Alert archive / Oklahoma / Flash Flood Warnings in 1990
Flash Flood Warning 45, NWS Norman, OK
NWS Norman, OK issued this flash flood warning at May 19, 1990, 11:52 PM CDT for Oklahoma County, Oklahoma. It was in force for 3 hr.
The area
The counties it named.
The facts
- Issued
- May 19, 1990, 11:52 PM CDT (04:52 UTC)
- Expired
- May 20, 1990, 3:00 AM CDT
- In force
- 3 hr
- Issued by
- NWS Norman, OK
- Area
- Whole counties
County Oklahoma County, OK
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
Norman, OK (KOUN), launched 00:00Z, 4.9 hours before the alert went out and 37 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
- 3426 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -16 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 1439 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 27 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 39 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 105 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.5
- Supercell composite
- 5.6
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000 TTAA00 KOKC 200455 COR FFWOKC OKC109-200800- BULLETIN - EBS ACTIVATION REQUESTED FLASH FLOOD WARNING NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OKLAHOMA CITY OK 1152 PM CDT SAT MAY 19 1990 THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN OKLAHOMA CITY HAS EXTENDED A FLASH FLOOD WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 300 AM CDT FOR THE FOLLOWING OKLAHOMA LOCATIONS... IN CENTRAL OKLAHOMA ...OKLAHOMA COUNTY AT 1152 PM RADAR CONTINUED TO INDICATE THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT ACROSS OKLAHOMA COUNTY. INDIVIDUAL THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING SLOWLY TOWARD THE EAST. RAINFALL AMOUNTS OF 6 TO 8 INCHES HAVE OCCURRED ACROSS PORTIONS OF OKLAHOMA COUNTY WITH REPORTS OF HOMES THREATENED BY RISING WATER AND MANY ROADS CLOSED. VERY HEAVY RAINS WILL CONTINUE OVER THE WARNING AREA FOR THE NEXT ONE TO TWO HOURS...FURTHER AGGRAVATING THE FLOODING. 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 WEATERS. 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, May 19, 7:08 PM CDT, 4 hours 44 minutes before
OKZ016-200130- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OKLAHOMA CITY OK 708 PM CDT SAT MAY 19 1990 ...STRONG THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPING OVER THE OKLAHOMA CITY METRO AREA... AT 705 PM RADAR INDICATED DEVELOPING THUNDERSTORMS OVER CLEVELAND COUNTY IN THE VICINITY OF NORTH NORMAN AND MOORE. THESE STORMS HAVE DEVELOPED RAPIDLY AND WERE MOVING EAST-NORTHEAST AT 20 MPH. HAIL AND STRONG WINDS ARE LIKELY. BOATERS ON LAKE THUNDERBIRD AND LAKE DRAPER SHOULD REMAIN ALERT TO THE APPROACH OF THESE THUNDERSTORMS. A TORNADO WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL MIDNIGHT FOR THE METRO AREA. AND THIS HAS SERVED TO LIMIT THE AMOUNT OF CONVERGENCE ALONG THE FRONT AND OUTFLOW BOUNDARY. AS AFTERNOON HEATING CONTINUES AND TEMPERATURES RISE WELL INTO THE 80S THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED TO DEVELOP IN THE MODERATE RISK AREA AND INTENSIFY RAPIDLY TO SEVERE LEVELS. THE THUNDERSTORMS WILL THEN MOVE NORTHEAST. THE PRIMARY THREAT FROM THUNDERSTORMS THIS AFTERNOON WILL BE LARGE HAIL. THE AMOUNT OF INSTABILITY PRESENT THIS AFTERNOON SUGGESTS THAT SOME THUNDERSTORMS MAY PRODUCE BASEBALL-SIZED HAIL. ISOLATED TORNADOES ARE ALSO POSSIBLE. LAW ENFORCEMENT AND SPOTTER ORGANIZATIONS IN THE MODERATE RISK ASREA SHOULD BE PREPARED FOR ACTIVATION AT ANY TIME THIS AFTERNOON.
Special weather statement, May 19, 7:11 PM CDT, 4 hours 41 minutes before
OKZ016-200130- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT...CORRECTION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OKLAHOMA CITY OK 708 PM CDT SAT MAY 19 1990 ...STRONG THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPING OVER THE OKLAHOMA CITY METRO AREA... AT 705 PM RADAR INDICATED DEVELOPING THUNDERSTORMS OVER CLEVELAND COUNTY IN THE VICINITY OF NORTH NORMAN AND MOORE. THESE STORMS HAVE DEVELOPED RAPIDLY AND WERE MOVING EAST-NORTHEAST AT 20 MPH. HAIL AND STRONG WINDS ARE LIKELY. BOATERS ON LAKE THUNDWERBIRD AND LAKE DRAPER SHOULD REMAIN ALERT TO THE APPROACH OF THESE THUNDERSTORMS. A TORNADO WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL MIDNIGHT FOR THE METRO AREA.
Special weather statement, May 19, 8:16 PM CDT, 3 hours 36 minutes before
TXZ020-200200- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WICHITA FALLS TX 815 PM CDT SAT MAY 19 1990 ...ACTIVE WEATHER REMAINS NORTH OF THE RED RIVER... A STATIONARY FRONTAL BOUNDARY CUT THROUGH OKLAHOMA FROM TULSA TO NEAR OKLAHOMA CITY TO SOUTHWEST OKLAHOMA. THE DRY LINE/DEW POINT LINE THAT WAS JUST WEST OF WICHITA FALLS AROUND 5PM HAD RETREATED TO WEST OF CHILDRESS AT SUNSET. SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WERE OCCURRING IN THE OKLAHOMA CITY AREA AND EXTENDED NORTHEAST. MOVEMENT APPEARS TO BE SLOWLY TOWARDS THE NORTH. A TORNADO WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR MUCH OF SOUTH CENTRAL... CENTRAL AND EASTERN OKLAHOMA UNTIL MIDNIGHT. LOCALLY... THE THREAT OF THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT THIS NEVENING APPEARS TO BE DIMINISHING. AREA RESIDENTS SHOULD EXPECT THE NEXT GOOD CHANCE FOR THUNDERSTORMS TO BE ON SUNDAY. ANOTHER HOT DAY IS FORECAST WITH THE DRY LINE/DEW POINT LINE FORECAST TO MOVE EAST THROUGH THE REGION ON SUNDAY.
The office that day
Everything else NWS Norman, OK issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 19, 7:14 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | OUN | Lincoln, Payne | 46 min |
| May 19, 7:22 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | OUN | Cleveland, Oklahoma | 53 min |
| May 19, 7:32 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | OUN | Lincoln, Pottawatomie | 43 min |
| May 19, 7:35 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | OUN | Payne | 40 min |
| May 19, 7:58 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | OUN | Lincoln | 47 min |
| May 19, 8:01 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | OUN | Logan | 44 min |
| May 19, 8:11 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | OUN | Cleveland, Oklahoma, Pottawatomie | 49 min |
| May 19, 8:45 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | OUN | Lincoln | 45 min |
| May 19, 8:58 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | OUN | Logan, Oklahoma | 47 min |
| May 19, 9:22 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | OUN | Pottawatomie, Seminole | 23 min |
| May 19, 9:28 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | OUN | Canadian | 32 min |
| May 19, 9:39 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | OUN | Lincoln, Pottawatomie, Seminole | 66 min |
| May 19, 9:44 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | OUN | Canadian, Oklahoma | 46 min |
| May 19, 10:03 PM CDT | Flash Flood Warning | OUN | Oklahoma | 117 min |
| May 19, 10:28 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | OUN | Canadian, Oklahoma | 62 min |
| May 19, 10:41 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | OUN | Pottawatomie | 49 min |
| May 19, 11:30 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | OUN | Canadian, Oklahoma | 60 min |
| May 20, 12:44 AM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | OUN | Oklahoma | 61 min |
| May 20, 12:49 AM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | OUN | Pottawatomie | 56 min |
| May 20, 1:33 AM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | OUN | Lincoln | 42 min |
| May 20, 1:49 AM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | OUN | Hughes, Seminole | 56 min |
Nearby
Flash Flood Warnings in Oklahoma, 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.