Alert archive / Virginia / Flash Flood Warnings in 1990
Flash Flood Warning 7, NWS Blacksburg, VA
NWS Blacksburg, VA issued this flash flood warning at Jul 14, 1990, 6:44 PM EDT for Patrick County, Virginia. It was in force for 4 hr.
The area
The counties it named.
The facts
- Issued
- Jul 14, 1990, 6:44 PM EDT (22:44 UTC)
- Expired
- Jul 14, 1990, 10:45 PM EDT
- In force
- 4 hr
- Issued by
- NWS Blacksburg, VA
- Area
- Whole counties
County Patrick County, VA
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
Greensboro/Hi Pt, NC (KGSO), launched 12:00Z, 10.7 hours before the alert went out and 75 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
- 230 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -4 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 563 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 25 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 102 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 130 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.1
- Supercell composite
- 1.2
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000 TTAA00 KROA 142247 FFWROA VAC141-161-063-121-775-150245- BULLETIN - EBS ACTIVATION REQUESTED FLASH FLOOD WARNING NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ROANOKE VA 644 PM EDT SAT JUL 14 1990 THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN ROANOKE VAHAS ISSUED A FLASH FLOOD WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 1045 PM EDT FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS... IN SOUTH CENTRAL VIRGINIA ...PATRICK COUNTY...ROANOKE COUNTY IN SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA ...FLOYD COUNTY...MONTGOMERY COUNTY AND THE INDEPENDENT CITY OF ...SALEM SEVERAL LOCATIONS AROUND THE ROANOKE VALLEY AND THE NEARBY AREA OF THE BLUE RIDGE HAVE REPORTED PERIODS OF EXCESSIVE RAINS THE PAST COUPLE OF HOURS. AN AUTOMATED GAGE AT WITTS ORCHARD IN SOUTHWEST ROANOKE COUNTY REPORTED OVER 2 INCHES OF RAIN IN ONE HOUR. SOME STREAMS... ESPECIALLY THOSE IN THE WEST HALF OF ROANOKE COUNTY SUCH AS BACK CREEK AND MASONS CREEK SHOULD SOON BEGIN RISING. WITH MORE DOWNPOURS MOVING NORTHWARD OUT OF NORTH CAROLINA IT APPEARS LIKELY THAT THE ROANOKE VALLEY AND SOME SURROUNDING COUNTIES WILL RECEIVE A SUCCESSION OF HEAVY SHOWERS THAT MAY FORCE SMALL STREAMS OUT OF BANKS. A FLASH FLOOD WARNING MEANS THAT FLOODING IS OCCURRING OR IS IMMINENT. MOST FLASH FLOOD DEATHS 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. TO ESCAPE RISING WATER MOVE UP TO HIGHER GROUND.
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, Jul 14, 1:57 PM EDT, 4 hours 47 minutes before
VAZ008-009-132030- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ROANOKE VA 155 PM EDT SAT JUL 14 1990 ...FLASH FLOOD WATCH CONTINUES IN EFFECT UNTIL 8 PM THIS EVENING FOR THE SOUTHERN SHENANDOAH AND ROANOKE VALLEYS AND THE WEST CENTRAL HIGHLANDS... ...FLASH FLOOD WATCH CONTINUES IN EFFECT UNTIL 4 PM THOS AFTERNOON FOR THE SOUTHERN HIGHLANDS...SOUTHWEST MOUNTAINS AND THE NEW RIVER VALLEY OF SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA... AT 150 PM EDT...ACROSS THE FLOOD WATCH AREAS SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WERE INCREASING IN AREA COVERAGE. ACROSS CARROLL COUNTY IN THE SOUTHERN HIGHLANDS RAINFALL AMOUNTS IN THE FANCY GAP AREA HAVE RECIEVED AROUND 2 INCHES OF RAIN SINCE 700 AM THIS MORNING. THE GROUND IS SATURATED AND ANY RAINFALL AMOUNTS OF 1 TO 2 INCHES IN A 1 HOUR SPAN MAY PRODUCE FLASH FLOODING. PEOPLE IN THE WATCH AREA THIS AFTERNOON SHOULD MONITOR WATER LEVELS FREQUENTLY. NEVER DRIVE ACROSS FLOODED ROADWAYS OR BRIDGES...MANY FLOOD DEATHS OCCUR IN AUTOMOBILES. FURTHER EAST: WEATHER RADAR DETECTS A BUILDING THUNDERSTORM OVER THE EASTERN FLANK OF THE BLUE RIDGE. THE STORM WAS LOCATED NEAR FAIRY STONE STATE PARK IN NORTHWEST HENRY COUNTY. THIS STORM INDICATES VERY H EAVY RAINFALL. THE STORM IS TRACKING NORTH AT 25 MPH AND IS MOVING TOWARD FERRUM AND ROCKY MOUNT. SMALL HAIL AND STRONG GUSTY WINDS ARE ALSO POSSIBLE IN THE TRANSIT OF THIS STORM. CACCIAPAGLIA
Special weather statement, Jul 14, 3:05 PM EDT, 3 hours 39 minutes before
VAZ008-009-141855 SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LYHCHBURG VA 300 PM EDT SAT JUL 14 1990 ...SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS CONTINUE OVER CENTRAL AND SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA... A STATIONARY FRONT COMBINED WITH MOIST UNSTABLE AIR WILL CONTINUE TO PRODUCE SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS MUCH OF CENTRAL AND SOUTH WEST VIRGINIA THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT. A FLASH FLOOD WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR THE SOUTHWEST MOUNTAINS AND HIGHLAND AS MORE RAIN IS EXPECTED IN THOSE AREAS WHERE THE GROUND IA ALREADY SATURATED BY PREVIOUS RAINFALL. AT 230 PM EDT VOLENS WEATHER RADAR SHOWED A STRONT THUNDERSTORM NEAR ALTON IN SOUTHWEST HALIFAX COUNTY. THE STORM IS MOVING TO THE NORTH AT 30 MPH. HEAVY DOWNPOURS..VIVID LIGHTNING..GUSTY WINDS IS LIKELY WITH THE PASSAGE OF THIS STORM. PEOPLE IN THESE AREAS SHOULD BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR THREATENING WEATHER CONDITIONS AND STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO AND LOCAL TV AND RADIO SOURCES FOR FURTHER UPDATES AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS. MEADOWS
Special weather statement, Jul 14, 3:15 PM EDT, 3 hours 29 minutes before
VAZ008-009-141855 SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LYHCHBURG VA 300 PM EDT SAT JUL 14 1990 CORRECTION ...SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS CONTINUE OVER CENTRAL AND SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA... A STATIONARY FRONT COMBINED WITH MOIST UNSTABLE AIR WILL CONTINUE TO PRODUCE SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS MUCH OF CENTRAL AND SOUTH WEST VIRGINIA THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT. A FLASH FLOOD WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR THE SOUTHWEST MOUNTAINS AND HIGHLANDS WHERE THE GROUND IS ALREADY SATURATED BY PREVIOUS RAINFALL. AT 230 PM EDT VOLENS WEATHER RADAR SHOWED A STRONG THUNDERSTORM NEAR ALTON IN SOUTHWEST HALIFAX COUNTY. THE STORM IS MOVING TO THE NORTH AT 30 MPH. HEAVY DOWNPOURS..VIVID LIGHTNING AND GUSTY WINDS ARE LIKELY WITH THE PASSAGE OF THIS STORM. PEOPLE IN THESE AREAS SHOULD BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR THREATENING WEATHER CONDITIONS AND STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO AND LOCAL MEDIA FOR FURTHER UPDATES OR POSSIBLE WARNINGS. MEADOWS
The office that day
Everything else NWS Blacksburg, VA issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 14, 6:44 PM EDT | Flash Flood Warning | RNK | Floyd, Montgomery, Roanoke | 4 hr |
Nearby
Flash Flood Warnings in 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.