Alert archive / Missouri / Flash Flood Warnings in 1988

Flash Flood Warning 2, NWS Kansas City, MO

September 28, 1988Clay County, Jackson County, Missouri

NWS Kansas City, MO issued this flash flood warning at Sep 28, 1988, 8:54 PM CDT for Clay County, Jackson County, Missouri. It was in force for 2 hr.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
Sep 28, 1988, 8:54 PM CDT (01:54 UTC)
Expired
Sep 28, 1988, 11:00 PM CDT
In force
2 hr
Issued by
NWS Kansas City, MO
Area
Whole counties

Counties Clay County, MO, Jackson County, MO

The radar

The WSR-88D network and its archive begin in 1991, so there is no radar volume for this alert.

The nearest sounding before it

Topeka, KS (KTOP), launched 00:00Z, 1.9 hours before the alert went out and 110 km from the middle of its area. This is the routine balloon launch nearest before it, the air the forecaster had in hand, not a measurement taken for the alert.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Topeka, KS at 00:00Z on 1988-09-29Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1090 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Topeka, KS at 00:00Z on 1988-09-29The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity -55 square meters per square second.193958Sfc1 km3 km6 km9 kmRMLM
The wind turning with height, colored by layer: ground to 1 km, 1 to 3 km, 3 to 6 km, 6 to 10 km.
Mixed-layer CAPE
1090 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-30 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1355 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
39 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
-55 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
85 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.1
Supercell composite
0.8

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.

000 
TTAA00 KMCI 290155
FFWMCI
KSC091-103-209-MOC047-095-290400-
 
BULLETIN - EBS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
SMALL STREAM AND URBAN FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE KANSAS CITY MISSOURI
854 PM CDT WED SEP 28 1988
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN KANSAS CITY MISSOURI HAS ISSUED A
SMALL STREAM AND URBAN FLOOD WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 1100 PM CDT
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES...
 
IN EAST CENTRAL KANSAS
          ...JOHNSON...LEAVENWORTH...WYANDOTTE
IN NORTHWEST MISSOURI
          ...CLAY
IN WEST CENTRAL MISSOURI
          ...JACKSON
 
VERY HEAVY RAIN HAS FALLEN OVER GREATER KANSAS CITY...WITH RAINFALL
TOTALS UP TO 4 INCHES REPORTED IN DOWNTOWN KANSAS CITY. NUMEROUS
REPORTS FROM KANSAS CITY POLICE DEPARTMENT HAVE INDICATED THAT
MOTORISTS ARE OCCASIONALLY BEING TRAPPED IN THEIR AUTOMOBILES THAT
HAVE DRIVEN INTO HIGH WATER IN LOW LYING AREAS.
 
RAINFALL OVER THE WARNED AREA IS EXPECTED TO CONTINUE FOR THE NEXT FEW
HOURS. ADDITIONAL AMOUNTS OF UP TO 1 TO 2 INCHES ARE POSSIBLE BY 1100
PM CDT. AS OF 850 PM ALL RIVERS AND STREAMS WERE WITHIN THEIR BANKS BUTARE BEING CLOSELY MONITORED BY THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AND LOCAL
LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES.
 
FLASH FLOODING IS EXPECTED TO CONTINUE IN LOWER LYING AREAS OF THE KANSACITY METROPOLITAN AREA THROUGH THE EVENING.
 
DO NOT DRIVE YOUR VEHICLE INTO AREAS WHERE THE WATER COVERS THE
ROADWAY.  THE WATER DEPTH MAY BE TOO GREAT TO ALLOW YOUR CAR TO
CROSS SAFELY.  VEHICLES CAUGHT IN RISING WATER SHOULD BE
ABANDONED QUICKLY.  MOVE TO HIGHER GROUND.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before this flash flood warning went out, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Sep 28, 3:46 PM CDT, 5 hours 8 minutes before
SPECAIL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE KANSAS CITY INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT MO
445 PM CDT WED SEP 28 1988

 A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR EASTERN KANSAS AND
EXTREME NORTHWEST MISSOURI UNTIL 9 PM CDT. THIS WATCH DOES NOT INCLUDE
THE KANSAS CITY METRO AREA OR ST JOSEPH MISSOURI.

 HOWEVER...THERE IS A GOOD CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS WITH VERY HEAVY
RAINFALL AND STRONG SURFACE WINDS FOR THE KANSAS CITY AND ST JOSEPH
AREAS TONIGHT. SOME OF THESE STORMS WILL PRODUCE LOCALIZED FLOODING
OF STREETS...VIADUCTS AND LOW LYING AREAS.

 AS OF 430 PM THIS AFTERNOON THERE WERE NO THUNDERSTORMS NEAR KANSAS
CITY AND ST JOSEPH MISSOURI. THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED TO DEVELOP
AROUND 8 PM AS A LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM MOVE NORTHEAST FROM  CENTRAL
KANSAS.
WW
AREA.  THIS ACTIVITY WAS PART OF AN AREA OF PRECIPITATION WHICH
EXTENDED INTO NORTHEAST KANSAS AND SOUTHERN IOWA.  THIS AREA IS EXPECTED
TO MOVE NORTHEAST AND OUT OF THE METRO AREA DURING THE NEXT COUPLE OF
HOURS.  SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ARE THEN EXPECTED TO REDEVELOP ACROSS
THE AREA LATE THIS AFTERNOON...AFTER 4 PM CDT.  THE POTENTIAL EXISTS
FOR A FEW OF THESE STORMS TO BECOME SEVERE.

EDF
Special weather statement, Sep 28, 3:53 PM CDT, 5 hours 1 minute before
SPECAIL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE KANSAS CITY INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT MO
445 PM CDT WED SEP 28 1988

 A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR EASTERN KANSAS AND
EXTREME NORTHWEST MISSOURI UNTIL 9 PM CDT. THIS WATCH DOES NOT INCLUDE
THE KANSAS CITY METRO AREA OR ST JOSEPH MISSOURI.

 HOWEVER...THERE IS A GOOD CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS WITH VERY HEAVY
RAINFALL AND STRONG SURFACE WINDS FOR THE KANSAS CITY AND ST JOSEPH
AREAS TONIGHT. SOME OF THESE STORMS WILL PRODUCE LOCALIZED FLOODING
OF STREETS...VIADUCTS AND LOW LYING AREAS.

 AS OF 430 PM THIS AFTERNOON THERE WERE NO THUNDERSTORMS NEAR KANSAS
CITY AND ST JOSEPH MISSOURI. THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED TO DEVELOP
AROUND 8 PM AS A LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM MOVE NORTHEAST FROM  CENTRAL
KANSAS.
WW
Special weather statement, Sep 28, 4:34 PM CDT, 4 hours 20 minutes before
SPECAIL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE KANSAS CITY INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT MO
530 PM CDT WED SEP 28 1988

 A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR EASTERN KANSAS AND
EXTREME NORTHWEST MISSOURI UNTIL 9 PM CDT. THIS WATCH DOES NOT INCLUDE
THE KANSAS CITY METRO AREA OR ST JOSEPH MISSOURI...AT THIS TIME.

 HOWEVER...THUNDERSTORMS WITH VERY HEAVY RAINFALL...STRONG WINDS AND
POSSIBLE HAIL WILL BE MOVING THROUGH THE KANSAS CITY AND ST JOSEPH
AREAS TONIGHT. SOME OF THESE STORMS WILL PRODUCE LOCALIZED FLOODING
OF STREETS...VIADUCTS AND LOW LYING AREAS.

 AS OF 530 PM THIS AFTERNOON THERE WERE STRONG THUNDERSTORMS EAST OF
TOPEKA KANSAS. THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED TO MOVE IN TO THE KANS=AS
CITY METRO AREA AND ST JOSEPH BY 7 PM CDT.
WW

The office that day

Everything else NWS Kansas City, MO issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Sep 28, 7:12 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningEAXClay, Jackson63 min

Nearby

Flash Flood Warnings in Missouri, 1988Every flash flood warning in 1988

Sources

The product and its follow-ups from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service and Storm Prediction Center text; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.