|
The Lake Washington
(Melbourne) Tornado - 11/13/97
The National Weather Service Office in Melbourne, Florida has developed
a comprehensive database on Florida weather history with a special emphasis
on Florida Tornadoes. Climatological information
and the latest information on tornado research can be found on our research
page.
You can also visit our archive
of storm summaries...
THE F0 TORNADO FIRST TOUCHED DOWN NEAR INTERSTATE 95 JUST NORTH OF EAU GALLIE
BLVD IN MELBOURNE AROUND 350 PM WHERE HIGHWAY SIGNS WERE KNOCKED DOWN AND
DEBRIS WAS THROWN ONTO THE ROAD. NUMEROUS SHEDS AND FENCES WERE DAMAGED
AS THE TORNADO CONTINUED NORTHEAST AT 40 MPH REACHING LAKE WASHINGTON BLVD
AND WICKHAM ROAD AROUND 4 PM. THE TORNADO TORE A LARGE METAL AIR CONDITIONING
SHELTER FROM THE ROOF OF A GROCERY STORE AND TOSSED THE STRUCTURE INTO THE
PARKING LOT. A DAMAGE PATH OF TREE BRANCHES AND OTHER SMALL DEBRIS CONTINUED
NORTHEASTWARD TO KENT DR. (WHERE A POWER POLE WAS ALSO DOWNED)...TO TROPICAL
TRAIL ON MERRITT ISLAND...AND FINALLY TO THE BARRIER ISLAND AT SATELLITE
BEACH. NO INJURIES WERE REPORTED.
TOTAL LENGTH
OF DAMAGE: DISCONTINUOUS FOR NEARLY 6 MILES.
FUJITA
DAMAGE SCALE ESTIMATE: F0.
MAXIMUM WIND SPEED ESTIMATE:
NEAR 70 MPH.
Lake Washington (Melbourne) Tornado damage path map (black dashed line).
METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS This tornado is one of two to
occur in very close proximity of the Melbourne WSR-88D. The first tornado
(also F0) occurred approximately 1 mile northeast of the radar site on 01
January 1996, while the Lake Washington tornado reached it's closest point
of approach at 2-3 miles north of the site. At a range of 3 miles, the tornado's
circulation was sampled at an elevation of 300 feet above ground level.
WSR-88D Doppler Radar Below are a series of reflectivity and storm-relative
velocity images beginning nearly 10 minutes prior to the touchdown and ending
shortly after the tornadic cell reached the Atlantic Ocean. The scale to
the right of each image reveals the associated radar return in dBZ (reflectivity;
brighter colors equate to heavier rainfall) and wind speed in knots (storm
relative velocity; green colors indicate motion
toward the radar site, while red colors
indicate motion away from the radar site). Note the "tightening"
of the red/green "couplet" as time evolves...this is the signature associated
with the tornado.
300 ft Base Reflectivity
300 ft Storm Relative Velocity
 
327 PM EST
300 ft Base Reflectivity
300 ft Storm Relative Velocity
 
337 PM EST
300 ft Base Reflectivity
300 ft Storm Relative Velocity
 
347 PM EST
300 ft Base Reflectivity
300 ft Storm Relative Velocity
 
357 PM EST
The two identical images below illustrate the different
scales of motion associated with the circulation. In the top image,
the parent mesocyclone (or large scale thunderstorm circulation) is illustrated
by the black line connecting the maximum inbound (brightest
green colors) and maximum outbound (brightest
red colors) velocities. This rotational circulation was measured
at 37 knots, with a diameter of 2 nautical miles, and a shear of
.011 per second. In the bottom figure, the black line connects the
maximum inbound and outbound velocities associated with the tornado vortex
(small scale circulation). This rotational circulation was measured at 43
knots, with a diameter slightly greater than 0.5 nautical miles,
and a very high shear of .040 per second, four times larger
than the parent circulation.
300 ft Base Velocity (high resolution/zoom
.13 nm @ 8X)
 
347 PM EST
300 ft Base Velocity (high resolution/zoom
.13 nm @ 8X)
347 PM EST
Return to Home
|
