Alert archive / Texas / Flash Flood Warnings in 1998

Flash Flood Warning 26, NWS Lake Charles, LA

January 7, 1998Tyler County, Texas

NWS Lake Charles, LA issued this flash flood warning at Jan 7, 1998, 2:54 AM CST for Tyler County, Texas. It was in force for 111 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
Jan 7, 1998, 2:54 AM CST (08:54 UTC)
Expired
Jan 7, 1998, 4:45 AM CST
In force
111 min
Issued by
NWS Lake Charles, LA
Area
Whole counties

County Tyler County, TX

The radar

The Lake Charles radar (KLCH), 132 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 08:54 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, 8.9 hours before the alert went out and 134 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, Lake Charles Mun, LA at 00:00Z on 1998-01-07Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 0 joules per kilogram.LCL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Lake Charles Mun, LA at 00:00Z on 1998-01-07The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 296 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
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL
496 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
56 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
296 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
459 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 KLCH 070856
FFWLCH
TXC457-071045-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
254 AM CST WED JAN 7 1998

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN LAKE CHARLES LA HAS ISSUED A
FLASH FLOOD WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 445 AM CST
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATION...

IN SOUTHEASTERN TEXAS

   ...TYLER COUNTY

AT 250 AM...TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFTEY REPORTED THAT
STEINHAGEN LAKE DAM B WAS MAKING AN UNSCHEDULED RELEASE. THIS WILL
CAUSE FLOODING ALONG THE NECHES RIVER.  PERSONS IN THE BARLOW LAKE
ESTATES AREA AND OTHER AREAS SOUTH OF THE DAM ALONG THE RIVER SHOULD
TAKE APPROPRIATE ACTIONS TO ESCAPE THE RISING WATERS.


A FLOOD WARNING MEANS THAT FLOODING IS IMMINENT OR OCCURRING.
RESIDENTS LIVING ALONG STREAMS...CREEKS...AND DRAINAGE DITCHES
SHOULD BE READY TO TAKE IMMEDIATE ACTION IF FLOODING IS OBSERVED.
DO NOT ATTEMPT TO CROSS SWIFTLY FLOWING WATER BY FOOT OR AUTO...
YOU MAY BE SWEPT AWAY BY THE STRONRG CURRENT.

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 Lake Charles, LA wrote its last area forecast discussion before this flash flood warning went out at Jan 7, 2:00 AM CST, 54 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jan 7, 2:00 AM CST, 54 minutes before
SOUTHEAST TEXAS..SOUTHWEST AND CENTRAL LOUISIANA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
200 AM CST WED JAN 7 1998

SFC LOW CURRENTLY LOCATED OFFSHORE SOUTH OF LFT.  TSRA PUSHING
EASTWARD ALONG SFC TROF.  COLD FRONT LOCATED NEAR NW LA BORDER
EXTENDING SW THROUGH SOUTH TEXAS. MODELS IN GENERAL AGREEMENT
PULLING SFC LOW NE INTO NORTHERN MISS AND DRAGGING COLD FRONT THROUGH
FA TODAY.

EXPECT THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY TO PUSH EAST OF FA BY 12Z. WITH UPPER
LEVEL LOW STILL LAGGING OVER WESTERN TX SHOULD SEE EXTENSIVE LOW
LEVEL CLOUD SHIELD TODAY OVER THE AREA WITH A FEW ISOLATED SHOWERS
GIVEN THE RESIDUAL MOISTURE A STRONG PVA ALOFT.  WITH ONLY A FEW
SHOWERS TODAY...SEE NO THREAT FOR ANY ADDITIONAL FLOODING.

HIGH TEMPERATURES FOR TODAY WILL OCCUR THIS MORNING WITH TEMPERATURES
SLOWLY FALLING THOUGHOUT THE DAY BEHIND THE FRONT OVER WESTERN
SECTIONS. DRIER AIR WILL MOVE INTO AREA BY THU AFTERNOON...WITH
DECREASING CLOUDINESS. STAY CLOSED TO MOS GUIDENCE ON TEMPS AND
LOWERED POPS GIVEN CURRENT TRENDS IN PRECIP COVERAGE.

12

BPT 58/40/50 210
LCH 59/41/50 210  LFT 62/42/51 320  AEX 58/38/47 330

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Jan 6, 9:45 PM CST, 5 hours 9 minutes before
LAZ027>033-041>045-051>055-TXZ180>182-201-215-216-070945-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
945 PM CST TUE JAN 6 1998

...FLASH FLOOD WATCH IN EFFECT FOR SOUTHEAST TEXAS...
...FLASH FLOOD AND RIVER FLOOD WATCHES IN EFFECT FOR CENTRAL AND
   SOUTHWEST LOUISIANA...

WIDESPREAD HEAVY RAINS HAVE FALLEN ACROSS LOUISIANA AND TEXAS TODAY.
THE REGION AVERAGED TWO INCHES. FIVE INCHES FELL ACROSS SOUTHEASTERN
ALLEN PARISH. SWATHES OF FOUR INCH TOTALS WERE SEEN ACROSS SOUTHEAST
TEXAS FROM SOUR LAKE NORTHEAST TO CENTRAL NEWTON COUNTY...IN LOUISIANA
ACROSS NORTHERN JEFFERSON DAVIS AND SOUTHERN ALLEN PARISHES...
SOUTHWEST ACADIA PARISH...AND NORTHERN ST. MARY PARISH. SINCE SUNDAY,
AREAS NORTH OF LAFAYETTE RECEIVED AS MUCH AS 15 INCHES OF RAIN.

MORE RAIN IS EXPECTED ACROSS THE REGION THROUGH WEDNESDAY MORNING WITH
RAINS BEGINNING TO TAPER OFF FROM WEST TO EAST ON WEDNESDAY. ONE TO
THREE MORE INCHES OF RAIN IS LIKELY...FURTHER AGGRAVATING AREA RIVERS,
STREAMS, AND BAYOUS THAT ARE ALREADY SWOLLEN FROM RAINS OVER THE PAST
FEW DAYS. STREET FLOODING IS EXPECTED AS WELL. ACTIVATION OF SPOTTERS
FOR RAINFALL AND RIVER GAGE READINGS WILL BE NECESSARY TONIGHT AND
INTO THE EARLY MORNING HOURS.

THE RAIN IS EXPECTED TO MOVE OUT OF THE REGION DURING WEDNESDAY
AFTERNOON...ENDING THE FLASH FLOOD THREAT. HOWEVER...AREA RIVERS ARE
EXPECTED TO BE IN FLOOD FOR THE NEXT SEVERAL DAYS.
Special weather statement, Jan 6, 9:45 PM CST, 5 hours 9 minutes before
LAZ027>033-041>045-051>055-TXZ180>182-201-215-216-070945-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
945 PM CST TUE JAN 6 1998

...FLASH FLOOD WATCH IN EFFECT FOR SOUTHEAST TEXAS...
...FLASH FLOOD AND RIVER FLOOD WATCHES IN EFFECT FOR CENTRAL AND
   SOUTHWEST LOUISIANA...

WIDESPREAD HEAVY RAINS HAVE FALLEN ACROSS LOUISIANA AND TEXAS TODAY.
THE REGION AVERAGED TWO INCHES. FIVE INCHES FELL ACROSS SOUTHEASTERN
ALLEN PARISH. SWATHES OF FOUR INCH TOTALS WERE SEEN ACROSS SOUTHEAST
TEXAS FROM SOUR LAKE NORTHEAST TO CENTRAL NEWTON COUNTY...IN LOUISIANA
ACROSS NORTHERN JEFFERSON DAVIS AND SOUTHERN ALLEN PARISHES...
SOUTHWEST ACADIA PARISH...AND NORTHERN ST. MARY PARISH. SINCE SUNDAY,
AREAS NORTH OF LAFAYETTE RECEIVED AS MUCH AS 15 INCHES OF RAIN.

MORE RAIN IS EXPECTED ACROSS THE REGION THROUGH WEDNESDAY MORNING WITH
RAINS BEGINNING TO TAPER OFF FROM WEST TO EAST ON WEDNESDAY. ONE TO
THREE MORE INCHES OF RAIN IS LIKELY...FURTHER AGGRAVATING AREA RIVERS,
STREAMS, AND BAYOUS THAT ARE ALREADY SWOLLEN FROM RAINS OVER THE PAST
FEW DAYS. STREET FLOODING IS EXPECTED AS WELL. ACTIVATION OF SPOTTERS
FOR RAINFALL AND RIVER GAGE READINGS WILL BE NECESSARY TONIGHT AND
INTO THE EARLY MORNING HOURS.

THE RAIN IS EXPECTED TO MOVE OUT OF THE REGION DURING WEDNESDAY
AFTERNOON...ENDING THE FLASH FLOOD THREAT. HOWEVER...AREA RIVERS ARE
EXPECTED TO BE IN FLOOD FOR THE NEXT SEVERAL DAYS.
Special weather statement, Jan 7, 12:24 AM CST, 2 hours 30 minutes before
LAZ027>033-041>045-051>055-TXZ180>182-201-215-216-071100-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
1224 AM CST WED JAN 7 1998

...FLASH FLOOD WATCH CANCELLED FOR SOUTHEAST TEXAS...
...FLASH FLOOD AND RIVER FLOOD WATCHES IN EFFECT FOR CENTRAL AND
SOUTHWEST LOUISIANA...

WIDESPREAD HEAVY RAINS HAVE FALLEN ACROSS LOUISIANA AND TEXAS TODAY.
THE REGION AVERAGED TWO INCHES. FIVE INCHES FELL ACROSS SOUTHEASTERN
ALLEN PARISH. SWATHES OF FOUR INCH TOTALS WERE SEEN ACROSS SOUTHEAST
TEXAS FROM SOUR LAKE NORTHEAST TO CENTRAL NEWTON COUNTY...IN LOUISIANA
ACROSS NORTHERN JEFFERSON DAVIS AND SOUTHERN ALLEN PARISHES...
SOUTHWEST ACADIA PARISH...AND NORTHERN ST. MARY PARISH. SINCE SUNDAY,
DOPPLER RADAR INDICATES AREAS NORTH OF LAFAYETTE RECEIVED AS MUCH AS
15 INCHES OF RAIN.

MORE RAIN IS EXPECTED ACROSS LOUISIANA EARLY THIS MORNING WITH RAINS
TAPERING OFF BY SUNRISE. ONE TO TWO MORE INCHES OF RAIN IS POSSIBLE...
FURTHER AGGRAVATING AREA RIVERS, STREAMS, AND BAYOUS THAT ARE ALREADY
SWOLLEN FROM RAINS OVER THE PAST FEW DAYS. STREET FLOODING IS POSSIBLE
AS WELL.

THE RAIN HAS MOVED OUT OF SOUTHEAST TEXAS AND IS EXPECTED TO MOVE OUT
SOUTHWEST AND CENTRAL LOUISIANA THIS MORNING...ENDING THE FLASH FLOOD
THREAT. HOWEVER...AREA RIVERS ARE EXPECTED TO BE IN FLOOD FOR THE NEXT
SEVERAL DAYS.

Nearby

Flash Flood Warnings in Texas, 1998Every flash flood warning in 1998

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.