ZJX CTLR DESCRIBED INCIDENT WHEN VFR ACFT ENCOUNTERED IMC CONDITIONS AND REQUIRED EMER HANDLING TO EXECUTE IFR APCH.

Narrative

WORKING R28 WITH A LINE OF TSTMS STRETCHING ACROSS THE S PORTION OF MY SECTOR FROM THE GULF OF MEXICO TO NE OF CTY. THERE WAS A BREAK IN THE LINE SW OF CTY. TPA CAP AND TUNNEL PROCS WERE IN EFFECT; SO MY WORKLOAD WAS INCREASED TO ISSUE WX; DEVIATE AND DSND ALL TPA ARRS FROM FL240 TO FL190. THE DEVS WERE REQUIRING TURNS OF 40 DEGS AND INCREASED WORKLOAD SUBSTANTIALLY. WHILE WORKING THESE PLANES; I HEARD ACFT X CALL. I ATTEMPTED TO CONTACT THE ACFT MANY TIMES AND WAS UNSUCCESSFUL EVEN AFTER TRYING A DIFFERENT XMITTER LOCATED AT CTY ARPT. HE FINALLY GOT CLOSE ENOUGH TO HEAR ME. HE ASKED FOR AN IFR CLRNC TO CTY. I ASKED HIS POS AND HE SAID 15 MI SE OF CTY. I ISSUED A SQUAWK CODE BUT DID NOT OBSERVE ANY TARGETS. AFTER WORKING A FEW MORE THINGS OUT; I DIVIDED MY ATTN BACK TO THE AREA AND SAW A PRIMARY TARGET ABOUT 15 MI SE OF CTY. I ASKED THE ACFT IF HIS XPONDER WAS OPERATING AND SQUAWKING THE APPROPRIATE CODE. HE SAID HE WOULD TRY AGAIN AND ASKED THE WX FOR CTY. I SAID THAT I HAVE NOT WX RPTS FOR CTY. I TOLD HIM I THINK I SEE HIS TARGET AND ISSUED WX AT HIS 12 O'CLOCK POS AND 2 MI; HVY PRECIP. I THEN ASKED HIS FLT CONDITIONS AND HE SAID IFR. I ASKED ALT AND HE REPLIED 4000 FT. HE WAS STILL IN JAX APCH'S AIRSPACE; BUT I FELT THIS CONSTITUTED AN EMER SITUATION. I TOLD THE ACFT TO TURN 30 DEGS L FOR RADAR IDENT AND WX AVOIDANCE. HE ACKNOWLEDGED THE TURN. I THEN ASKED IF HE WAS CAPABLE AND QUALIFIED FOR IFR FLT AND HE SAID HE WAS. HE ASKED FOR VECTORS TO THE VOR 31 APCH. I SAID I WAS UNABLE TO VECTOR FOR THE APCH COURSE; BUT GAVE RPTS FROM PREVIOUS ACFT PASSING THROUGH THE HOLD THAT WHEN HE PASSED THE LINE THE WX WOULD IMPROVE AND I WANTED TO GET HIM AWAY FROM THE HVY CELLS ON THE FINAL APCH COURSE. HE ACKNOWLEDGED AND FLEW THE 270 DEG HDG I ISSUED. I ALSO RADAR IDENTED HIM AT THAT TIME AND ISSUED AN IFR CLRNC AND ASKED FOR HSI FUEL REMAINING; SOULS ON BOARD AND NAME AND PHONE NUMBER. HE REPLIED ONLY WITH NAME AND PHONE NUMBER. I WAS SERIOUSLY QUESTIONING HIS SKILLS AND PLANNING AT THIS POINT. ISSUED A DSCNT TO 2000 FT; AND A TURN TO 340 DEGS FOR THE ARPT AROUND THE WX. THE CELL STARTED TO MOVE OFF OF THE VOR 31 FINAL APCH COURSE. WHEN HE WAS 5 MI S OF THE FIELD; I CALLED POS TO THE FIELD AND ASKED HIS FLT CONDITIONS AND IF HE HAD THE FIELD IN SIGHT. HE SAID HE WAS VFR BUT A CLOUD LAYER UNDERNEATH. I THEN INFORMED THAT I CANNOT VECTOR THE VOR; BUT HE WAS SW OF THE VOR; CLRED HIM DIRECT TO THE VOR; MAINTAIN 2000 FT UNTIL ESTABLISHED AND CLRED VOR 31 APCH. HE EXECUTED THE APCH; AND CANCELED LATER; AFTER I WAS RELIEVED. I BELIEVE THIS PLT WAS COMPLETELY UNPREPARED; HAD NO IDEA OF THE WX; OR REGS. HE WAS IFR IN VFR CONDITIONS WITHOUT A WORKING XPONDER OR CLRNC AND FEARED THE OUTCOME DUE TO TSTMS AND LACK OF ABILITY. LUCKILY; THE OUTCOME WAS SUCCESSFUL. I ALSO WANT TO MENTION HOW THE WORKLOAD IN A LOW ALT SECTOR DRAMATICALLY INCREASES WHEN WORKING IFR ACFT INTO ARPTS; WHILE SIMULTANEOUSLY WORKING LARGE STREAMS OF ACR'S BECAUSE OF FLOW CTL RERTES FORCING ACR'S INTO LINES OF WX. MY KNOWLEDGE OF THE AREA AS A PLT AND CTLR I FEEL HELPED THIS OUTCOME; AND OTHERS WITH LACK OF IFR EXPERIENCE MAY HAVE IGNORED THIS ACFT.