast FL marine zones where we will
maintain a small craft exercise caution headline. Rip current
threat will increase as the surf builds, and especially this aftn
when the low tide is expected.
&&
.NEAR TERM...
Issued at 323 AM EDT Thu Apr 20 2023
High pressure conditions, dry weather, and predominantly clear
skies will persist through today and overnight with breezy
onshore winds building in the afternoon as high pressure continues
to move off towards the northeast. Patchy morning fog over inland
areas will disperse by midmorning today with foggy conditions
expected to return overnight and into early Friday morning. High
temperatures will rise up into the mid to upper 80s over inland
areas and in the lower to mid 80s along the coast. Overnight low
temperatures will drop down into the mid 50s over inland areas and
into the lower to mid 60s for areas closer to the shoreline and
along the St Johns River.
&&
.SHORT TERM...
(Friday through Saturday night)
Issued at 323 AM EDT Thu Apr 20 2023
A weak, inverted coastal trough will develop within the persistent
onshore flow by Friday morning. Convergence associated with the
inverted trough will support isolated to widely scattered showers
over the coastal waters. Given the easterly steering, a few showers
may push onshore. Coastal troughing is progged to morph into a
pseudo warm front and push inland during the evening then lift
northward Friday night as steering flow becomes southerly ahead of
an approaching cold front. Thickening cloud cover will push in from
the west as an embedded mid-level shortwave rides along the warm
front Friday evening. This should support a period of isolated to
widely scattered showers mainly across NE FL during the evening
hours Friday and then shifting northward into SE GA during the
overnight hours.
The aforementioned cold front will press southeastward through the
region during the afternoon and evening hours Saturday. First batch
of cloud cover will shift offshore during the morning and allow
better heating and foster more robust diurnal instability by the
afternoon. Sufficient instability will fuel isolated t'storms along
and scattered showers ahead of and along the front as it passes
southeastward. The potential for a couple of strong storms remains
possible, mainly from I-10 northward where more adequate deep shear
will exist, in the neighborhood of 30-40 kts. Severe potential will
depend on the degree of instability generated, which has increased
with the latest suite of guidance. The front and associated
convection will exit to the southeast and off the coast around
midnight.
Above normal temps persist through Saturday with cooler high temps
and warmer low temps for coastal locations through Friday night due
to onshore flow. Southwesterly developing ahead of the front will
spread the warmer conditions all the way to coast Saturday
afternoon. Cooler air trailing the front will cool temps back to
normal or slightly below Saturday night.
&&
.LONG TERM...
(Sunday through Wednesday)
Issued at 323 AM EDT Thu Apr 20 2023
Initially fair weather is expected as high pressure builds from the
WNW behind the cold front which will stall across central or
southern FL Sunday. Monday will be mostly dry but precip potential
will increase across north-central FL as the stalled boundary lifts
northward as a warm front.
More extensive coverage of unsettled weather returns Tuesday and
will continue through Thursday as a series of waves slide eastward
along the warm front triggering rounds of precip and diurnal
convection each day.
Temperatures will hover near typical climo values through next week
though overnight lows will become seasonably mild by Wednesday as
warm, moist southerly flow develops.
&&
.AVIATION...
(12Z TAFS)
Issued at 945 AM EDT Thu Apr 20 2023
VFR today and early tonight with only a few cumulus about 3-4
kft. Some fog will be possible late tonight for some of the inland
TAF sites, and will be included in the next TAF package. Last sfc
obs show winds from the east- northeast about 5-10 kt, and will
increase to about 10-15 knots with gusts of near 25 knots by about
16z. Winds will become more light and variable in the evening and
overnight hours.
&&
.MARINE...
Issued at 323 AM EDT Thu Apr 20 2023
Breezy easterly winds are expected across our local waters
through Friday evening. Winds will then shift to southeasterly on
Friday night and southerly on Saturday ahead of an approaching
cold front, which is expected to bring scattered showers and a few
thunderstorms to our local waters from Friday evening through
Saturday night. Winds will shift to north-northeasterly in the
wake the front on Sunday as high pressure builds to the west,
pushing the cold front through the Florida peninsula. High
pressure will then lift northeastward towards the Mid- Atlantic
states early next week, keeping onshore winds in place. Chances of
showers and thunderstorms may begin to increase by Monday night
and Tuesday as weak low pressure potentially migrates across the
southeastern states, lifting the frontal boundary back northward
as a warm front across the Florida peninsula.
Rip Currents: Moderate Risk for SE GA Beaches thru Friday. High
Risk for NE FL Beaches today dropping to Moderate Risk by Friday.
&&
.FIRE WEATHER...
Issued at 323 AM EDT Thu Apr 20 2023
Breezy east winds and low humidity, especially across inland
southeast GA will lead to elevated fire weather conditions once
again this afternoon. Persistent onshore flow and recovering
humidity will continue through Friday before winds veer
southwesterly ahead of a cold frontal passage Saturday. Breezy
transport flow and strong mixing will result in high dispersions
today and Friday. The dry airmass and breezy north winds trailing
the front will lead to another period of elevated fire weather
conditions Sunday. Moisture will recover next week as a warm front
lifts north over the area. Several waves of low pressure moving
along the warm front will lead to chances for showers and afternoon
t'storms Tuesday through next Thursday.
&&
.PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS...
AMG 87 57 86 63 / 0 0 0 20
SSI 80 65 79 68 / 0 0 10 20
JAX 84 59 84 65 / 0 0 20 20
SGJ 80 65 81 67 / 0 0 20 30
GNV 86 56 87 64 / 0 0 20 20
OCF 87 57 89 64 / 0 0 20 20
&&
.JAX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
FL...High Rip Current Risk through late tonight for FLZ124-125-133-
138.
GA...None.
AM...None.
&&The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
2 wildfire. Local standard time, as filed.
A 50 acre wildfire was reported about 6 miles NW of Hilliard. There were no evacuations or endangerments at the time of the initial report.
A wildfire about 3 miles NW of Bryceville was about 125 acres in size around 2:25 pm on 4/20. The cause was a vehicle fire. There were no road closures, evacuations or displacements at the time of the initial report. By 5 pm, the fire grew to 200 acres. On 4/21 at 12:40 pm, the fire had grown to 1600 acres and was at 50% containment.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Florida in 2023Every state in 2023This day in weather historyWarnings in Florida, April 2023
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: 1092146, 1092147.