Alert archive / Pennsylvania / Flash Flood Warnings in 1996

Flash Flood Warning 149, NWS State College, PA

September 6, 1996Adams County, Pennsylvania

NWS State College, PA issued this flash flood warning at Sep 6, 1996, 7:07 PM EDT for Adams County, Pennsylvania. It was in force for 3 hr. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
Sep 6, 1996, 7:07 PM EDT (23:07 UTC)
Expired
Sep 6, 1996, 10:15 PM EDT
In force
3 hr
Issued by
NWS State College, PA
Area
Whole counties

County Adams County, PA

The radar

The Sterling radar (KLWX), 102 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 23:09 UTC, the scan nearest the moment this went out.

Open the radar archive at this moment

The archived warnings, watches and discussions in force at that minute are drawn over the scan, this one among them.

The nearest sounding before it

Washington/Dulle, VA (KIAD), launched 12:00Z, 11.1 hours before the alert went out and 104 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, Washington/Dulle, VA at 12:00Z on 1996-09-06Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 355 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, Washington/Dulle, VA at 12:00Z on 1996-09-06The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 294 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
355 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-12 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
589 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
42 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
294 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
361 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.6
Supercell composite
3.6

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.

000 
TTAA00 KCTP 062307
FFWCTP
PAC001-070215-
 
BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE STATE COLLEGE PA
707 PM EDT FRI SEP 6 1996
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN STATE COLLEGE HAS ISSUED A
FLASH FLOOD WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 1015 PM EDT
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS......
 
IN  PENNSYLVANIA
 
   ...ADAMS COUNTY
 
BANDS OF HEAVY RAIN CONTINUE TO MOVE ACROSS THE COUNTY. THERE HAVE BEEN
REPORTS OF FLOODING ACROSS WESTERN ADAMS COUNTY ALREADY.
 
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 WATERS.  DO
NOT STAY IN AREAS SUBJECT TO FLOODING WHEN WATER BEGINS RISING.
 
JUNG
 
&

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.

NWS State College, PA wrote its last area forecast discussion before this flash flood warning went out at Sep 6, 2:12 PM EDT, 4 hours 55 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Sep 6, 2:12 PM EDT, 4 hours 55 minutes before
CENTRAL PENNSYLVANIA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE STATE COLLEGE PA
215 PM EDT FRI SEP 6 1996

CURRENT THINKING ON FRAN SIMILAR TO THIS AM...TRACKING TOWARD W
PA.

ONLY DIFFERENCE IS SOME DfRY AIR TRYING TO ENTER CIRCULATION
...MAY CUT DOWN ON PCPN FOR SOME AREAS...ESP W AREAS.

PIT...F.Y.I. COUPLE OF TREES DOWN ON MT. DAVIS.

CURRENT FCST/WATCHES/WARNINGS OK FOR NOW.

NO NEW MODELS IN YET.

MARTIN

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Sep 6, 6:06 PM EDT, 1 hour 1 minute before
PAZ024>028-033>036-056-063>066-062300-
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT - TORNADO WATCH EXPIRES
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE STATE COLLEGE PA
604 PM EDT FRI SEP 6 1996

...TORNADO WATCH EXPIRES...

THE TORNADO WATCH FOR THE SOUTH CENTRAL MOUNTAINS AND PORTIONS OF THE
LOWER SUSQUEHANNA VALLEY HAS EXPIRED AS OF 600 PM.

ALTHOUGH THE REMNANTS FROM FRAN WILL CONTINUE TO SPREAD RAIN...HEAVY AT
TIMES...ACROSS THE AREA THIS EVENING AND TONIGHT...THE THREAT OF
TORNADOES HAS ENDED.

JUNG
Special weather statement, Sep 6, 6:22 PM EDT, 45 minutes before
PAZ004>006-010>012-017>019-024>028-033>036-045-049-050-
056-063-070400-
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE STATE COLLEGE PA
620 PM EDT FRI SEP 6 1996

...HIGH WIND WARNINGS HAVE BEEN EXTENDED ACROSS MOST OF CENTRAL AND
WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA...

HIGH WIND WARNINGS ARE NOW IN EFFECT FOR MUCH OF CENTRAL AND WESTERN
PENNSYLVANIA.  THE HIGH WIND WARNINGS INCLUDE THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES:

WARREN... MCKEAN... POTTER... ELK... CAMERON... CLEARFIELD... CENTRE...
CLINTON... CAMBRIA... BLAIR... HUNTINGDON... MIFFLIN... JUNIATA...
SOMERSET... BEDFORD... FULTON... FRANKLIN... UNION... SNYDER...
PERRY... AND CUMBERLAND.

HIGH WINDS ASSOCIATED WITH THE REMNANTS OF HURRICANE FRAN WILL CONTINUE
TO MOVE ACROSS THE AREA THIS EVENING.  THE WINDS WILL LIKELY CAUSE SOME
DAMAGE...ESPECIALLY TO TREES AND POWER LINES.

HIGHEST WINDS CAN BE EXPECTED ACROSS THE HIGHER ELEVATIONS AND RIDGES.

JUNG

The office that day

Everything else NWS State College, PA issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Sep 6, 4:08 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningCTPBedford, Somerset6 hr
Sep 6, 4:08 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningCTPFranklin, Fulton6 hr
Sep 6, 5:51 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningCTPAdams4 hr
Sep 6, 5:51 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningCTPBlair, Huntingdon4 hr
Sep 6, 6:51 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningCTPCumberland, Juniata, Perry4 hr
Sep 6, 6:51 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningCTPMifflin4 hr
Sep 6, 7:12 PM EDTTornado WarningCTPCumberland, Perry63 min

Nearby

Flash Flood Warnings in Pennsylvania, 1996Every flash flood warning in 1996

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; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.