Alert archive / Colorado / Flash Flood Warnings in 1997

Flash Flood Warning 5, NWS Denver/Boulder, CO

June 15, 1997Phillips County, Colorado

NWS Denver/Boulder, CO issued this flash flood warning at Jun 15, 1997, 3:25 AM MDT for Phillips County, Colorado. 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 outline the Iowa Environmental Mesonet reconstructed for it; the warning itself named whole counties.

The facts

Issued
Jun 15, 1997, 3:25 AM MDT (09:25 UTC)
Expired
Jun 15, 1997, 5:30 AM MDT
In force
2 hr
Issued by
NWS Denver/Boulder, CO
Area
Whole counties; the outline is the Mesonet’s reconstruction

County Phillips County, CO

The radar

The Goodland radar (KGLD), 149 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 09:25 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 00:00Z, 9.4 hours before the alert went out and 115 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, Denver, CO at 00:00Z on 1997-06-15Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 70 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km-30°-20°-10°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Denver, CO at 00:00Z on 1997-06-15The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity -71 square meters per square second.1939587897Sfc1 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
70 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-106 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
2413 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
3 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
-71 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
-39 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 KDEN 150928
FFWDEN
COC095-151130-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DENVER CO
325 AM MDT SUN JUN 15 1997

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN DENVER HAS EXTENDED THE FLASH FLOOD 
WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 530 AM MDT FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING 
COUNTIES

IN NORTHEAST COLORADO
     PHILLIPS

INCLUDING THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS
     AMHERST...FAIRFIELD...HAXTUN...HIGHLAND CENTER...HOLYOKE...
     PAOLI...PLEASANT VALLEY AND WAGES

THE PHILLIPS COUNTY SHERIFF REPORTED THAT FLASH FLOODING WAS STILL 
OCCURRING OVER MUCH OF THE COUNTY.  AUTOMOBILES HAVE BEEN WASHED OFF 
THE ROAD AND MANY MOTORISTS WERE STRANDED IN THEIR CARS.  THIS IS A 
DANGEROUS SITUATION!  MANY HIGHWAYS HAVE BEEN CLOSED...INCLUDING 
HIGHWAY 385 NORTH OF HOLYOKE...HIGHWAY 6 WEST OF HOLYOKE...AND 
HIGHWAY 23 IN THE AMHERST AREA.  

THE HEAVY RAIN HAS ENDED FOR THE MOST PART OVER PHILLIPS COUNTY... 
BUT STREAMS WILL CONTINUE TO RISE DURING THE NEXT HOUR FROM 
EXCESSIVE RUNOFF FROM EARLIER STORMS.  NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE 
DOPPLER RADAR INDICATES OVER 4 INCHES OF RAIN HAS FALLEN IN AREAS 
FROM PAOLI THROUGH AMHERST.  LINGERING SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS 
WILL CONTINUE THROUGH 5 AM...BUT ADDITIONAL RAINFALL AMOUNTS SHOULD 
BE LESS THAN 1/2 OF AN INCH.  

A FLASH FLOOD WARNING MEANS THAT FLOODING IS OCCURRING.  IF YOU ARE 
IN THE WARNING AREA MOVE TO HIGHER GROUND IMMEDIATELY.  RESIDENTS 
LIVING ALONG STREAMS AND CREEKS SHOULD TAKE IMMEDIATE PRECAUTIONS.

DO NOT DRIVE ACROSS FLOODED AREAS.  YOU NEVER KNOW HOW DEEP THE 
WATER REALLY IS!!!  

BARJENBRUCH 

LAT...LON 4074 10207 4046 10208 4046 10269 4074 10263

The office that day

Everything else NWS Denver/Boulder, CO issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jun 14, 6:05 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBOUMorgan, Weld35 min
Jun 14, 7:35 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBOUAdams, Washington25 min
Jun 14, 7:55 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBOULogan, Phillips, Sedgwick45 min
Jun 14, 8:52 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBOULogan, Phillips, Sedgwick38 min
Jun 14, 9:38 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBOUPhillips27 min
Jun 15, 12:33 AM MDTFlash Flood WarningBOUPhillips3 hr
Jun 15, 5:23 AM MDTFlash Flood WarningBOUPhillips3 hr
Jun 15, 1:41 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBOULarimer, Weld34 min
Jun 15, 3:11 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBOUAdams, Boulder, Weld34 min
Jun 15, 3:20 PM MDTTornado WarningBOUAdams, Weld25 min
Jun 15, 3:20 PM MDTTornado WarningBOUBoulder25 min
Jun 15, 3:53 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBOUAdams, Weld32 min

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.