Tropical Storm Henri, September 5-6, 2003
(Index)


Dodging A Bullet
Suncoast rainfall from Tropical Storm Henri
Suncoast rainfall for the period starting at 8 PM EDT September
4th and ending at 12 Noon EDT on September 6th.
Infrared satellite photograph of Tropical Storm Henri, 1415 Universal Coordinated Time Base reflectivity, 1615 Universal Coordinated Time, September 5, 2003 Base reflectivity, 947 Universal Coordinated Time, September 6, 2003

At left: Infrared satellite photograph near Henri's peak intensity, 1415 UTC September 5. Center: Base reflectivity,
1615 UTC September 5. Note the solid area of moderate rains from Sarasota County southward. At right: Base
reflectivity, 0947 UTC September 6. Note the circulation center in the Tampa Bay metropolitan area, with
strong thunderstorm (yellow) near the Hernando/Pasco County line.

Short-lived Tropical Storm Henri lurked about 100 miles west of the Tampa Bay metropolitan area between 5 AM September 5th and 5 AM September 6th, then weakened before accelerating across central Florida during the late morning on the 6th. A poorly organized system, Henri produced generally minor freshwater flooding in two areas: From Sarasota through Lee Counties on the 5th, and a very small portion of southern Hernando and extreme northern Pasco County before daybreak on the 6th. Preliminary rainfall details can be found here.

Breezy conditions were experienced near the coast, but there were no recorded winds reaching tropical storm force (39 mph). A very brief period of tropical storm force winds was recorded in the eastern Gulf, 100 nautical miles west of Bayport (Hernando County). Sustained winds of 41 knots, with gusts to 52 knots, were measured near the center during the afternoon of the 5th. Surf and sea heights increased, but tides were generally only a foot or so above normal prior to landfall. For more detailed statistics, see the preliminary storm report.