Alert archive / Alabama / Flash Flood Warnings in 2002

Flash Flood Warning 23, NWS Birmingham, AL

July 11, 2002Blount County, Jefferson County, Alabama

NWS Birmingham, AL issued this flash flood warning at Jul 11, 2002, 6:53 PM CDT for Blount County, Jefferson County, Alabama. It was in force for 112 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
Jul 11, 2002, 6:53 PM CDT (23:53 UTC)
Expired
Jul 11, 2002, 8:45 PM CDT
In force
112 min
Issued by
NWS Birmingham, AL
Area
Whole counties

Counties Blount County, AL, Jefferson County, AL

The radar

The Birmingham radar (KBMX), 66 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 23:54 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

Birmingham, AL (KBMX), launched 12:00Z, 11.9 hours before the alert went out and 65 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, Birmingham, AL at 12:00Z on 2002-07-11Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1620 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Birmingham, AL at 12:00Z on 2002-07-11The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 47 square meters per square second.1939Sfc1 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
1620 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-45 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
882 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
8 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
47 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
45 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 
WGUS54 KBMX 112353
FFWBHM
ALC009-073-120145-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
652 PM CDT THU JUL 11 2002

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN BIRMINGHAM HAS ISSUED A

* FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR...
  BLOUNT COUNTY IN ALABAMA
  JEFFERSON COUNTY IN ALABAMA

* UNTIL 845 PM CDT

* AT 652 PM CDT...WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED VERY HEAVY
  RAIN OVER CENTER POINT...TO GARDENDALE...TO ARKADELPHIA ROAD AREA.
  THESE SHOWERS ARE SLOWLY DRIFTING SOUTHWARD. HEAVY RAINFALL HAS CAUSED
  A MUD SLIDE ACROSS ARKADELPHIA ROAD IN JEFFERSON COUNTY...MAKING ROAD
  IMPASSABLE.  

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.

CALL 1-800-856-0758 TO REPORT SEVERE WEATHER.
$$
JBW
2 follow-up statements
000 
WGUS74 KBMX 120057
FFSBHM
ALC009-073-120145-

FLASH FLOOD STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
757 PM CDT THU JUL 11 2002

...FLASH FLOOD WARNING STILL IN EFFECT FOR JEFFERSON AND BLOUNT
COUNTIES THROUGH 845 PM...

A FLASH FLOOD WARNING IS STILL IN EFFECT FOR JEFFERSON AND BLOUNT
COUNTIES THROUGH 845 PM. AS OF 757 PM...JEFFERSON COUNTY EMA
OFFICIALS REPORTED THAT ONE HALF LANE OF ARKADELPHIA ROAD IN
NORTHEASTERN JEFFERSON COUNTY STILL REMAINED CLOSED DO TO A MUDSLIDE
REPORTED EARLIER THIS EVENING. RAIN CONTINUES TO FALL IN THIS AREA...
WITH DOPPLER RADAR ESTIMATES OF AROUND ONE QUARTER OF AN INCH AN
HOUR PRESENTLY...AND EXPECTED TO CONTINUE OVER THESE AREAS THROUGH
THE WARNING PERIOD. SATELLITE PRECIPITATION ESTIMATES SHOW BETWEEN
3 TO 4 INCHES OF RAINFALL HAVE FALLEN IN THESE AREAS OVER THE PAST
FEW HOURS.

ALTHOUGH RAINFALL RATES HAVE DECREASED SIGNIFICANTLY...ANY
ADDITIONAL RAINFALL...WITH SATURATED GROUND CONDITIONS...
AND SOME LOCATIONS REPORTING STANDING WATER ON ROADWAYS...COULD
CASE ADDITIONAL FLOODING IN JEFFERSON AND BLOUNT COUNTIES.
THUS...THE FLASH FLOOD WARNING WILL STILL CONTINUE THROUGH 845 PM.

EXERCISE CAUTION WHILE DRIVING ON AREA ROADWAYS. DO NOT CROSS ROADS
THAT ARE COVERED WITH WATER. IF POSSIBLE...USE HIGHER TERRAIN ROUTES
TO REACH DESIRED DESTINATIONS.

PLEASE STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO OR LOCAL TELEVISION AND
NEWS MEDIA TO GET ACCESS TO THE LATEST NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE
FOR FURTHER STATEMENTS ON THIS FLOODING EVENT.
$$
JBW
000 
WGUS74 KBMX 120153
FFSBHM
ALC009-073-120200-

FLASH FLOOD STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
852 PM CDT THU JUL 11 2002

...FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR JEFFERSON AND BLOUNT COUNTIES HAS
EXPIRED...

A FLASH FLOOD WARNING THAT WAS IN EFFECT FOR JEFFERSON AND BLOUNT
COUNTIES THROUGH 845 PM HAS EXPIRED.  AS OF 852 PM...SHOWERS AND
THUNDERSTORMS THAT CAUSED THE PREVIOUS FLOODING HAVE DISSIPATED...
AND ONLY VERY LIGHT RAINFALL IS FALLING OVER NORTHEASTERN JEFFERSON
COUNTY. THIS RAINFALL WILL TOTALLY DISSIPATE OVER THE NEXT HOUR.
THE THREAT FOR FLOODING IN THESE LOCATIONS HAVE SIGNIFICANTLY
DECREASED.

JEFFERSON COUNTY EMA OFFICIALS REPORTED THAT COUNTY WORKERS
HAVE CLEARED ARKADELPHIA ROAD OF PREVIOUS MUD SLIDE DEBRIS...AND
THE ROAD IS NOW OPEN.

HOWEVER...SOME PONDING OF WATER ON ISOLATED LOCATIONS ON AREA
ROADWAYS IS STILL POSSIBLE. REMEMBER...DO NOT CROSS ROADS
THAT ARE COVERED WITH WATER. IF POSSIBLE...USE HIGHER TERRAIN
ROUTES TO REACH DESIRED DESTINATIONS.
$$
JBW

Nearby

Flash Flood Warnings in Alabama, 2002Every flash flood warning in 2002

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.