Alert archive / West Virginia / Flash Flood Warnings in 1994

Flash Flood Warning 94, NWS Charleston, WV

August 31, 1994Harrison County, Lewis County, West Virginia

NWS Charleston, WV issued this flash flood warning at Aug 31, 1994, 6:54 PM EDT for Harrison County, Lewis County, West Virginia. It was in force for 2 hr.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
Aug 31, 1994, 6:54 PM EDT (22:54 UTC)
Expired
Aug 31, 1994, 9:00 PM EDT
In force
2 hr
Issued by
NWS Charleston, WV
Area
Whole counties

Counties Harrison County, WV, Lewis County, WV

The nearest sounding before it

Pittsburgh, PA (KPIT), launched 12:00Z, 10.9 hours before the alert went out and 144 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 1994-08-31Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 6 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 1994-08-31The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 211 square meters per square second.19395878Sfc1 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
6 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-151 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1201 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
45 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
211 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
236 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 312254 RRA
FFWEKN
WVC033-041-010100-
 
BULLETIN - EBS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ELKINS WV
654 PM EDT WED AUG 31 1994
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN ELKINS HAS ISSUED A
FLOOD WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  515 PM EDT
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS...
 
IN NORTH WEST VIRGINIA
 
   ...SOUTHERN HARRISON COUNTY...WESTERN LEWIS COUNTY
 
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR AND RADIO REPORTING REPORTING RAIN GAGES
SHOW MODERATE TO HEAVY RAIN FALLING AT A RATE OF FROM 1 TO 2
INCHES OVER SOUTHERN HARRISON AND OVER WESTERN LEWIS COUNTY WEST
VIRGINIA.
 
RAINFALL OF THIS AMOUNT IN A SHORT PERIOD OF TIME, OVER
AREAS SATURATED FROM THE RAINS OF EARLIER TODAY, WILL CAUSE SMALL
STREAMS AND CREEKS TO RISE QUICKLY, AND WILL EXCEED STORM DRAINAGE
CAPABILITIES IN URBAN AREAS. LOW LYING AREAS WITH POOR DRAINAGE WILL
BECOME INNUNDATED QUICKLY.
 
DO NOT DRIVE YOUR VEHICLE INTO AREAS WHERE THE WATER COVERS THE
ROADWAY.  THE WATER DEPTH 6MAY BE TOO GREAT TO ALLOW YOUR CAR TO
CROSS SAFELY.  VEHICLES CAUGHT IN RISING WATER SHOULD BE
ABANDONED QUICKLY.  MOVE TO HIGHER GROUND.
 
END/HILL
 
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, Aug 31, 5:05 PM EDT, 1 hour 49 minutes before
WVZ005>007-OHZ081>083-085>088-KYZ100>105-107-119-312205-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HUNTINGTON WV
505 PM EDT WED AUG 31 1994

....THUNDERSTORMS MOVING THROUGH THE TRI STATE REGION....

AT 500 PM EDT WEATHER RADAR WAS INDICATING A LINE OF SHOWERS AND
THUNDERSTORMS EXTENDING FROM EAST OF POMEROY IN MEIGS COUNTY OHIO TO
THE SOUTHEAST TO PORTSMOUTH IN SCIOTO COUNTY OHIO AND INTO LEWIS
COUNTY KENTUCKY. THE STRONGEST STORMS ARE IN SOUTHERN MEIGS COUNTY OHIO.

ANOTHER LINE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WAS ALONG THE OHIO RIVER FROM
CROWN CITY IN GALLIA COUNTY OHIO SOUTHWEST TO HUNTINGTON WEST VIRGINIA
AND INTO NORTHEASTERN KENTUCKY THORUGH GRAYSON IN CARTER COUNTY
KENTUCKY.

THESE STORMS ARE MOVING EAST AT 30 MILES PER HOUR AND MAY CONTAIN
DANGEROUS LIGHTNING, VERY HEAVY RAIN, AND WINDS GUSTING TO 40 MILES PER
HOUR.

IF THREATENING WEATHER APPROACHES TAKE SHELTER AND STAY TUNED TO NOAA
WEATHER RADIO FOR THE LATEST WEATHER INFORMATION.

EBERT
Special weather statement, Aug 31, 5:07 PM EDT, 1 hour 47 minutes before
WVZ005>007-OHZ081>083-085>088-KYZ100>105-107-119-312205-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HUNTINGTON WV
505 PM EDT WED AUG 31 1994

....THUNDERSTORMS MOVING THROUGH THE TRI STATE REGION....

AT 500 PM EDT WEATHER RADAR WAS INDICATING A LINE OF SHOWERS AND
THUNDERSTORMS EXTENDING FROM EAST OF POMEROY IN MEIGS COUNTY OHIO TO
THE SOUTHEAST TO PORTSMOUTH IN SCIOTO COUNTY OHIO AND INTO LEWIS
COUNTY KENTUCKY. THE STRONGEST STORMS ARE IN SOUTHERN MEIGS COUNTY OHIO.

ANOTHER LINE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WAS ALONG THE OHIO RIVER FROM
CROWN CITY IN GALLIA COUNTY OHIO SOUTHWEST TO HUNTINGTON WEST VIRGINIA
AND INTO NORTHEASTERN KENTUCKY THORUGH GRAYSON IN CARTER COUNTY
KENTUCKY.

THESE STORMS ARE MOVING EAST AT 30 MILES PER HOUR AND MAY CONTAIN
DANGEROUS LIGHTNING, VERY HEAVY RAIN, AND WINDS GUSTING TO 40 MILES PER
HOUR.

IF THREATENING WEATHER APPROACHES TAKE SHELTER AND STAY TUNED TO NOAA
WEATHER RADIO FOR THE LATEST WEATHER INFORMATION.

EBERT
Special weather statement, Aug 31, 5:23 PM EDT, 1 hour 31 minutes before
WVZ009-016-017-018-019-010000-
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON WV
523 PM EDT WED AUG 31 1994

SOME STRONG THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE MOVING THROUGH WOOD, WIRT, RITCHIE,
ROANE AND CALHOUN COUNTIES IN WEST VIRGINIA UNTIL AROUND 800 PM.  THESE
STORMS WILL PRODUCE AREAS OF HEAVY RAIN WITH LOCALLY HEAVY AMOUNTS OF
AROUND 2 INCHES.

AS A RESULT, BRIEF PROBLEMS CAN BE EXPECTED IN COMMUNITIES AS SEWER
SYSTEMS WILL NOT BE ABLE TO HANDLE THE QUICK RAINFALL AMOUNTS.  SOME
QUICK RISES CAN ALSO BE EXPECTED ON STREAMS IN THESE COUNTIES WITH SOME
NEAR BANKFULL LEVELS POSSIBLE THIS EVENING.

MOTORISTS SHOULD NOT TRY TO GO THROUGH WATER OVER ROADWAYS.  TURN BACK
OR FIND ALTERNATE ROUTES UNTIL THE WATER RECEEDS.

END/REZEK
Special weather statement, Aug 31, 5:33 PM EDT, 1 hour 21 minutes before
WVZ009-016-017-018-019-010000-
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON WV
523 PM EDT WED AUG 31 1994

SOME STRONG THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE MOVING THROUGH WOOD, WIRT, RITCHIE,
ROANE AND CALHOUN COUNTIES IN WEST VIRGINIA UNTIL AROUND 800 PM.  THESE
STORMS WILL PRODUCE AREAS OF HEAVY RAIN WITH LOCALLY HEAVY AMOUNTS OF
AROUND 2 INCHES.

AS A RESULT, BRIEF PROBLEMS CAN BE EXPECTED IN COMMUNITIES AS SEWER
SYSTEMS WILL NOT BE ABLE TO HANDLE THE QUICK RAINFALL AMOUNTS.  SOME
QUICK RISES CAN ALSO BE EXPECTED ON STREAMS IN THESE COUNTIES WITH SOME
NEAR BANKFULL LEVELS POSSIBLE THIS EVENING.

MOTORISTS SHOULD NOT TRY TO GO THROUGH WATER OVER ROADWAYS.  TURN BACK
OR FIND ALTERNATE ROUTES UNTIL THE WATER RECEEDS.

END/REZEK

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.