Alert archive / Texas / Flash Flood Warnings in 1997
Flash Flood Warning 3, NWS Houston/Galveston, TX
NWS Houston/Galveston, TX issued this flash flood warning at Jan 27, 1997, 9:03 PM CST for 5 counties in Texas. 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
- Jan 27, 1997, 9:03 PM CST (03:03 UTC)
- Expired
- Jan 28, 1997, 12:00 AM CST
- In force
- 3 hr
- Issued by
- NWS Houston/Galveston, TX
- Area
- Whole counties
Counties Brazoria County, TX, Chambers County, TX, Fort Bend County, TX, Harris County, TX, Liberty County, TX
The radar
The Houston radar (KHGX), 27 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 03:03 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
Lake Charles Mun, LA (KLCH), launched 00:00Z, 3.1 hours before the alert went out and 200 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
- 1472 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -17 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 733 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 32 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 114 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 131 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.7
- Supercell composite
- 5.0
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000 TTAA00 KHOU 280307 FFWHOU TXC039-071-157-201-291-280600- BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED FLASH FLOOD WARNING NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON/GALVESTON TX 903 PM CST MON JAN 27 1997 THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN HOUSTON/GALVESTON HAS ISSUED A FLASH FLOOD WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL MIDNIGHT CST FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS... IN SOUTHEAST TEXAS ...NORTHERN BRAZORIA COUNTY...CHAMBERS COUNTY ...SOUTHEASTERN FORT BEND COUNTY...SOUTHEASTERN HARRIS COUNTY ...LIBERTY COUNTY ...WIDESPREAD FLOODING OF ROADS REPORTED... THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS EXTENDED THE FLASH FLOOD WARNING UNTIL MIDNIGHT. AT 9 PM...WIDESPREAD FLOODING OF FEEDER ROADS...UNDERPASSES A NEIGHBORHOOD STREETS CONTINUED IN THE WARNED AREA. OVERBANK FLOODING ON SIMS BAYOU...BEEMER DITCH AND OTHER MINOR TRIBUTARIES WILL LIKELY CONTINUE INTO THE MORNING. TRAVEL WITHIN THE AREA IS STRONGLY DISCOURAGED UNTIL FLOOD WATERS RECEED. PERSONS ALONG THE BAYOUS AND DITCHES SHOULD REMAIN ALERT TO RISING WATER. AT 9 PM...THE HEAVIEST THUNDERSTORMS WERE OVER CHAMBERS...GALVESTON... AND BRAZORIA COUNTIES. MODERATE TO HEAVY THUNDERSTORMS WERE SCATTERED ACROSS EASTERN FORT BEND...SOUTHERN HARRIS AND LIBERTY COUNTIES. IN THE WARNED AREA...AN ADDITIONAL 1/2 TO 1 INCH OF RAIN CAN BE EXPECTED THROUGH MIDNIGHT. RUNOFF FROM THIS AND EARLIER RAIN WILL CONTINUE TO AGGRAVATE THE FLOOD SITUATION. THIS IS A DANGEROUS FLOOD SITUATION. MOST FLASH FLOOD DEATHS OCCUR TIN AUTOMOBILES. DO NOT ATTEMPT TO CROSS BRIDGES...DIPS...OR UNDERPASSES. NEVER TRY TO CROSS A FLOWING STREAM...EVEN A SMALL ONE...ON FOOT. TO ESCAPE RISING WATER MOVE UP TO HIGHER GROUND. &
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 Houston/Galveston, TX wrote its last area forecast discussion before this flash flood warning went out at Jan 27, 7:54 PM CST, 1 hour 9 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Jan 27, 7:54 PM CST, 1 hour 9 minutes before
SOUTHEAST TEXAS FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON/GALVESTON TX 750 PM CST MON JAN 27 1997 SEVERE WEATHER CONTINUING WITH NUMEROUS SVR AND TOR WARNINGS. FLASH FLOODING ONGOING OVER HARRIS/BRAZ/GLS/LIBERTY CO...WILL BE SHIFTING S AND EAST. NUMEROUS REPORTS OF GREATER THAN 3" IN A COUPLE OF HOURS. TEMPS HAVE BEEN PLUNGING OVER FTW AND NW ZONES. FRONT HAS REACHED THROUGH UTS AND NEAR CXO. WRN EDGE OF THE MOIST AXIS IS FINALLY SHIFTING TO THE EAST SO FORSEE THE ONGOING SVR TO COME TO AN END BY 10 PM...AND MOVE INTO THE COASTAL WATERS. WILL NEED TO CONTINUE TS AND SHRA FOR TONIGHTS ZONES...AND POSSIBLY SMALL HAIL...ENDING BY AROUND MIDNIGHT POST FRONTAL. WOULD NOT SUPRISE @ME TO SEE REPORTS OF SMALL HAIL WITH ANY OF THE POST FRONTAL TS. GOT TO RUN...THANKS TO SAT FOR THE HELP! 45
In the hours before
Special weather statement, Jan 27, 3:06 PM CST, 5 hours 57 minutes before
TXZ163-164-179-280210- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON/GALVESTON TX 306 PM CST MON JAN 27 1997 ...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH IN EFFECT UNTIL 8 PM CST FOR A LARGE PORITON OF EAST TEXAS... THE STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH FOR A LARGE PORTION OF EAST TEXAS INCLUDING TRINITY...POLK AND HOUSTON COUNTIES. SOME OF THE CITIES IN THE WATCH AREA ARE CROCKETT ...TRINITY...GROVETON...AND LIVINGSTON. THE COMBINATION OF AN APPROACHING COLD FRONT AND UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCE WILL INTERACT WITH A VERY MOIST AND UNSTABLE SOUTHEAST TEXAS AIRMASS TO PRODUCE STRONG TO SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS. THE PRIMARY THREAT OF SEVERE WEATHER WILL BE LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS. A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH IS ALSO IN EFFECT FOR MUCH OF SOUTHEAST TEXAS UNTIL 7 PM CST. REMEMBER...A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH MEANS THAT CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IN AND CLOSE TO THE WATCH AREA. PERSONS IN THESE AREAS SHOULD BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR THREATENING WEATHER CONDITIONS AND LISTEN FOR LATER STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS. STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO OR YOUR LOCAL RADIO/TV STATION FOR FURTHER STATEMENTS OR WARNINGS CONCERNING THIS DEVELOPING WEATHER SITUATION.
Special weather statement, Jan 27, 3:55 PM CST, 5 hours 8 minutes before
TXZ211-237-210-227-198-213-163-200-511-236-199-179-178-164-177- 212-197-226-196-195-214-238-235-176-280400- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON/GALVESTON TX 355 PM CST MON JAN 27 1997 THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH IN EFFECT UNTIL 10 PM FOR ALL OF SOUTHEAST TEXAS. THIS WATCH REPLACES THE PREVIOUS THAT WAS IN EFFECT UNTIL 7 PM. THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH AREA IS ALONG AND 95 MILES NORTH AND SOUTH OF A LINE FROM 25 MILES NORTHWEST OF VICTORIA TO 25 MILES SOUTH-SOUTHEAST OF LUFKIN. THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES ARE INCLUDED...BURLESON...BRAZOS...MADISON... HOUSTON...TRINITY...POLK...SAN JACINTO...WALKER...GRIMES... WASHINGTON...AUSTIN...WALLER...MONTGOMERY...HARRIS...LIBERTY... CAHMBERS...GALVESTON...BRAZORIA...FORT BEND...COLORADO...WHARTON... JACKSON...MATAGORDA...AND THE ADJACENT COASTAL WATERS. SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS THE AREA HAVE ALREADY PRODUCED HAIL AND TORNADOES. RESIDENTS ACROSS SOUTHEAST TEXAS SHOULD REMAIN ALERT FOR RAPIDLY CHANGING CONDITIONS. SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS CAN PRODUCE TORNADOES WITH LITTLE ADVANCED WARNING.
The office that day
Everything else NWS Houston/Galveston, TX issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 27, 6:20 PM CST | Flash Flood Warning | HGX | Brazoria, Chambers, Fort Bend, Harris, Liberty | 3 hr |
| Jan 27, 6:24 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | HGX | Liberty | 51 min |
| Jan 27, 6:40 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | HGX | Chambers, Harris | 65 min |
| Jan 27, 6:52 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | HGX | Brazoria | 68 min |
| Jan 27, 7:06 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | HGX | Galveston | 69 min |
| Jan 27, 7:14 PM CST | Tornado Warning | HGX | Chambers, Harris | 61 min |
| Jan 27, 7:36 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | HGX | Chambers | 69 min |
| Jan 27, 8:10 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | HGX | Galveston | 65 min |
| Jan 27, 8:24 PM CST | Flash Flood Warning | HGX | Galveston | 3 hr |
| Jan 27, 8:30 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | HGX | Polk | 60 min |
| Jan 27, 9:21 PM CST | Tornado Warning | HGX | Galveston | 69 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; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.