Alert archive / Pennsylvania / Flash Flood Warnings in 1989

Flash Flood Warning 38, NWS Cleveland, OH

June 22, 1989Elk County, Pennsylvania

NWS Cleveland, OH issued this flash flood warning at Jun 22, 1989, 11:23 PM EDT for Elk County, Pennsylvania. It was in force for 5 hr.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
Jun 22, 1989, 11:23 PM EDT (03:23 UTC)
Expired
Jun 23, 1989, 4:00 AM EDT
In force
5 hr
Issued by
NWS Cleveland, OH
Area
Whole counties

County Elk County, PA

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

Pittsburgh, PA (KPIT), launched 00:00Z, 3.4 hours before the alert went out and 166 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, Pittsburgh, PA at 00:00Z on 1989-06-23Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 562 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, Pittsburgh, PA at 00:00Z on 1989-06-23The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 25 square meters per square second.1939Sfc1 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
562 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-10 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1327 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
12 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
25 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
-12 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
TTAA00 KPIT 230323
FFWPIT
PAC021-047-051-065-111-230800-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PITTSBURGH PA
1123 PM EDT THU JUN 22 1989

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A FLASH FLOOD WARNING 
EFFECTIVE UNTIL 400 AM EDT FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES OF

WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA...CAMBRIA...ELK...FAYETTE...JEFFERSON AND 
 SOMERSET

AT 1110 PM ONE AND A HALF INCHES OF RAIN WAS REPORTED AT WINDBER
IN SOMERSET COUNTY...JUST SOUTHEAST OF JOHNSTOWN PA. THIS IS HEAVY
RAIN FROM THE THUNDERSTORM OVER BLAIR AND BEDFORD COUNTIES.
FLOODING SHOULD BEGIN SOON IN CAMBRIA AND SOMERSET COUNTIES. HEAVY
THUNDERSTORMS IN FAYETTE...JEFFERSON...AND ELK COUNTIES COULD
CAUSE FLOODING WITHIN THE NEXT FEW HOURS.

A FLASH FLOOD WARNING MEANS FLOODING IS IMMINENT OR IN PROGRESS.
IF YOU GET ANY INDICATION THAT FLOOD WATERS ARE APPROACHING..MOVE TO
HIGHER GROUND IMMEDIATELY. DO NOT DRIVE THROUGH FLOODED AREAS.

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, Jun 22, 6:02 PM EDT, 5 hours 21 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CLEVELAND OH
601 PM EDT THU JUN 22 1989

THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH HAS BEEN CANCELED FOR OHIO.

AT 555 THIS AFTERNOON WEATHER RADAR SHOWED AREAS OF THUNDERSTORMS IN
THE LIMA-CELINA AREAS... ALONG THE OHIO RIVER NEAR WEST UNION... AND
FROM AROUND YOUNGSTOWN TO CARROLLTON.

AN URBAN AND SMALL STREAM FLOOD WARNING CONTINUES IN EFFECT FOR
ASHTABULA COUNTY UNTIL 830 THIS EVENING. THUNDERSTORMS WERE STILL
ACROSS THE SOUTHERN PORTION OF THE COUNTY. RAINFALL FROM THIS
THUNDERSTORM HAS BEEN OVER 2 INCHES IN THE NORTHEAST AND CENTRAL
SECTIONS.

MOVEMENT OF ALL THE THUNDERSTORMS WAS UNDER 10 MPH AND THE DIRECTION
WAS UNDETERMINABLE. THIS SLOW SPEED WILL CONTRIBUTE TO EXCESSIVE
RAINFALL OF OVER 2 INCHES IN SOME AREAS. FLOODING OF URBAN AREAS AND
QUICK RISES IN SMALL STREAMS AND CREEKS ARE POSSIBLE THROUGH TONIGHT
WITH THESE THUNDERSTORMS.

THE THUNDERSTORMS ARE AL/SO CAPABLE OF PRODUCING SMALL HAIL AND GUSTY
WINDS.

OHIOANS SHOULD CONTINUE TO MONITOR THE WEATHER AND BE PREPARED TO MOVE
TO SAFETY IF THREATENING WEATHER APPROACHES OR WATERS START RISING.

ECKERT
Special weather statement, Jun 22, 8:07 PM EDT, 3 hours 16 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE YOUNGSTOWN OH
807 PM EDT THU JUN 22 1989

THE HEAVY THUNDERSTORMS IN THE YOUNGSTOWN-WARREN AND SHARON AREAS
HAVE ENDED... BUT A FEW THUNDERSTORMS CONTINUED OVER EASTERN COLUMBIANA
COUNTY AND ACROSS MOST OF WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA.

AT 8 PM NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR SHOWED THE HEAVIEST THUNDERSTORMS
FROM EAST PALESTINE TO WELLSVILLE IN COLUMBIANA COUNTY.  THESE STORMS
MAY BRING DANGEROUS LIGHTNING... BRIEF GUSTY WINDS AND SMALL HAIL.
HEAVY RAINS COULD CAUSE MORE TEMPORARY STREET FLOODING.

OTHER SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WERE NEAR THE TURNPIKE IN LAWRENCE
COUNTY AND NEAR MERCER IN MERCER COUNTY IN WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA.

THE SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS SHOULD TAPER OFF AROUND 10 PM.  A FLOOD
WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR MERCER AND LAWRENCE COUNTIES UNTIL 10 PM AND
A FLOOD WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT ALONG THE MAHONING RIVER TONIGHT.
KOSARIK
Special weather statement, Jun 22, 8:48 PM EDT, 2 hours 35 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ERIE, PA
835 PM EDT THU JUN 22 1989

AT 840 PM EDT WEATHER RADIO SHOWED A SOLID LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS STRETCHING
FROM CATTARAGUS COUNTY IN NEW YORK STATE...TO WESTERN MCKEAN COUNTY...
SOUTHEAST WARREN COUNTY AND NORTHERN FOREST COUNTY IN PENNSYLVANIA. THE LINE
OF THUNDERSTORMS IS MOVING SLOWLY TO THE EAST.

THESE THUNDERSTORMS WILL PRODUCE BRIEF PERIODS OF VERY HEAVY RAIN AND
DANGEROUS LIGHTNING. THE THUNDERSTORMS OVER SOUTHEAST WARREN COUNTY
ARE ESPECIALLY DANGEROUS SINCE THEY CONTAIN FREQUENT LIGHTNING STRIKES
TO THE GROUND.

HEAVY RAIN FROM THE THUNDERSTORMS WILL ALSO CAUSE PONDING OF WATER ON
ROAD SURFACES AND FLOODING IN POOR DRAINAGE A7REAS.

TJP/ERIE
Special weather statement, Jun 22, 9:42 PM EDT, 1 hour 41 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ERIE, PA
931 PM EDT THU JUN 22 1989

...THUNDERSTORMS OVER WESTERN MCKEAN COUNTY PRODUCING DANGEROUS LIGHTNING...

AT 930 PM EDT WEATHER RADAR SHOWED A SOLID LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS STRETCHING
FROM CATTARAUGUS COUNTY IN NEW YORK STATE TO WESTERN MCKEAN COUNTY...SOUTHEAST
WARREN COUNTY AND NORTHEAST FOREST COUNTY OF PENNSYLVANIA.  THE LINE OF THUNDER-STORMS IS MOVING SLOWLY TO THE EAST.

SKYWARN OBSERVERS IN MCKEAN COUNTY REPORTED FREQUENT LIGHTNING STRIKES TO
THE GROUND AS THE STORMS APPROACHED KANE IN SOUTHERN MCKEAN COUNTY.

HEAVY DOWNPOURS AND GUSTY WINDS ARE ALSO POSSIBLE AS THESE STORMS CONTINUE
TO MOVE THROUGH MCKEAN COUNTY.

STAY IN YOfUR HOMES AS THESE STORMS MOVE INTO YOUR AREA.  STAY AWAY FROM
WINDOWS AND DO NOT USE ELECTRICAL APPLIANCES WHILE LIGHTING IS OCCURRING.

TJP/ERIE

The office that day

Everything else NWS Cleveland, OH issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jun 22, 9:05 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningCLEElk3 hr
Jun 22, 10:45 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningCLEMcKean2 hr
Jun 22, 11:30 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningCLEMcKean5 hr

Nearby

Flash Flood Warnings in Pennsylvania, 1989Every flash flood warning in 1989

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.