Alert archive / Texas / Flash Flood Warnings in 1997

Flash Flood Warning 74, NWS Austin/San Antonio, TX

May 27, 1997Travis County, Williamson County, Texas

NWS Austin/San Antonio, TX issued this flash flood warning at May 27, 1997, 4:32 PM CDT for Travis County, Williamson County, Texas. It was in force for 118 min. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
May 27, 1997, 4:32 PM CDT (21:32 UTC)
Expired
May 27, 1997, 6:30 PM CDT
In force
118 min
Issued by
NWS Austin/San Antonio, TX
Area
Whole counties

Counties Travis County, TX, Williamson County, TX

The nearest sounding before it

Fort Worth, TX (KFWD), launched 12:00Z, 9.5 hours before the alert went out and 263 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, Fort Worth, TX at 12:00Z on 1997-05-27Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 4281 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Fort Worth, TX at 12:00Z on 1997-05-27The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 15 square meters per square second.193958Sfc1 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
4281 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-43 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
590 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
32 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
15 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
58 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.7
Supercell composite
3.4

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
TTAA00 KSAT 272132
FFWSAT
TXC453-491-272330-
 
BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AUSTIN/SAN ANTONIO TX
432 PM CDT TUE MAY 27 1997
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN AUSTIN/SAN ANTONIO HAS ISSUED A
FLASH FLOOD WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  630 PM CDT
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS...
 
IN SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS
 
   ...TRAVIS COUNTY...WILLIAMSON COUNTY
 
AT 430 PM...RADAR INDICATED RAINFALL RATES OF 2 TO 3 INCHES PER HOUR
WERE OCCURRING ALONG INTERSTATE 35 BETWEEN JARRELL... GEORGETOWN...
AND ROUND ROCK.  THIS RAIN WAS ASSOCIATED WITH A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM
MOVING ALONG I-35.  NEAR 4 INCHES OF RAIN HAS ALREADY FALLEN IN
GEORGETOWN.
 
THE HEAVIEST RAIN IS MOVING TOWARD THE CITY OF AUSTIN AND WILL LIKELY
PRODUCING FLOODING.
 
STORM MOTION WAS SOUTH AT 15 TO 20 MPH.
 
A FLASH FLOOD WARNING MEANS THAT FLOODING IS IMMINENT.  IT IS
IMPORTANT TO KNOW WHERE YOU ARE RELATIVE TO STREAMS...RIVERS...OR
CREEKS WHICH CAN BECOME KILLERS IN HEAVY RAINS.  CAMPERS AND OTHER
PEOPLE IN RECREATION AREAS ALONG CREEKS...STREAMS...AND RIVERS IN
THE WARNING AREA SHOULD MOVE TO HIGH GROUND IMMEDIATELY.
 
FLOOD PRONE URBAN AREAS FILL WITH WATER QUICKLY.  CLOGGED STORM
DRAINS MAY CAUSE OTHER AREAS TO FLOOD.  DO NOT DRIVE THROUGH
FLOOD WATERS AND STAY AWAY FROM STORM DRAINS.
 
AVOID ALREADY FLOODED AREAS.  TRAVELERS SHOULD NOT ATTEMPT TO
CROSS FLOODED ROADS.  IF YOUR VEHICLE STALLS...LEAVE IT AND MOVE
IMMEDIATELY TO HIGHER GROUND IF YOU CAN DO SO SAFELY.

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, May 27, 11:14 AM CDT, 5 hours 18 minutes before
TXZ171>173-183>194-202>209-217>225-228-272300-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AUSTIN/SAN ANTONIO TX
1115 AM CDT TUE MAY 27 1997

...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM AND HEAVY RAIN EVENT DEVELOPING ACROSS SOUTH
TEXAS AND THE HILL COUNTRY THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IS CLOSELY MONITORING A WEAK COLD FRONT
MOVING THROUGH SOUTH TEXAS.  THIS COLD FRONT IS EXPECTED TO BECOME
STATIONARY LATE THIS AFTERNOON AND INTERACT WITH AN UPPER LEVEL
DISTURBANCE IGNITING A ROUND OF SCATTERED TO NUMEROUS SHOWERS AND
THUNDERSTORMS WITH VERY HEAVY RAIN.

THE ATMOSPHERE IS VERY MOIST AND UNSTABLE ACROSS SOUTH TEXAS.
CONDITIONS ARE BECOMING INCREASINGLY FAVORABLE FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF
SCATTERED SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH LARGE HAIL... DAMAGING WINDS AND
VERY HEAVY RAINFALL.  THE MOST SEVERE STORMS MAY PRODUCE ISOLATED
TORNADOES.

THIS ACTIVITY SHOULD DEVELOP LATE THIS AFTERNOON AND DECREASE IN
SEVERITY LATE THIS EVENING.  THIS SYSTEM WILL EVOLVE INTO A HEAVY
RAIN EVENT OVER PORTIONS OF SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS... THE HILL COUNTRY
AND SOUTHEAST TEXAS TONIGHT WITH ISOLATED SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS.

A GENERAL 1/2 TO 1 INCH RAINFALL IS POSSIBLE WITH ISOLATED TOTALS
NEAR 3 INCHES OR MORE WHERE THUNDERSTORMS MERGE OR REDEVELOP ACROSS A
PARTICULAR LOCATION.  A FLASH FLOOD WATCH MAY BE REQUIRED TONIGHT
ACROSS PORTIONS OF SOUTH TEXAS.

THE HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK WILL NORMALLY BE UPDATED BY MEANS OF
THE ZONE FORECAST...SHORT TERM FORECAST...WATCHES...WARNINGS AND
ADVISORIES.  THE HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK ITSELF WILL BE UPDATED
ONLY IF UNFORECAST HAZARDOUS WEATHER DEVELOPS OR IF FORECAST
HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS NO LONGER EXPECTED.
Special weather statement, May 27, 11:15 AM CDT, 5 hours 17 minutes before
TXZ171>173-183>194-202>209-217>225-228-272300-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AUSTIN/SAN ANTONIO TX
1115 AM CDT TUE MAY 27 1997

...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM AND HEAVY RAIN EVENT DEVELOPING ACROSS SOUTH
TEXAS AND THE HILL COUNTRY THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IS CLOSELY MONITORING A WEAK COLD FRONT
MOVING THROUGH SOUTH TEXAS.  THIS COLD FRONT IS EXPECTED TO BECOME
STATIONARY LATE THIS AFTERNOON AND INTERACT WITH AN UPPER LEVEL
DISTURBANCE IGNITING A ROUND OF SCATTERED TO NUMEROUS SHOWERS AND
THUNDERSTORMS WITH VERY HEAVY RAIN.

THE ATMOSPHERE IS VERY MOIST AND UNSTABLE ACROSS SOUTH TEXAS.
CONDITIONS ARE BECOMING INCREASINGLY FAVORABLE FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF
SCATTERED SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH LARGE HAIL... DAMAGING WINDS AND
VERY HEAVY RAINFALL.  THE MOST SEVERE STORMS MAY PRODUCE ISOLATED
TORNADOES.

THIS ACTIVITY SHOULD DEVELOP LATE THIS AFTERNOON AND DECREASE IN
SEVERITY LATE THIS EVENING.  THIS SYSTEM WILL EVOLVE INTO A HEAVY
RAIN EVENT OVER PORTIONS OF SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS... THE HILL COUNTRY
AND SOUTHEAST TEXAS TONIGHT WITH ISOLATED SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS.

A GENERAL 1/2 TO 1 INCH RAINFALL IS POSSIBLE WITH ISOLATED TOTALS
NEAR 3 INCHES OR MORE WHERE THUNDERSTORMS MERGE OR REDEVELOP ACROSS A
PARTICULAR LOCATION.  A FLASH FLOOD WATCH MAY BE REQUIRED TONIGHT
ACROSS PORTIONS OF SOUTH TEXAS.

THE HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK WILL NORMALLY BE UPDATED BY MEANS OF
THE ZONE FORECAST...SHORT TERM FORECAST...WATCHES...WARNINGS AND
ADVISORIES.  THE HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK ITSELF WILL BE UPDATED
ONLY IF UNFORECAST HAZARDOUS WEATHER DEVELOPS OR IF FORECAST
HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS NO LONGER EXPECTED.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Austin/San Antonio, TX issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 27, 3:30 PM CDTTornado WarningEWXWilliamson60 min
May 27, 3:34 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningEWXEdwards56 min
May 27, 3:58 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningEWXReal62 min
May 27, 4:09 PM CDTTornado WarningEWXTravis66 min
May 27, 4:26 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningEWXEdwards, Real2 hr
May 27, 4:37 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningEWXWilliamson68 min
May 27, 4:49 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningEWXEdwards56 min
May 27, 4:58 PM CDTTornado WarningEWXHays62 min
May 27, 5:19 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningEWXTravis56 min
May 27, 5:24 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningEWXBlanco66 min
May 27, 5:37 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningEWXUvalde98 min
May 27, 5:37 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningEWXUvalde98 min
May 27, 5:52 PM CDTTornado WarningEWXKendall68 min
May 27, 5:58 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningEWXBastrop, Caldwell2 hr
May 27, 6:01 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningEWXHays59 min
May 27, 6:06 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningEWXVal Verde69 min
May 27, 6:14 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningEWXComal61 min
May 27, 6:24 PM CDTTornado WarningEWXUvalde36 min
May 27, 6:28 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningEWXEdwards62 min
May 27, 6:29 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningEWXGuadalupe61 min
May 27, 6:56 PM CDTTornado WarningEWXKendall64 min
May 27, 6:59 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningEWXBexar91 min

Nearby

Flash Flood Warnings in Texas, 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.