Alert archive / Colorado / Flash Flood Warnings in 1997
Flash Flood Warning 36, NWS Denver/Boulder, CO
NWS Denver/Boulder, CO issued this flash flood warning at Jul 31, 1997, 5:30 PM MDT for Logan County, Washington County, Colorado. 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 outline the Iowa Environmental Mesonet reconstructed for it; the warning itself named whole counties.
The facts
- Issued
- Jul 31, 1997, 5:30 PM MDT (23:30 UTC)
- Expired
- Jul 31, 1997, 8:30 PM MDT
- In force
- 3 hr
- Issued by
- NWS Denver/Boulder, CO
- Area
- Whole counties; the outline is the Mesonet’s reconstruction
Counties Logan County, CO, Washington County, CO
The radar
The Goodland radar (KGLD), 147 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 23:33 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
Denver, CO (KDNR), launched 12:00Z, 11.5 hours before the alert went out and 55 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
- 64 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -197 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 1163 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 25 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 9 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 34 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- -0.0
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000
TTAA00 KDEN 312332
FFWDEN
COC075-121-010230-
BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DENVER CO
530 PM MDT THU JUL 31 1997
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN DENVER HAS ISSUED A FLASH FLOOD
WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 830 PM MDT FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING
COUNTIES
IN NORTHEAST COLORADO
NORTHEASTERN WASHINGTON AND SOUTHEASTERN LOGAN
INCLUDING THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS
BURDETT...LONE STAR...OTIS...PLATNER AND ST PETERSBURG
AT 525 PM MDT WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED TORRENTIAL
RAINFALL OVER NORTHEASTERN WASHINGTON COUNTY. THE HEAVIEST RAINFALL
WAS INDICATED OVER OPEN RANGELAND 6 MILES NORTH OF OTIS ALONG STATE
HIGHWAY 61. HIGH WATERS WILL LIKELY DEVELOP ALONG SURVEYOR CREEK IN
THE VERY NEAR FUTURE.
RADAR WAS ESTIMATING RAINFALL RATES OF 2 TO 3 INCHES PER HOUR IN THE
WARNING AREA.
EXCESSIVE RUNOFF FROM THIS STORM WILL CAUSE FLASH FLOODING OF SMALL
CREEKS AND STREAMS...COUNTRY ROADS...NORMALLY DRY WASHES AND
ARROYOS...AS WELL AS LOW AREAS ALONG THE BANKS OF CREEKS AND
STREAMS.
A FLASH FLOOD WARNING MEANS THAT FLOODING IS IMMINENT OR OCCURRING.
IF YOU ARE IN THE WARNING AREA MOVE TO HIGHER GROUND IMMEDIATELY.
RESIDENTS LIVING ALONG STREAMS AND CREEKS SHOULD TAKE IMMEDIATE
PRECAUTIONS TO PROTECT LIFE AND PROPERTY. DO NOT ATTEMPT TO CROSS
SWIFTLY FLOWING WATERS OR WATERS OF UNKNOWN DEPTH BY FOOT OR BY
AUTOMOBILE. IF YOUR VEHICLE STALLS, ABANDON IT IMMEDIATELY AND SEEK
HIGHER GROUND.
TO REPORT SEVERE WEATHER HAVE THE NEAREST LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY
RELAY YOUR REPORT TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FORECAST OFFICE IN
DENVER.
BAKER
LAT...LON 4045 10281 3991 10281 4000 10317 4042 10320
4060 10268 T4045 10268What 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 31, 2:00 PM MDT, 3 hours 30 minutes before
COZ041-312045- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DENVER CO 200 PM MDT THU JUL 31 1997 ...THUNDERSTORMS WITH HEAVY RAIN IN WESTERN ELBERT COUNTY... AT 155 PM MDT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED THUNDERSTORMS WITH HEAVY RAIN OVER WESTERN ELBERT COUNTY. SMALL HAIL IS ALSO POSSIBLE WITH THE STORMS. THE STORMS WERE MOVING NORTHEAST AT 20 MILES PER HOUR. DOPPLER RADAR ESTIMATED UP TO AN INCH AN HOUR HAD FALLEN SOUTHWEST OF KIOWA. PERSONS IN OR NEAR ELIZABETH AND KIOWA SHOULD BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR THREATENING WEATHER AND MOVE TO A PLACE OF SAFETY IF BAD WEATHER APPROACHES. SOME ROADS MAY BE COVERED WITH WATER. DO NOT ATTEMPT TO DRIVE THROUGH WATER OF UNKNOWN DEPTH. A FLASH FLOOD WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR MUCH OF NORTHEAST COLORADO UNTIL MIDNIGHT TONIGHT. LESZCYNSKI
Special weather statement, Jul 31, 2:03 PM MDT, 3 hours 27 minutes before
COZ041-312045- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DENVER CO 200 PM MDT THU JUL 31 1997 ...THUNDERSTORMS WITH HEAVY RAIN IN WESTERN ELBERT COUNTY... AT 155 PM MDT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED THUNDERSTORMS WITH HEAVY RAIN OVER WESTERN ELBERT COUNTY. SMALL HAIL IS ALSO POSSIBLE WITH THE STORMS. THE STORMS WERE MOVING NORTHEAST AT 20 MILES PER HOUR. DOPPLER RADAR ESTIMATED UP TO AN INCH AN HOUR HAD FALLEN SOUTHWEST OF KIOWA. PERSONS IN OR NEAR ELIZABETH AND KIOWA SHOULD BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR THREATENING WEATHER AND MOVE TO A PLACE OF SAFETY IF BAD WEATHER APPROACHES. SOME ROADS MAY BE COVERED WITH WATER. DO NOT ATTEMPT TO DRIVE 0 THROUGH WATER OF UNKNOWN DEPTH. A FLASH FLOOD WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR MUCH OF NORTHEAST COLORADO UNTIL MIDNIGHT TONIGHT. LESZCYNSKI
Special weather statement, Jul 31, 4:04 PM MDT, 1 hour 26 minutes before
COZ040-312245- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DENVER CO 404 PM MDT THU JUL 31 1997 ...THUNDERSTORMS PRODUCING HEAVY RAIN IN OVER NORTH CENTRAL DOUGLAS...WESTERN ARAPAHOE...SOUTHWESTERN DENVER AND SOUTHWESTERN ADAMS COUNTIES... AT 405 PM MDT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A THUNDERSTORM OVER SOUTH GLENN...OR ABOUT 10 MILES SOUTH OF DENVER. THIS STORM WAS MOVING NORTHEAST AT 20 MILES PER HOUR AND PRODUCING RAINFALL AMOUNTS OF UP TO 0.50 INCHES OF RAIN PER HOUR. PERSONS IN OR NEAR AURORA...SOUTHERN DENVER...ENGLEWOOD... LITTLETON...ARAPAHOE PARK...CHATFIELD RESERVOIR...GREENWOOD VILLAGE...HIGHLANDS RANCH AND SHERIDAN SHOULD BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR HEAVY RAINFALL. HEAVY RAINS MAY FLOOD LOW LYING AREAS SUCH AS DITCHES AND UNDERPASSES. AVOID THESE AREAS AND DO NOT CROSS FLOODED ROADS AS THEY MAY BE WASHED OUT. WATER LEVELS OF SMALL STREAMS AND RIVERS MAY ALSO RISE...THEREFORE SEEK HIGHER GROUND IF THREATENED BY FLOOD WATERS. SHORT LIVED WEAK TORNADOES ARE ALSO POSSIBLE WITH THIS STORM. RJK
The office that day
Everything else NWS Denver/Boulder, CO issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 30, 6:35 PM MDT | Flash Flood Warning | BOU | Logan, Weld | 3 hr |
| Jul 30, 8:05 PM MDT | Flash Flood Warning | BOU | Arapahoe, Denver | 115 min |
| Jul 31, 2:25 PM MDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BOU | Elbert | 35 min |
| Jul 31, 3:28 PM MDT | Tornado Warning | BOU | Elbert | 32 min |
| Jul 31, 4:00 PM MDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BOU | Lincoln, Washington | 60 min |
| Jul 31, 4:00 PM MDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BOU | Elbert | 60 min |
| Jul 31, 5:27 PM MDT | Flash Flood Warning | BOU | Morgan | 2 hr |
| Jul 31, 5:30 PM MDT | Flash Flood Warning | BOU | Douglas | 2 hr |
Nearby
Flash Flood Warnings in Colorado, 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.