Alert archive / Louisiana / Flash Flood Warnings in 1998

Flash Flood Warning 37, NWS Lake Charles, LA

January 12, 1998Acadia Parish, Saint Landry Parish, Louisiana

NWS Lake Charles, LA issued this flash flood warning at Jan 12, 1998, 9:50 AM CST for Acadia Parish, Saint Landry Parish, Louisiana. 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 counties it named.

The facts

Issued
Jan 12, 1998, 9:50 AM CST (15:50 UTC)
Expired
Jan 12, 1998, 12:00 PM CST
In force
2 hr
Issued by
NWS Lake Charles, LA
Area
Whole counties

Counties Acadia Parish, LA, Saint Landry Parish, LA

The radar

The Lake Charles radar (KLCH), 103 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 15:53 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 12:00Z, 3.8 hours before the alert went out and 102 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 12:00Z on 1998-01-12Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 238 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 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 12:00Z on 1998-01-12The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity -200 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
238 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-4 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
494 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
23 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
-200 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
-666 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 121553
FFWLCH
LAC001-097-121800-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
950 AM CST MON JAN 12 1998

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN LAKE CHARLES LA HAS ISSUED A
FLASH FLOOD WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 1200 PM CST
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS...

IN SOUTHWESTERN LOUISIANA

   ...ACADIA PARISH

IN SOUTH CENTRAL LOUISIANA

   ...ST. LANDRY PARISH

AT 950 AM...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR ESTIMATES 4 TO 6
INCHES OF RAIN HAS FALLEN SINCE MIDNIGHT OVER ST. LANDRY PARISH AND
SOUTHERN SECTIONS OF ACADIA PARISH. FLOODING IS CONTINUING IN THESE
PARISHES DUE TO RUNOFF FROM THE HEAVIER RAINFALL. HWY 190 BETWEEN
LAWTELL AND OPELOUSAS IN ST. LANDRY PARISH IS CLOSED DUE TO
FLOODING.

DO NOT DRIVE YOUR VEHICLE INTO AREAS WHERE WATER COVERS THE
ROADWAY. THE WATER DEPTH MAY BE TOO GREAT TO ALLOW YOUR CAR TO
CROSS SAFELY. REMEMBER...MOST FLOOD RELATED DEATHS OCCUR IN
AUTOMOBILES.

SxTAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO OR YOUR LOCAL RADIO OR TV
STATION FOR THE LATEST INFORMATION ON THIS DANGEROUS WEATHER
SITUATION.

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 12, 2:20 AM CST, 7 hours 30 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jan 12, 2:20 AM CST, 7 hours 30 minutes before
SOUTHEAST TEXAS..SOUTHWEST AND CENTRAL LOUISIANA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
220 AM CST MON JAN 12 1998

BUSY NIGHT AS CONVERGENCE ZONE LIES ACROSS CEN LA AND VORT MAX
ENHANCES LIFT WITH SUBTROPICAL JET STREAM OVERHEAD. RAINFALL
AMTS ARE BEGINNING TO PILE UP ACROSS NORTHERN PORTION OF FA
AND DEVELOPMENT STILL OCCURRING BACK TO THE SW...MAY NEED FLASH
FLOOD WATCH TODAY FOR MORNING HOURS. PWS ARE RUNNING ABOVE ONE
INCH AND RADAR ESTIMATES SHOWING STRONG STORMS PUTTING DOWN AS
MUCH AS 2 INCHES AN HOUR. HAVE A LITTLE MORE TIME TO CONSIDER THIS
SO WILL COORD LATER. AS FAR AS FORECAST...MESSY SITUATION SETTING UP
AS AREA IS IN AXIS OF A SERIES OF SHRT WVS WITH AMPLE SUBTROPICAL
JET ENERGY PRESENT. MODELS ARE UNDERFORECASTING RAINFALL AMTS
CONSIDERABLY AND DO NOT LOOK GOOD FOR THE FIRST PART OF TODAY.
SFC TROF/STATIONARY FRONTAL BOUNDARY IN TX IS NOT SHOWING MUCH
EASTWARD PROGRESSION...SO WILL KEEP POPS IN CHC CAT TODAY AREAWIDE.
WILL LIKELY NEED TO CONTINUE MENTION OF POSSIBLY SVR STORMS THIS
MORNING AREAWIDE.

1

BPT 71/62/70 5355
LCH 70/61/70 5355  LFT 72/61/72 5355  AEX 68/58/68 7344

In the hours before

Local storm report, Jan 12, 9:16 AM CST, 34 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
916 AM CST MON JAN 12 1998

TIME(CST)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

307 AM     EASTON                    LA   TORNADO
01/12/98   EVANGELINE                     TORNADO TOUCHED DOWN AND
                                          DAMAGED A HOME AND A SHED.
                                          WAS SPOTTED BY A STATE
                                          POLICE TROOPER.

334 AM     EASTON                    LA   WIND DAMAGE
01/12/98   EVANGELINE                     ROOF BLOWN OFF A HOUSE.
                                          REPORTED BY SHERRIFFS.

348 AM     PINE PRARIE               LA   WIND DAMAGE
01/12/98   EVANGELINE                     PROPERTY DAMAGE TO HOUSES
                                          AND MOBILE HOMES. REPORTED
                                          BY SHERRIFFS.

314 AM     VILLE PLATTE              LA   1.75 INCH HAIL
01/12/98   EVANGELINE                     GOLFBALL SIZE HAIL REPORTED
                                          2 MILES WEST OF VILLE PLATTE
                                          BY SHERRIFFS.
Local storm report, Jan 12, 9:16 AM CST, 34 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
916 AM CST MON JAN 12 1998

TIME(CST)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

307 AM     EASTON                    LA   TORNADO
01/12/98   EVANGELINE                     TORNADO TOUCHED DOWN AND
                                          DAMAGED A HOME AND A SHED.
                                          WAS SPOTTED BY A STATE
                                          POLICE TROOPER.

334 AM     EASTON                    LA   WIND DAMAGE
01/12/98   EVANGELINE                     ROOF BLOWN OFF A HOUSE.
                                          REPORTED BY SHERRIFFS.

348 AM     PINE PRARIE               LA   WIND DAMAGE
01/12/98   EVANGELINE                     PROPERTY DAMAGE TO HOUSES
                                          AND MOBILE HOMES. REPORTED
                                          BY SHERRIFFS.

314 AM     VILLE PLATTE              LA   1.75 INCH HAIL
01/12/98   EVANGELINE                     GOLFBALL SIZE HAIL REPORTED
                                          2 MILES WEST OF VILLE PLATTE
                                          BY SHERRIFFS.
Local storm report, Jan 12, 9:32 AM CST, 18 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
932 AM CST MON JAN 12 1998

TIME(CST)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

445 AM     10 N SULPHUR              LA   WIND DAMAGE
01/12/98   CALCASIEU                      BARN BLOWN DOWN. LIVESTOCK
                                          (HORSE) KILLED. REPORTED BY
                                          PUBLIC.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Lake Charles, LA issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jan 12, 1:05 AM CSTTornado WarningLCHBeauregard50 min
Jan 12, 1:23 AM CSTTornado WarningLCHAllen47 min
Jan 12, 1:47 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLCHEvangeline33 min
Jan 12, 2:11 AM CSTTornado WarningLCHAllen29 min
Jan 12, 2:25 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLCHEvangeline45 min
Jan 12, 2:33 AM CSTFlash Flood WarningLCHAllen, Evangeline117 min
Jan 12, 2:33 AM CSTFlash Flood WarningLCHBeauregard117 min
Jan 12, 2:38 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLCHAvoyelles62 min
Jan 12, 3:13 AM CSTTornado WarningLCHEvangeline47 min
Jan 12, 3:53 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLCHSaint Landry62 min
Jan 12, 4:29 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLCHCalcasieu61 min
Jan 12, 4:52 AM CSTFlash Flood WarningLCHAllen, Evangeline4 hr
Jan 12, 5:33 AM CSTFlash Flood WarningLCHBeauregard4 hr
Jan 12, 5:43 AM CSTFlash Flood WarningLCHSaint Landry2 hr
Jan 12, 7:01 AM CSTFlash Flood WarningLCHCalcasieu, Jefferson Davis119 min
Jan 12, 7:47 AM CSTFlash Flood WarningLCHSaint Landry118 min
Jan 12, 8:11 AM CSTFlash Flood WarningLCHAcadia119 min
Jan 12, 9:02 AM CSTFlash Flood WarningLCHAllen, Evangeline, Jefferson Davis3 hr
Jan 12, 9:02 AM CSTFlash Flood WarningLCHBeauregard, Calcasieu3 hr

Nearby

Flash Flood Warnings in Louisiana, 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.