Alert archive / California / Flash Flood Warnings in 1990

Flash Flood Warning 22, NWS Los Angeles, CA

September 22, 1990San Luis Obispo County, Santa Barbara County, California

NWS Los Angeles, CA issued this flash flood warning at Sep 22, 1990, 5:37 PM PDT for San Luis Obispo County, Santa Barbara County, California. It was in force for 2 hr.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
Sep 22, 1990, 5:37 PM PDT (00:37 UTC)
Expired
Sep 22, 1990, 7:45 PM PDT
In force
2 hr
Issued by
NWS Los Angeles, CA
Area
Whole counties

Counties San Luis Obispo County, CA, Santa Barbara County, CA

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

Vandenberg AFB, CA (KVBG), launched 00:00Z, 0.6 hours before the alert went out and 35 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, Vandenberg AFB, CA at 00:00Z on 1990-09-23Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 854 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, Vandenberg AFB, CA at 00:00Z on 1990-09-23The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 98 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
854 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-11 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
685 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
22 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
98 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
213 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.4
Supercell composite
2.5

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
TTAA00 KSMX 230037 RRA
FFWSMX
CAC079-083-230245-
 
BULLETIN - EBS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SANTA MARIA CA
537 PM PDT SAT SEP 22 1990
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN SANTA MARIA HAS ISSUED A
FLASH FLOOD WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 745 PM PDT FOR THE
FOLLOWING...
 
IN WEST CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
 
   ...EASTERN SAN LUIS OBISPO COUNTY AND
   ...NORTHEASTERN SANTA BARBARA COUNTY
 
FLOODING CONTINUES IN THE UPPER SECTIONS OF THE CUYAMA VALLEY...17
MILES WEST OF NEW CUYAMA...OF NORTHEASTERN SANTA BARBARA COUNTY. IN
ADDITION...FLOODING CONTINUES ALONG THE CARRIZZO PLAIN IN THE TOWN OF
CALIFORNIA VALLEY...OF EASTERN SAN LUIS OBISPO COUNTY. BOTH HIGHWAYS
58 AND 166 ARE CLOSED DUE TO THE FLOODING AS LIGHT RAIN CONTINUES
IN THE AREA.
 
BE ESPECIALLY CAUTIOUS AT NIGHT WHEN IT IS HARDER TO RECOGNIZE
THE DANGERS OF FLOODS AND FLASH FLOODS.  IF FLASH FLOODING IS
OBSERVED...ACT QUICKLY.  MOVE UP TO ESCAPE FLOOD WATERS.  DO
NOT STAY IN AREMAS SUBJECT TO FLOODING WHEN WATER BEGINS RISING.
 
NNNN

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 22, 1:03 PM PDT, 4 hours 34 minutes before
CAZ003-04-222200

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SANTA MARIA CA
1255 PM PDT SAT SEP 22 1990

...THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS PARTS OF CENTRAL SANTA BARBARA COUNTY WITH
MORE ON THE WAY FOR THE REST OF THE COUNTY...

AT 1245 PM...REMOTE WEATHER SENSORS IN THE SAN RAFAEL MOUNTAINS
INDICATED LIGHT TO MODERATE RAINFALL FROM THUNDERSTORMS DURING THE
LAST HOUR. THE BATES RIDGE SENSOR REPORTED 0.16 INCHES IN THE LAST
HOUR AND 0.28 INCHES SINCE 10 AM. THIS IS ALL IN ADDITION TO THE 1 TO
2 INCHES OF RAIN REPORTED LAST EVENING.

THESE THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE OVER THE SAN RAFAEL MOUNTAINS THIS
AFTERNOON WITH ADDITIONAL RAINFALL EXPECTED...SOME OF WHICH MAY BE
HEAVY. MOVEMENT WAS VERY SLOWLY TO THE NORTH.

ALL PERSONS IN OR PLANNING TO TRAVEL IN THE BACK COUNTRY OF SANTA
BARBARA COUNTY THIS AFTERNOON OR EVENING SHOULD BE ALERT FOR POSSIBLE
WASHED OUT ROADWAYS OR TRAILS IN RAVINES AND CANYONS. IN ADDITION
...THESE STORMS MAY CONTAIN DANGEROUS LIGHTNING. IF THREATENED...SEEK
SOME SORT OF SAFE SHELTER IMMEDIATELY.

RADAR AND SATELLITE DATA INDICATE THE PRESENT THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY
WILL BECOME MORE NUMEROUS ACROSS THE COUNTY AS THE DAY GOES ON. ALL
CONCERNED PERSONS IN SANTLA BARBARA COUNTY SHOULD STAY ABREAST OF THE
LASTEST WEATHER CONDITIONS AND LISTEN OR FURTHER STATEMENTS ON THIS
SITUATION.

TRM
Special weather statement, Sep 22, 2:35 PM PDT, 3 hours 2 minutes before
CAZ003-04-222300

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SANTA MARIA CA
230 PM PDT SAT SEP 22 1990

...FLASH FLOOD WATCH FOR NORTHERN SANTA BARBARA COUNTY AND SAN
LUIS OBISPO COUNTY UNTIL 9 PM PDT...

A FLASH FLOOD WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR NORTHERN SANTA BARBARA COUNTY
...NORTH OF THE SANTA YNEZ RANGE...AND ALL OF SAN LUIS OBISPO
COUNTY UNTIL 9 PM PDT.

AT 200 PM PDT...WEATHER RADAR AND SATELLITE DATA SHOWED THUNDERSTORMS
BLOSSOMING OVER MUCH OF SANTA BARBARA COUNTY AND SAN LUIS OBISPO
COUNTY. THE STRONGEST ACTIVITY WAS OVER PARTS OF CENTRAL SAN LUIS
OBISPO COUNTY NORTH OF SAN LUIS OBISPO TO NEAR PASO ROBLES. SATELLITE
ESTIMATES OF POTENTIAL RAINFALL RATES INDICATED AS MUCH AS 1 INCH PER
HOUR MAY BE FALLING FROM THESE STORMS.

OTHER STRONG THUNDERSTORMS WERE OVER PORTIONS OF EASTERN SANTA
BARBARA COUNTY...INCLUDING THE ADJACENT COASTAL WATERS.

MOVEMENT WAS TO THE NORTH AT 15 MILES AN HOUR.

PERSONS LIVING IN THE WATCH AREA...ESPECIALLY BETWEEN SAN LUIS OBISPO
AND PASO ROBLES...SHOULD BE PREPARED FOR POSSIBLE HEAVY RAINS AND
SUBSEQUENT FLASH FLOODING. SEEK HIGHER GROUND IF FLOODING DOES OCCUR.

TRM

Nearby

Flash Flood Warnings in California, 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.