Supercell Thunderstorms - March 13, 2006

PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL 
423 PM CST WED MAR 15 2006

...TWO SUPERCELLS PRODUCE MINOR DAMAGE ACROSS CENTRAL ALABAMA... 

TWO SUPERCELL THUNDERSTORMS MOVED FROM WEST TO EAST ACROSS CENTRAL ALABAMA...FROM APPROXIMATELY 3:30 PM UNTIL 9:00 PM. SUPERCELLS ARE THUNDERSTORMS WHICH EXHIBIT STRONG UPDRAFTS AND CONTAIN PERSISTENT ROTATION. THESE THUNDERSTORMS ARE TYPICALLY THE MOST DAMAGING AND CAN PRODUCE STRONG TORNADOES...LARGE HAIL...AND DAMAGING WINDS. A BROKEN LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPED BEHIND THESE SUPERCELLS...BUT THESE THUNDERSTORMS PRODUCED MAINLY PEA SIZED HAIL AND A BRIEF HEAVY DOWNPOUR. SUPERCELL 1 STARTED IN WEST CENTRAL MISSISSIPPI WHERE IT PRODUCED AT LEAST FOUR TORNADOES IN MONTGOMERY...WEBSTER...AND CLAY COUNTIES. THE STORM THEN ENTERED LAMAR COUNTY NEAR SULLIGENT...AND DISSIPATED IN ETOWAH COUNTY NEAR RAINBOW CITY. SUPERCELL 1 ALSO PRODUCED TWO WEAK TORNADOES IN CULLMAN COUNTY. SUPERCELL 2 FORMED IN EAST CENTRAL MISSISSIPPI AND ENTERED LAMAR COUNTY NEAR MILLPORT AND DISSIPATED IN ST. CLAIR COUNTY NEAR MOODY. THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ISSUED A TORNADO WATCH FOR MUCH OF WESTERN AND NORTHERN ALABAMA AT 2:05 PM AND WAS VALID UNTIL 8:00 PM. A SECOND TORNADO WATCH WAS ISSUED FOR NORTH AND EAST ALABAMA FROM 5:55 PM AND WAS VALID UNTIL 11:00 PM. ALL LOCATIONS NORTH OF INTERSTATE 20 WERE INCLUDED IN A TORNADO WATCH AT SOME POINT. NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE METEOROLOGISTS PERFORMED GROUND AND AERIAL SURVEYS ACROSS CENTRAL ALABAMA. GENERALLY MINOR DAMAGE WAS FOUND IN SEVERAL LOCATIONS ACROSS SEVERAL COUNTIES. NO MAJOR DAMAGE OR INJURIES OCCURRED WITH THESE STORMS. VIEW LOCAL STORM REPORTS...HERE 8 TORNADOES OCCURRED WITH THESE 2 SUPERCELLS.

LAMAR COUNTY...VIEW PICTURES AND MAPS HERE

...SUPERCELL 1 MOVED ACROSS THE ALABAMA STATE LINE INTO LAMAR COUNTY. AT 4:06 PM...AN F0 TORNADO TOUCHED DOWN APPROXIMATELY 4 MILES FROM THE ALABAMA/MISSISSIPPI STATE LINE AND ONE AND ONE HALF MILES SOUTH OF SULLIGENT LAKE. THE TORNADO TRACKED EAST-NORTHEASTWARD WHERE IT PARTIALLY DAMAGED TWO BARN ROOFS ALONG ITS PATH. THE TORNADO DISSIPATED IN LESS THAN ONE MINUTE. THE TORNADO DAMGE PATH WAS LESS THAN ONE QUARTER OF A MILE LONG AND 30 YARDS WIDE AT ITS WIDEST POINT. THE SUPERCELL HAD A FUNNEL CLOUD OR WALL CLOUD DURING ITS LIFE ACROSS NORTHERN LAMAR COUNTY BUT NO EVIDENCE OF ANOTHER TORNADO TOUCHDOWN WAS DISCOVERED. SUPERCELL 2 PRODUCED A TORNADO NEAR KENNEDY. THE TORNADO TOUCHED DOWN NEAR THE INTERSECTION OF STATE HIGHWAY 17 AND STATE HIGHWAY 96, ABOUT 1.5 MILES SOUTHWEST OF KENNEDY. THE TORNADO MOVED NORTHEAST AND CROSSED COUNTY ROAD 49 BEFORE IT LIFTED JUST EAST OF HOWELL ROAD AND STATE HIGHWAY 96. THE TORNADO WAS ON THE GROUND FROM 515 PM UNTIL 519 PM. SEVERAL TREES WERE BLOWN DOWN ALONG THE PATH AND A FEW MOBILE HOMES SUFFERED MINOR DAMAGE. THE TORNADO PATH WAS 2.5 MILES LONG AND 75 YARDS WIDE AT ITS WIDEST POINT.

FAYETTE COUNTY...VIEW PICTURES AND MAP HERE

...SUPERCELL 1 MOVED ACROSS FAR NORTHERN FAYETTE COUNTY AND PRODUCED TWO TORNADOES. AT 4:45 PM...AN F0 TORNADO TOUCHED DOWN IN FAR NORTHERN FAYETTE COUNTY ABOUT 1.8 MILES SOUTH OF WINFIELD. THE TORNADO STARTED NEAR THE INTERSECTION OF COUNTY ROAD 21 AND COUNTY ROAD 49...MOVED NORTHEAST...AND ENDED NEAR US HIGHWAY 43 AND BENTON ROAD AT 4:47 PM. ONE MOBILE HOME WAS DAMAGED AND SEVERAL TREES WERE BLOWN DOWN. THE DAMAGE PATH WAS 1 MILE LONG AND 50 YARDS WIDE AT ITS WIDEST POINT. AT 4:55 PM...AN F1 TORNADO TOUCHED DOWN APPROXIMATELY 2 MILES EAST OF GLEN ALLEN IN FAR NORTHERN FAYETTE COUNTY. THE TORNADO TRACKED NORTHEASTWARD WHERE IT UPROOTED NUMEROUS TREES ALONG ITS PATH. THE TORNADO CROSSED COUNTY ROAD 65 AND COUNTY ROAD 53 BEFORE ENDING NEAR ELDRIDGE ROAD AT 4:57 PM. THE TORNADO DAMAGE PATH WAS 1.5 MILES LONG AND 50 YARDS WIDE AT ITS WIDEST POINT.

WALKER COUNTY...VIEW PICTURES AND MAP HERE

...NUMEROUS REPORTS OF FUNNEL CLOUDS WERE RECEIVED AS SUPERCELL 1 MOVED ACROSS NORTHERN WALKER COUNTY. AT 5:39 PM...AN F1 TORNADO TOUCHED DOWN APPROXIMATELY 1.5 MILES EAST OF THE CURRY COMMUNITY ALONG BURROWS CROSSING ROAD. THE TORNADO COMPLETELY DESTROYED ONE BARN AND SHEET METAL WAS STREWN DOWNSTREAM OVER 300 YARDS. ONE OTHER BARN WAS HEAVILY DAMAGED AND A FEW TREES WERE BLOWN DOWN. THE TORNADO DISSIPATED AT 5:41 PM NEAR THE INTERSECTION OF BLOOMING GROVE ROAD AND DRIUMMOND ROAD. THE TORNADO DAMAGE PATH WAS 1.2 MILES LONG AND 25 YARDS WIDE AT ITS WIDEST POINT.

BLOUNT COUNTY...VIEW PICTURES AND MAP HERE

...SUPERCELL 1 CONTINUED EAST NORTHEAST AND PRODUCED ONE MORE BRIEF TORNADO IN FAR WESTERN BLOUNT COUNTY. AT 6:15 PM...A BRIEF TORNADO OCCURRED ALONG INTERSTATE 65 IN FAR NORTHERN BLOUNT COUNTY. THE TORNADO WAS WITNESSED BY MANY MOTORISTS AS IT CROSSED THE HIGHWAY. THE TORNADO TOUCHED DOWN NEAR EXIT 289 AND DAMAGED ONE MOBILE HOME AND KNOCKED OVER SEVERAL TREES. THE TORNADO DAMAGE PATH WAS APPROXIMATELY 0.1 OF A MILE LONG AND 25 YARDS WIDE AT ITS WIDEST POINT.

TUSCALOOSA COUNTY...VIEW PICTURES AND MAP HERE

...SUPERCELL 2...STORM SPOTTERS TRACKED A TORNADO ON THE GROUND FROM NEAR COUNTY ROAD 35 IN FAR NORTHERN TUSCALOOSA COUNTY TO NEAR NEW HOPE ROAD IN FAR SOUTHEASTERN FAYETTE COUNTY. AFTER AN IN DEPTH SEARCH, THE TORNADO ONLY BROKE A FEW LIMBS OFF OF TREES AS IT MOVED THROUGH THE RURAL COUNTRYSIDE. THE TORNADO OCCURRED FROM APPROXIMATELY 543 PM UNTIL 548 PM. THE TORNADO PATH WAS 3.4 MILES LONG AND 30 YARDS WIDE AT ITS WIDEST POINT. SUPERCELL 2 MOVED ACROSS FAR NORTHERN TUSCALOOSA COUNTY NEAR THE FAYETTE AND WALKER COUNTY LINES. AT APPROXIMATELY 5:54 PM...AN F0 TORNADO BRIEFLY TOUCHED DOWN IN RURAL NORTHERN TUSCALOOSA COUNTY JUST EAST OF U.S. HIGHWAY 43. THIS LOCATION IS 9.5 MILES NORTH OF SAMANTHA. THE TORNADO PRODUCED LITTLE TO NO DAMAGE. A STORM SPOTTER CAPTURED IMAGES OF THE TORNADO. THE TORNADO DAMAGE PATH WAS 0.1 MILES LONG AND 20 YARDS WIDE AT ITS WIDEST POINT.

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WOULD LIKE TO THANK THE TUSCALOOSA POLICE DEPARTMENT FOR THERE CONTINUED DEDICATION AND SUPPORT OF STORM EVALUATION. 

FOR ADDITIONAL STORM SURVEY OR PREPAREDNESS INFORMATION...VISIT THE BIRMINGHAM NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WEB SITE AT WWW.SRH.NOAA.GOV/BMX. DAMAGE PHOTOS AND RADAR IMAGES WILL BE ADDED AS TIME PERMITS. 

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