Alert archive / Alabama / Flash Flood Warnings in 1990
Flash Flood Warning 80, NWS Birmingham, AL
NWS Birmingham, AL issued this flash flood warning at Dec 22, 1990, 10:15 PM CST for Cullman County, Walker County, Winston County, Alabama. It was in force for 4 hr.
The area
The counties it named.
The facts
- Issued
- Dec 22, 1990, 10:15 PM CST (04:15 UTC)
- Expired
- Dec 23, 1990, 2:00 AM CST
- In force
- 4 hr
- Issued by
- NWS Birmingham, AL
- Area
- Whole counties
Counties Cullman County, AL, Walker County, AL, Winston County, AL
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
Centreville/Bibb, AL (KCKL), launched 00:00Z, 4.3 hours before the alert went out and 125 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.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 92 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -6 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 620 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 57 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 344 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 567 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.6
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000 TTAA00 KBHM 230416 FFWBHM ALC043-057-075-093-127-133-230800- BULLETIN - EBS ACTIVATION REQUESTED FLASH FLOOD WARNING NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL 1015 PM CST SAT DEC 22 1990 THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN BIRMINGHAM HAS ISSUED A FLASH FLOOD WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 200 AM CST FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS... IN NORTH ALABAMA ...CULLMAN COUNTY...FAYETTE COUNTY...LAMAR COUNTY...MARION COUNTY ...WALKER COUNTY...WINSTON COUNTY SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS HAVE CONTINUED TO MOVE ACROSS THE COUNTIES IN THIS WARNING THE LAST SEVERAL HOURS. AT 1010 PM WEATHER SERVICE RADAR INDICATED MORE SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPING ACROSS THESE COUNTIES. SINCE 8PM THIS EVENING RAINFALL AMOUNTS OF 1 TO 2 INCHES HAVE BEEN RECORDED BY AUTOMATIC RAIN GAUGES IN THESE COUNTIES. WITH ADDITIONAL RAINFALL EXPECTED THE NEXT SEVERAL HOURS FLASH FLOODING CAN BE EXPECTED TO OCCUR. BE ESPECIALLY CAUTIOUS AT NIGHT WHEN IT IS HARDER TO RECOGNIZE THE DA#NGERS OF FLOODS AND FLASH FLOODS. IF FLASH FLOODING IS OBSERVED...ACT QUICKLY. MOVE UP TO ESCAPE FLOOD WATERS. DO NOT STAY IN AREAS SUBJECT TO FLOODING WHEN WATER BEGINS RISING.
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, Dec 22, 4:55 PM CST, 5 hours 20 minutes before
ALZ004>009-011-013-230000- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL 455 PM CST SAT DEC 22 1990 ...TORNADO WATCH UNTIL 600 PM FOR MUCH OF NORTH AND WEST ALABAMA... ...FLASH FLOOD WATCH IN EFFECT FOR MOST OF NORTHERN...WESTERN AND CENTRAL ALABAMA TONIGHT... AT 455 PM...WEATHER SERVICE RADAR CONTINUED TO SHOW A LARGE AREA OF RAIN WITH ISOLATED HEAVIER THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS MUCH OF NORTH AND CENTRAL ALABAMA. THE STRONGEST T HUNDERSTORMS WERE INDICATED IN CULLMAN COUNTY JUST NORTHEAST OF SMITH DAM...AND IN SOUTHERN TUSCALOOSA COUNTY. OTHER HEAVY RAINS...WITH POSSIBLE THUNDER...WERE OCCURING NEAR DEMOPOLIS. MOVEMENT WAS TO THE NORTHEAST AT AROUND 35 MPH.
Special weather statement, Dec 22, 5:59 PM CST, 4 hours 16 minutes before
ALZ004>009-011-013-230600- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL 600 PM CST SAT DEC 22 1990 ...TORNADO WATCH FOR MUCH OF NORTH AND WEST ALABAMA HAS EXPIRED... ...FLASH FLOOD WATCH IN EFFECT FOR MOST OF NORTHERN...WESTERN AND CENTRAL ALABAMA TONIGHT... MODERATE RAIN WITH FEW HEAVY THUNDERSTORMS COVER A LARGE PORTION OF NORTHERN...CENTRAL...AND WESTERN ALABAMA. THE RAIN WILL PERSIST OVER THE FLOOD WATCH AREA THROUGH THE EVENING. WHILE THE RAIN CONTINUES...THE STRENGTH OF THE THUNDERSTORMS OVER THE STATE HAVE WEAKENED. WHILE NO PORTION OF ALABAMA REMAINS UNDER A TORNADO WATCH...A FEW THUNDERSTORMS MAY STILL PRODUCE VERY HEAVY RAIN AND STRONG GUSTY WINDS. sALABAMIANS SHOULD REMAIN ALERT FOR RAPIDLY CHANGING WEATHER CONDITIONS THROUGH THE EVENING HOURS.
Special weather statement, Dec 22, 7:45 PM CST, 2 hours 30 minutes before
ALZ004>009-011-013-230245-
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
744 PM CST SAT DEC 22 1990
...FLASH FLOOD WATCH IN EFFECT FOR MOST OF NORTHERN...WESTERN AND
CENTRAL ALABAMA TONIGHT...
...STRONG THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS WEST CENTRAL ALABAMA...
AT 740PM...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR IN CENTREVILLE INDICATED
AN AREA OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS MUCH OF WEST AND CENTRAL
ALABAMA. THE STRONGEST STORM WAS MOVING ACROSS SOUTHERN PICKENS COUNTY
NEAR THE COMMUNITY OF ALICEVILLE. THIS STORM IS EXPECTED TO MOVE
JUST TO THE NORTH OF TUSCALOOSA WITHIN THE NEXT HOUR. OTHER STRONG
THUNDERSTORMS WERE IN THE BIRMINGHAM METROPOLITAN AREA IN JEFFERSON
COUNTY. THESE S/TORMS ARE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING VERY HEAVY RAIN AND
STRONG GUSTY WINDS. MOVEMENT WAS TO THE NORTHEAST AT ABOUT 40 MPH.The office that day
Everything else NWS Birmingham, AL issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 22, 7:34 PM CST | Flash Flood Warning | BMX | Jackson | 6 hr |
| Dec 22, 10:15 PM CST | Flash Flood Warning | BMX | Fayette, Lamar, Marion | 4 hr |
| Dec 22, 11:46 PM CST | Flash Flood Warning | BMX | Limestone, Morgan | 4 hr |
| Dec 23, 12:38 AM CST | Flash Flood Warning | BMX | Lawrence, Limestone, Morgan | 4 hr |
| Dec 23, 12:38 AM CST | Flash Flood Warning | BMX | Jackson, Madison | 4 hr |
| Dec 23, 1:50 AM CST | Flash Flood Warning | BMX | Cullman, Marion, Walker, Winston | 5 hr |
| Dec 23, 1:50 AM CST | Flash Flood Warning | BMX | Fayette, Lamar | 5 hr |
Nearby
Flash Flood Warnings in Alabama, 1990Every flash flood warning in 1990
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.