Alert archive / West Virginia / Flash Flood Warnings in 1994

Flash Flood Warning 50, NWS Charleston, WV

March 10, 1994Harrison County, Marion County, Monongalia County, West Virginia

NWS Charleston, WV issued this flash flood warning at Mar 10, 1994, 5:15 AM EST for Harrison County, Marion County, Monongalia County, West Virginia. It was in force for 3 hr.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
Mar 10, 1994, 5:15 AM EST (10:15 UTC)
Expired
Mar 10, 1994, 8:15 AM EST
In force
3 hr
Issued by
NWS Charleston, WV
Area
Whole counties

Counties Harrison County, WV, Marion County, WV, Monongalia County, WV

The nearest sounding before it

Pittsburgh, PA (KPIT), launched 00:00Z, 10.3 hours before the alert went out and 105 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 00:00Z on 1994-03-10Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 0 joules per kilogram.LCL10008507005003002001001 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 00:00Z on 1994-03-10The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 593 square meters per square second.1939587897117Sfc1 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
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL
482 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
78 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
593 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
665 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 101020
FFWEKN
WVC033-049-061-101315-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ELKINS WV
515 AM EST THU MAR 10 1994

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN ELKINS HAS EXTENDED THE
FLOOD WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  815 AM EST
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS...

IN NORTH WEST VIRGINIA

   ...HARRISON COUNTY...MARION COUNTY...MONONGALIA COUNTY

SMALL STREAMS ARE REPORTED OUT OF THEIR BANKS ACROSS MUCH OF MARION
AND ACROSS PORTIONS OF MONONGALIA AND HARRISON COUNTIES. MOST OF THE 
SMALL STREAMS AND CREEKS IN THE MANNINGTON, FAIRVIEW AND GRANT TOWN 
AREAS ARE REPORTED OUT OF THEIR BANKS WITH NUMEROUS ROADS COVERED BY
WATER. IN MONONGALIA COUNTY, DUNKARDS CREEK WAS STILL OUT IT'S BANKS
IN A FEW AREAS. DENTS RUN WAS STILL OUT OF IT'S BANKS BUT WAS NOW
RECEDING. ALSO, WATER WAS REPORTED ACROSS THE RIVER ROAD, LITTLE
INDIAN CREEK ROAD, DENTS RUN BOULEVARD, ROUTE 7 WEST, BUCKEYE ROAD
AND BLUE GOOSE ROAD. THE COLLAPSE OF A CREEK BANK HAS CAUSED A SMALL
STREAM IN THE SARDIS AREA OF HARRISON COUNTY TO OVERFLOW IT'S BANKS 
AND FLOW ACROSS THE RIVER ROAD.

AT THE PRESENT TIME, MOSTLY LIGHT RAIN WITH A FEW EMBEDDED HEAVIER  
SHOWERS CONTINUED ACROSS THE WARNED AREAS. ANY ADDITIONAL MODERATE 
TO HEAVY RAINS IN THESE AREAS, COULD CAUSE ADDITIONAL STREAMS AND 
CREEKS TO OVERFLOW AND AGGREVATE THE FLOODING ALREADY IN PROGRESS.

DO NOT DRIVE YOUR VEHICLE INTO AREAS WHERE THE WATER COVERS THE
ROADWAY.  THE WATER DEPTH MAY BE TOO GREAT TO ALLOW YOUR CAR TO
CROSS SAFELY.  VEHICLES CAUGHT IN RISING WATER SHOULD BE
ABANDONED QUICKLY.  MOVE TO HIGHER GROUND.

END

FERRELL/EVANS

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, Mar 10, 12:10 AM EST, 5 hours 5 minutes before
WVZ024-025-033>036-042>045-100900-
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT AND SHORT TERM FORECAST
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BECKLEY WV
1210 AM EST THU MAR 10 1994

...FLOOD WATCH OVERNIGHT FOR SOUTHERN WEST VIRGINIA...

RAIN IS EXPECTED TO CONTINUE OVER ALL OF SOUTHERN WEST VIRGINIA DURING
THE EARLY MORNING PERIOD. SOME OF THIS RAIN MAY BECOME HEAVY AT TIMES
OVER THE SOUTHWESTERN LOWLANDS AS THE SYSTEM FROM THE SOUTHWEST
CONTINUES TO PUSH NORTHEASTWARD THIS MORNING. THIS, COMBINED WITH
RECENT RAINFALL AND ALREADY SATURATED GROUNDS, WILL CONTINUE TO
KEEP FLOODING OF SMALL STREAMS AND CREEKS A POSSIBILITY EARLY THIS
MORNING.

THE FREEZING RAIN ADVISORY THAT WAS ISSUED EARLIER THIS EVENING FOR
THE SOUTHERN MOUNTAINS AND GREENBRIER VALLEY, HAS BEEN CANCELLED.
THIS IS DUE PRIMARILY IN PART BY THE WARMER AIR BEING FORCED INTO THE
REGION. HOWEVER, THE CHANCE OF A FEW LINGERING POCKETS OF FREEZING
RAIN ARE STILL POSSIBLE IN ISOLATED AREAS.

CURRENT REPORTS, TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE, CONTINUED TO INDICATE
THAT NO CREEK OR SMALL STREAM FLOODING HAS YET DEVELOPED OVER SOUTHERN
WEST VIRGINIA. THE ONLY SITUATION WAS A MINOR DRAINAGE PROBLEM NEAR
MT. GAY IN LOGAN COUNTY EARLIER THIS EVENING.

TEMPERATURES WILL REMAIN NEARLY STEADY, TO SLOWLY RISING, IN THE
MID TO UPPER 30S OVER MOST LOCATIONS THROUGH 4 AM.

NIGHTTIME MAKES IT DIFFICULT TO RECOGNIZE FLOODED AREAS. USE CAUTION
NEAR ANY SMALL STREAMS OR CREEKS OVERNIGHT.

ALSO, IF YOU LIVE ALONG ANY STREAMS OR CREEKS, YOU SHOULD MONITOR THEM
CLOSELY OVER THE NEXT SEVERAL HOURS, AND BE PREPARED TO MOVE TO HIGHER
GROUND SHOULD FLOODING OCCUR.

END/ROZANSKI
Special weather statement, Mar 10, 12:32 AM EST, 4 hours 43 minutes before
WVZ005>047-VAZ001>017-100800-
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON WV
1230 AM EST THU MAR 10 1994

...FREEZING RAIN ADVISORY FOR SOUTHEASTERN WEST VIRGINIA AND THE
   NEW RIVER VALLEY IN VIRGINIA HAS EXPIRED...

TEMPERATURES HAVE SLOWLY RISEN IN MOST LOCATIONS OF SOUTEASTERN
WEST VIRGINIA AND THE NEW RIVER VALLEY OF VIRGINIA DURING THE
EVENING. A FEW POCKETS OF FREEZING RAIN OR DRIZZLE LINGERED
AT MIDNIGHT, BUT FOR THE MOST PART, THE PRECIPITATION WAS NOW
FALLING IN THE FORM OF RAIN AS TEMPERATURES PUSH ABOVE THE FREEZING
MARK.

A FEW ICY AREAS WILL LINGER INTO THE EARLY MORNING HOURS SO MOTORISTS
SHOULD CONTINUE TO BE ALERT FOR ICY PATCHES. WINDS ARE EXPECTED TO
INCREASE FROM THE SOUTHWEST AND WARM TEMPERATURES INTO THE 40S
DURING THE EARLY MORNING HOURS.

A FLOOD WATCH CONTINUES IN EFFECT THROUGH TONIGHT FOR ALL OF
SOUTHWESTERN VIRGINIA AND THE MOUNTAINS AND WESTERN SLOPES OF WEST
VIRGINIA.

END/PCZ

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Mar 9, 10:40 PM ESTFlash Flood WarningRLXDoddridge, Gilmer6 hr
Mar 10, 3:41 AM ESTFlash Flood WarningRLXTyler4 hr

Nearby

Flash Flood Warnings in West Virginia, 1994Every flash flood warning in 1994

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.