Alert archive / West Virginia / Flash Flood Warnings in 1990

Flash Flood Warning 46, NWS Charleston, WV

June 15, 1990Preston County, West Virginia

NWS Charleston, WV issued this flash flood warning at Jun 15, 1990, 6:37 PM EDT for Preston County, West Virginia. It was in force for 2 hr.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
Jun 15, 1990, 6:37 PM EDT (22:37 UTC)
Expired
Jun 15, 1990, 8:45 PM EDT
In force
2 hr
Issued by
NWS Charleston, WV
Area
Whole counties

County Preston County, WV

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 12:00Z, 10.6 hours before the alert went out and 111 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 12:00Z on 1990-06-15Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 73 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 12:00Z on 1990-06-15The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 0 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
73 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-86 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
689 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
0 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
0 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
0 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 KEKN 152237
FFWEKN
WVC077-160045-
 
BULLETIN - EBS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ELKINS WV
637 PM EDT FRI JUN 15 1990
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN ELKINS HAS ISSUED A
FLASH FLOOD WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  845 PM EDT
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATION...
 
IN NORTH WEST VIRGINIA
 
   ...PRESTON COUNTY
 
RADAR SHOWED CLUSTERS OF SHOWERS AND VERY HEAVY THUNDERSTORMS OVER
MUCH OF PRESTON COUNTY WEST VIRGINIA. MOVEMENT WAS SOUTH TO SOUTHWEST
AT 10 TO 15 MILES AN HOUR.
 
MODERATE TO HEAVY RAINS HAVE BEEN MOVING THROUGH THE SAME AREAS OF
PRESTON COUNTY FOR ABOUT AN HOUR TO AN HOUR AND A HALF. AUTOMATED RAIN
GAGES INDICATE THAT OVER AN INCH OF RAIN IS FALLING IN SOME AREAS OF
PRESTON COUNTY IN ABOUT AN HOUR. THE AREAS THAT HAVE BEEN GETTING THE
MOST RAIN ARE TUNNELTON AND THE GLADES FARM AREA JUST NORTH OF
HAZELTOWN.
 
A FLASH FLOOD WARNING MEANS THAT FLOODING IS IMMINENT.  IT'S
IMPORTANT TO KNOW WHERE YOU ARE RELATIVE TO STREAMS...RIVERS...OR
CREEKS WHICH CAN BECOME KILLERS IN HEAVY RAINS.  CAMPERS SHOULD
AVOID CAMPING ALONG STREAMS OR CREEKS DURING THREATENING RAINS.
 
MOST DEATHS IN FLASH FLOODING OCCUR IN AUTOMOBILES.  DO NOT
ATTEMPT TO CROSS BRIDGES...DIPS...OR LOW SPOTS IF WATER COVERS
THE ROADWAY.  NEVER TRY TO CROSS A FLOWING STREAM...EVEN A
SMALL ONE...ON FOOT.
 
END/FERRELL
 
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, Jun 15, 1:48 PM EDT, 4 hours 49 minutes before
WVZ005-009-151945-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ELKINS WV
148 PM EDT FRI JUN 15 1990

WEATHER RADAR INDICATED SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPING OVER THE
NORTHERN MOUNTAINS OF WEST VIRGINIA. THESE STORMS ARE MOVING SOUTH
AROUND 15 MPH. MOST OF THE ACTIVITY EXTENDED FROM JUST SOUTH OF ELKINS
NORTH THROUGH TUCKER COUNTY INTO SOUTHERN PRESTON COUNTY. THE
STRONGEST STORM WAS OVER NORTHERN TUCKER COUNTY NORTHEAST OF ST.
GEORGE.

THESE THUNDERSTORMS ARE PRODUCING HEAVY RAINS AND SOME AREAS COULD GET
REPEATED HEAVY RAINS. SMALL STREAMS SHOULD BE MONITORED IF HEAVY RAINS
DEVELOP. KEEP A WATCH ON STREAM LEVELS AND MOVE TO HIGHER GROUND IF
WATER LEVELS START RISING. GUSTY WINDS...LIGHTNING AND POSSIBLY SMALL
HAIL MAY OCCUR WITH THESE STORMS.

CONTINUE TO LISTEN TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO OR COMMERCIAL BROADCAST FOR
FURTHER STATEMENTS OR POSSIBLE WARNINGS.

GILKERSON

END

NNNN
Special weather statement, Jun 15, 3:02 PM EDT, 3 hours 35 minutes before
WVZ006>008-152100-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BECKLEY WV
300 PM EDT FRI JUN 15 1990

...THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPING OVER SOUTHERN WEST VIRGINIA...

AT 255 PM EDT WEATHER SERVICE RADAR AT BECKLEY SHOWED THUNDERSTORMS
WITH HEAVY RAINFALL OVER FAYETTE AND NICHOLAS COUNTIES IN WEST VIRGINIA.
SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WERE DEVELOPING OVER SOUTHERN WEST VIRGINIA
FROM NEAR CHARLESTON AND PICKENS SOUTHWARD TO THE VIRGINIA BORDER.
THEE SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING SOUTHWEST AT 15 MILES AN HOUR.

VERY HEAVY RAINFALL AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING MAY ACCOMPANY THESE STORMS
OVER SOUTHERN WEST VIRGINIA THIS AFTERNOON.

END/FUNDERBURK
Special weather statement, Jun 15, 5:52 PM EDT, 45 minutes before
WVZ002>009-012-160000-
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT AND RADAR SUMMARY
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON WV
545 PM EDT FRI JUN 15 1990

...THUNDERSTORMS WITH LOCALLY HEAVY RAIN OVER CENTRAL
   WEST VIRGINIA...

AT 530 PM CHARLESTON WEATHER RADAR INDICATED SCATTERED SHOWERS AND
AND THUNDERSTORMS OVER THE SOUTHEASTERN HALF OF WEST VIRGINIA AND
EXTREME SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA.

THUNDERSTORMS WERE PRODUCING HEAVY RAIN IN SOUTHERN ROANE...
CALHOUN AND CLAY COUNTIES IN CENTRAL WEST VIRGINIA. THE STORMS
WERE MOVING SLOWLY TOWARD THE SOUTH AT 10 MPH.

PONDING OF WATER MAY OCCUR IN POOR DRAINAGE AREAS AND SMALL
STREAM AND CREEKS MAY RISE TO HALF OR THREE QUARTERS BANKFULL
AS THESE STORMS SLOWLY MOVE BYm.
END/REL

The office that day

Everything else NWS Charleston, WV issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jun 15, 12:57 AM EDTFlash Flood WarningRLXTyler, Wetzel4 hr
Jun 15, 1:45 AM EDTFlash Flood WarningRLXMarion3 hr
Jun 15, 2:15 AM EDTFlash Flood WarningRLXCalhoun, Gilmer, Ritchie4 hr
Jun 15, 4:13 AM EDTFlash Flood WarningRLXWebster4 hr
Jun 15, 4:18 AM EDTFlash Flood WarningRLXRandolph, Upshur4 hr

Nearby

Flash Flood Warnings in West Virginia, 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.