Alert archive / Virginia / Flash Flood Warnings in 2001
Flash Flood Warning 7, NWS Baltimore/Washington
NWS Baltimore/Washington issued this flash flood warning at May 26, 2001, 8:26 PM EDT for Shenandoah County, Virginia. 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 outline the Iowa Environmental Mesonet reconstructed for it; the warning itself named whole counties.
The facts
- Issued
- May 26, 2001, 8:26 PM EDT (00:26 UTC)
- Expired
- May 26, 2001, 10:30 PM EDT
- In force
- 2 hr
- Issued by
- NWS Baltimore/Washington
- Area
- Whole counties; the outline is the Mesonet’s reconstruction
County Shenandoah County, VA
The radar
The Sterling radar (KLWX), 86 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 00:29 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, 0.4 hours before the alert went out and 93 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
- 309 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -12 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 541 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 51 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 103 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 102 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.1
- Supercell composite
- 0.6
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000 WGUS51 KLWX 270027 FFWLWX VAC171-270230- BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED FLASH FLOOD WARNING NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BALTIMORE-WASHINGTON 826 PM EDT SAT MAY 26 2001 THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN STERLING VIRGINIA HAS ISSUED A * FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR... SHENANDOAH COUNTY IN NORTHWEST VIRGINIA * UNTIL 1030 PM EDT * AT 819 PM EDT...WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR A BAND OF SLOW MOVING THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS NORTHERN AND WESTERN SECTIONS OF SHENANDOAH COUNTY. AUTOMATED RAIN GAGES HAVE REPORTED OVER ONE INCH OF RAINFALL IN A 15 MINUTE TIME SPAN NEAR MOUNT OLIVE. OTHER GAGES TO THE WEST OF WOODSTOCK ARE REPORTING OVER AN INCH AND A HALF OF RAIN DURING THE PAST HOUR. 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 UNKNOWN DEPTH BY FOOT OR BY AUTOMOBILE. IF YOUR VEHICLE STALLS, ABANDON IT IMMEDIATELY AND SEEK HIGHER GROUND. LAT...LON 3899 7857 3882 7852 3881 7842 3905 7832 .END/JM!
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 May 26, 2:16 PM EDT, 6 hours 10 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, May 26, 2:16 PM EDT, 6 hours 10 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BALTIMORE/WASHINGTON 216 PM EDT SAT MAY 26 2001 KLWX 88D OTS DUE TO FAILED PART. PART ON ORDER AND SHUD ARRIVE THIS EVENING. ALL THREE MDLS HV SIMILAR SOLNS THIS FCST PD. AXIS OF H5 S/W WHICH WAS PROVIDING LIFT TO SHRAS/TSRAS OVR ERN ZONES THIS AFTN PROGGED TO BE OVR CNTRL FA BY 00Z TNGT AND NE OF THE FA BY 06Z. ASSOCD RH WL BE OVR NE PTN OF FA BY 00Z THEN ATMOS DRIES OUT A BIT OVERNGT. WL CONT LIKELY POPS FOR THE EVE OVR ERN FA. OTHERWISE SKIES SHUD BE PC. HVIEST PCPN HAS NOT BEEN OVR THE MD ZONES W/LOWEST FFG SO NO NEED FOR FFA YET. WL CONT TO MONITOR. DWPTS IN U50S AND L60S WL KEEP TEMPS FM FALLING MUCH TNGT. THUS PREFER MAV TEMPS OVR LOWER FWC TEMPS. ON SUN...A FAIRLY STG VORT LOBE PROGGED TO PIVOT ARND GRT LAKES/OH VLLY UPR LOW INTO THE WRN ZONES. AREA OF HI RH AND DECENT UVV PROGGED TO ACCOMPANY THIS FEATURE AS IT ROTATES THRU THE NW PART OF THE FA. H85 WNDS WL INCR TO 25-30 KT. MDLS ALSO HV A SFC TROF MOVG E THRU FA DUR THE AFTN. THESE FACTORS SUPPORT THE FWC/MAV CHC POPS. PCPN WL MAINLY BE CONFINED TO THE AFTN. HIEST PROB WL BE IN NW. WL GO W/COMPROMISE BETW FWC/MAV FOR TEMPS SUN. SFC BDRY WL BE APPCHG ERN ZONES SUN EVE SO WL CONT CHC POPS THERE. WL OTHERWISE HV PC FOR SUN NIGHT. UPR LOW PROGGED TO SHIFT NE AND OPEN UP ON MON. H85 FLOW WL BE WESTERLY AND AMS WL CONT TO DRY OUT. WL HV P/S OR M/S. GUID TEMPS SUN NIGHT AND MON LUK RSNBL. IN THE EXTENDED PD...OLD MRF AND 12Z AVN BOTH HAD STG VORT PIVOTING THRU THE RGN ON WED BUT RH WAS LIMITED. WL GO MSTLY CLDY INSTEAD OF PC TO ACCT FOR THIS...OTRW XTENDED PD LUKS QUIET AND REFLECTS CURR FCST. .LWX... DC...NONE. MD...NONE. VA...NONE. WV...NONE. ARTHUR
In the hours before
Special weather statement, May 26, 6:09 PM EDT, 2 hours 17 minutes before
MDZ002-003-VAZ027-028-WVZ048>052-055-270130- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BALTIMORE-WASHINGTON 609 PM EDT SAT MAY 26 2001 ...SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS BRINGING HEAVY RAIN TO THE REGION... SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ARE INCREASING IN COVERAGE AND INTENSITY EARLY THIS EVENING ACROSS THE POTOMAC HIGHLANDS AND THE NORTHERN SHENANDOAH VALLEY. THESE STORMS HAVE BEEN MOVING VERY SLOWLY... AND ARE PRODUCING HEAVY RAINFALL. SOME LOCATIONS HAVE REPORTED OVER AN INCH AND A HALF OF RAIN IN THE SPAN OF ONE HOUR. THESE STORMS WILL CONTINUE TO PLAGUE THE AREA THROUGH SUNSET... AND WILL CONTINUE TO PRODUCE VERY HEAVY RAINFALL AMOUNTS. SOME PONDING OF WAkTER ON ROADWAYS IS LIKELY... AND PERSONS LIVING NEAR SMALL STREAMS AND CREEKS SHOULD WATCH FOR RAPID RISES IN WATER LEVELS. STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO AND OTHER LOCAL MEDIA FOR FURTHER DETAILS OR UPDATES. MARGRAF!
The office that day
Everything else NWS Baltimore/Washington issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 26, 8:13 PM EDT | Flash Flood Warning | LWX | Frederick, City of Winchester | 2 hr |
| May 26, 8:58 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | LWX | Clarke | 32 min |
| May 26, 10:19 PM EDT | Flash Flood Warning | LWX | Frederick | 3 hr |
| May 27, 1:05 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | LWX | Clarke, Frederick | 40 min |
| May 27, 1:05 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | LWX | Shenandoah, Warren | 40 min |
| May 27, 1:05 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | LWX | City of Winchester | 40 min |
| May 27, 1:31 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | LWX | Clarke, Warren | 29 min |
| May 27, 1:50 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | LWX | Clarke, Fauquier, Loudoun | 40 min |
| May 27, 2:25 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | LWX | Fairfax, Loudoun | 50 min |
| May 27, 2:35 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | LWX | Prince William, City of Manassas, City of Manassas Park | 40 min |
| May 27, 2:35 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | LWX | Fauquier | 40 min |
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.