Alert archive / New Mexico / Flash Flood Warnings in 1997

Flash Flood Warning 29, NWS Albuquerque, NM

August 18, 1997De Baca County, New Mexico

NWS Albuquerque, NM issued this flash flood warning at Aug 18, 1997, 2:30 AM MDT for De Baca County, New Mexico. It was in force for 2 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
Aug 18, 1997, 2:30 AM MDT (08:30 UTC)
Expired
Aug 18, 1997, 4:30 AM MDT
In force
2 hr
Issued by
NWS Albuquerque, NM
Area
Whole counties

County De Baca County, NM

The radar

The Cannon AFB radar (KFDX), 80 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 08:34 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

Albuquerq/Krtlnd, NM (KABQ), launched 00:00Z, 8.5 hours before the alert went out and 215 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, Albuquerq/Krtlnd, NM at 00:00Z on 1997-08-18Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 46 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, Albuquerq/Krtlnd, NM at 00:00Z on 1997-08-18The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 5 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
46 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-8 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
3407 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
33 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
5 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
38 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 KABQ 180830
FFWABQ
NMC011-181030-
 
BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ALBUQUERQUE NM
230 AM MDT MON AUG 18 1997
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN ALBUQUERQUE HAS ISSUED A
FLASH FLOOD WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  430 AM MDT
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATION...
 
IN EAST CENTRAL NEW MEXICO
 
   ...DE BACA COUNTY
 
AT 225 AM MDT...LAW ENFORCEMENT PERSONNEL IN FORT SUMNER REPORTED THAT
FLOODING OF STREETS...INTERSECTIONS...UNDERPASSES AND NORMALLY DRY
STREAM BEDS WAS STILL IN PROGRESS. DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED THAT THE
HEAVIEST RAINS HAD MOVED NORTHWARD INTO EASTERN GUADALUPE AND WESTERN
QUAY COUNTIES BUT A LARGE AREA OF MODERATE RAIN SHOWERS EXTENTED
SOUTHWARD ACROSS DE BACA COUNTY. THESE CONTINUING SHOWERS WILL RESULT IN
CONTINUED FLOODING OF LOW LYING AREAS...STREETS AND NORMALLY DRY
STREAMBEDS. THEREFORE THE FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR DE BACA COUNTY HAS
BEEN EXTENDED UNTIL 430 AM MDT.
 
REMEMBER...MOST FLASH FLOOD DEATHS OCCUR IN AUTOMOBILES. DO NOT
ATTEMPT TO CROSS BRIDGES...DIPS...OR LOW WATER CROSSINGS IF WATER
COVERS THE ROADWAY. NEVER TRY TO CROSS A FLOWING STREAM...EVEN A
SMALL ONE...ON FOOT. TO ESCAPE RISING WATER MOVE TO HIGHER GROUND.
DO NOT DRIVE AROUND BARRICADES.

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

Local storm report, Aug 18, 12:35 AM MDT, 1 hour 55 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ALBUQUERQUE NEW MEXICO
1235 AM MDT MON AUG 18 1997

TIME(MDT)  .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE  ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

1115 PM    ROSWELL                   NM   TORNADO
08/17/97   CHAVES                         *** 1 INJ ***
                                          2 MOBILE HOMES
                                          DESTROYED...HOME
                                          DEMOLISHED...ROOF BLOWN
                                          OFF...1 MINOR INJ.
Local storm report, Aug 18, 12:36 AM MDT, 1 hour 54 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ALBUQUERQUE NEW MEXICO
1235 AM MDT MON AUG 18 1997

TIME(MDT)  .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE  ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

1115 PM    ROSWELL                   NM   TORNADO
08/17/97   CHAVES                         *** 1 INJ ***
                                          2 MOBILE HOMES
                                          DESTROYED...HOME
                                          DEMOLISHED...ROOF BLOWN
                                          OFF...1 MINOR INJ.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Albuquerque, NM issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Aug 17, 10:50 PM MDTFlash Flood WarningABQChaves70 min
Aug 17, 11:35 PM MDTTornado WarningABQChaves55 min
Aug 18, 12:00 AM MDTFlash Flood WarningABQLincoln2 hr
Aug 18, 12:23 AM MDTFlash Flood WarningABQDe Baca2 hr
Aug 18, 12:23 AM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningABQDe Baca2 hr
Aug 18, 1:38 AM MDTFlash Flood WarningABQGuadalupe, Quay2 hr
Aug 18, 3:21 AM MDTFlash Flood WarningABQQuay3 hr
Aug 18, 4:30 AM MDTFlash Flood WarningABQDe Baca2 hr

Nearby

Flash Flood Warnings in New Mexico, 1997Every flash flood warning in 1997

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.