Alert archive / Virginia / Flash Flood Warnings in 2001

Flash Flood Warning 4, NWS Baltimore/Washington

March 21, 2001Frederick County, City of Winchester, Virginia

NWS Baltimore/Washington issued this flash flood warning at Mar 21, 2001, 9:07 PM EST for Frederick County, City of Winchester, Virginia. It was in force for 6 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
Mar 21, 2001, 9:07 PM EST (02:07 UTC)
Expired
Mar 22, 2001, 3:00 AM EST
In force
6 hr
Issued by
NWS Baltimore/Washington
Area
Whole counties; the outline is the Mesonet’s reconstruction

Counties City of Winchester, VA, Frederick County, VA

The radar

The Sterling radar (KLWX), 72 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 02:07 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

Washington/Dulle, VA (KIAD), launched 00:00Z, 2.1 hours before the alert went out and 80 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, Washington/Dulle, VA at 00:00Z on 2001-03-22Temperature 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 km15 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Washington/Dulle, VA at 00:00Z on 2001-03-22The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 287 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
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL
437 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
48 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
287 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
264 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 
WGUS51 KLWX 220208
FFWLWX
VAC069-840-220800-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BALTIMORE-WASHINGTON
907 PM EST WED MAR 21 2001

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN STERLING VIRGINIA HAS ISSUED A

* FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR...
  CITY OF WINCHESTER IN NORTHWEST VIRGINIA
  FREDERICK COUNTY IN NORTHWEST VIRGINIA

* UNTIL 300 AM EST

* CREEKS AND SMALL STREAMS CONTINUE TO RISE WHICH HAVE CAUSED
ADDITIONAL ROAD CLOSURES AS REPORTED BY COUNTY EMERGENCY MANAGERS.

BE ESPECIALLY CAUTIOUS AT NIGHT WHEN IT IS HARDER TO RECOGNIZE THE
DANGERS OF FLOODS AND FLASH FLOODS. IF FLASH FLOODING IS OBSERVED ACT
QUICKLY. MOVE UP TO HIGHER GROUND TO ESCAPE FLOOD WATERS. QUICKLY
MOVE OUT OF AREAS SUBJECT TO FLOODING WHEN WATER BEGINS RISING.

IF WATER IS FLOWING ACROSS A ROADWAY TURN YOUR VEHICLE AROUND AND
FIND AN ALTERNATE ROUTE. THE WATER DEPTH MAY BE TOO GREAT TO ALLOW
YOUR CAR TO CROSS SAFELY. VEHICLES CAUGHT IN RISING WATER SHOULD BE
ABANDONED QUICKLY. MOVE TO HIGHER GROUND.

A FLASH FLOOD WARNING MEANS THAT FLOODING IS OCCURRING OR IS
IMMINENT. MOST FLASH FLOOD DEATHS OCCUR IN AUTOMOBILES. IF YOU
ENCOUNTER WATER FLOWING ACROSS BRIDGES...DIPS...OR OTHER LOW SPOTS
TURN AROUND AND FIND AN ALTERNATE ROUTE. NEVER TRY TO CROSS A FLOWING
STREAM...EVEN A SMALL ONE...ON FOOT. TO ESCAPE RISING WATER MOVE UP
TO HIGHER GROUND.

A FLASH FLOOD WARNING MEANS THAT FLOODING IS IMMINENT OR OCCURRING.
IF YOU ARE IN THE WARNING AREA MOVE TO HIGHER GROUND IMMEDIATELY.
RESIDENTS LIVING ALONG STREAMS AND CREEKS SHOULD TAKE IMMEDIATE
PRECAUTIONS TO PROTECT LIFE AND PROPERTY. DO NOT ATTEMPT TO CROSS
SWIFTLY FLOWING WATERS OR WATERS OF UNKNOQWN DEPTH BY FOOT OR BY
AUTOMOBILE. IF YOUR VEHICLE STALLS, ABANDON IT IMMEDIATELY AND SEEK
HIGHER GROUND.

LAT...LON 3914 7842 3905 7819 3926 7807 3939 7828

PAP/HTS

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 Baltimore/Washington wrote its last area forecast discussion before this flash flood warning went out at Mar 21, 3:55 PM EST, 5 hours 12 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Mar 21, 3:55 PM EST, 5 hours 12 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BALTIMORE/WASHINGTON
355 PM EST WED MAR 21 2001

WINTR WX ADVSRY AND WNTR STRM WARNING WILL BE ALLOWED TO EXPIRE WITH
THIS PACKAGE. ACCUM SNOWS ON THE RIDGES SHOULD BE DONE FOR NOW.

MAIN PRECIP SHIELD IS MOVING TO OUR N...BUT PLENTY OF SHRA STILL
LEFT TO OUR S. WILL GO LIKELY TNT AS THESE SLIDE OVER.

WRAPAROUND COULD STILL INSPIRE SOME SHRA IN THE AM THU...BUT THEN
SOME CLEARING THURS AFTERNOON. GRADIENT HOLDS TNT AND THUR...SO
DON/T SEE WINDS GOING ANYWHERE TNT AND THURS. WILL HOLD 20 TO 30 FOR
BOTH PERIODS. WITH WET GROUND AND BREEZY CONDITIONS THERE HAVE BEEN
SOME REPRTS OF SCATTERED POWR OUTAGES AND TREE DAMAGE TODAY.

FRI LOOKS GOOD WITH HIGHS NEAR 60...65 IN CENTRL VA AND MSUNNY
SKIES. THEN A CLIPPR COMES THRU SAT MORN.  MAIN VORT PASSES TO OUR N
SO DON/T EXPCT ANYTHING OTHER THAN 20 POP NEEDED...BUT TMPS WILL
FALL. 850MB TMPS GO DOWN TO -12.  SINCE THE COLD AIR TRIES TO COME
IN DURING THE DAYTIME...THINK SAT WILL STILL BE SEASONABLE FOR
TMPS...BUT BREEZY. THEN SUN...IT WILL BE COOL AND BREEZY. CHC OF
SHSN IN THE MNTS BOTH DAYS.

HIGH MOVES IF FOR MON INTO TUE...THEN WK COLD FRONT LATE TUE WITH
NOT MUCH TO OFFER. RH AND ENERGY WILL PASS EVEN A BIT FURTHER TO OUR
N.

CS
FCSTID = 78
DCA   43  50  35  60 /  70  40   0   0
BWI   41  48  32  60 /  70  50   0   0
MRB   40  47  32  60 /  70  30   0   0
IAD   41  50  33  60 /  70  40   0   0
CHO   40  55  33  65 /  70  60   0   0
HGR   40  47  32  60 /  70  30   0   0
NHK   41  50  33  60 /  70  40   0   0

.LWX...
DC...NONE.
MD...SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY FOR MD CHESAPEAKE BAY AND TIDAL POTOMAC.
VA...NONE.
WV...NONE.

Nearby

Flash Flood Warnings in Virginia, 2001Every flash flood warning in 2001

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.