Alert archive / Alabama / Flash Flood Warnings in 2002
Flash Flood Warning 34, NWS Birmingham, AL
NWS Birmingham, AL issued this flash flood warning at Sep 22, 2002, 7:27 AM CDT for Jefferson County, Shelby County, Talladega County, Alabama. It was in force for 4 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
- Sep 22, 2002, 7:27 AM CDT (12:27 UTC)
- Expired
- Sep 22, 2002, 11:15 AM CDT
- In force
- 4 hr
- Issued by
- NWS Birmingham, AL
- Area
- Whole counties
Counties Jefferson County, AL, Shelby County, AL, Talladega County, AL
The radar
The Birmingham radar (KBMX), 31 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 12:26 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, 0.5 hours before the alert went out and 31 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
- 356 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -47 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 647 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 27 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- -125 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- -89 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- -0.1
- Supercell composite
- -0.8
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000 WGUS54 KBMX 221227 FFWBHM ALC073-117-121-221615- BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED FLASH FLOOD WARNING NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL 725 AM CDT SUN SEP 22 2002 THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN BIRMINGHAM HAS EXTENDED A * FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR... JEFFERSON COUNTY IN ALABAMA SHELBY COUNTY IN ALABAMA TALLADEGA COUNTY IN EAST CENTRAL ALABAMA * UNTIL 1115 AM CDT * AT 725 AM CDT...WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED ADDITIONAL VERY HEAVY RAIN WILL BE SPREADING INTO MOST OF JEFFERSON...SHELBY ...AND TALLADEGA COUNTIES FROM THE WEST...DURING THE NEXT SEVERAL HOURS. THIS AREA HAS ALREADY RECEIVED 4 TO 6 INCHES OF RAIN SINCE MIDNIGHT...AND ADDITIONAL TOTALS COULD EXCEED 3 INCHES. THIS WILL WORSEN FLOODING THAT IS ALREADY UNDERWAY...AND WILL LIKELY CAUSE ADDITIONAL FLOODING. THIS IS A DANGEROUS...LIFE THREATENING SITUATION...AND EVERY PRECAUTION SHOULD BE TAKEN TO AVOID LOSS OF LIFE AND PROERTY. EXTENSIVE FLOODING IS EXPECTED. MOTORISTS SHOULD AVOID WATER COVERED ROADS...AND FIND ALTERNATIVE ROUTES.
2 follow-up statements
000 WGUS74 KBMX 221446 FFSBHM ALC073-117-121-221615- FLASH FLOOD STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL 945 AM CDT SUN SEP 22 2002 A FLASH FLOOD WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR SHELBY...TALLADEGA AND JEFFERSON COUNTIES UNTIL 1115 AM CDT. AT 941 AM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED MODERATE TO HEAVY RAINFALL CONTINUING MAINLY ACROSS SOUTHERN PORTIONS OF JEFFERSON...SHELBY AND TALLADEGA COUNTIES. THIS HEAVY RAIN WILL CONTINUE MOVE SOUTHEAST ACROSS THE AREA THROUGH 11 AM. PARTS OF THE WARNING AREA HAVE RECEIVED UP TO 6 INCHES OF RAIN SINCE MIDNIGHT... AND AND ADDITIONAL 1 TO 2 INCHES...OR MORE...OF RAIN IS POSSIBLE. CONSIDERABLE FLASH FLOODING IS EXPECTED. DO NOT DRIVE YOUR VEHICLE INTO AREAS WHERE THE WATER COVERS THE ROADWAY. 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.
000 WGUS74 KBMX 221617 FFSBHM ALC073-117-121-221630- FLASH FLOOD STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL 1116 AM CDT SUN SEP 22 2002 THE FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR SHELBY...TALLADEGA AND JEFFERSON COUNTIES HAS BEEN ALLOWED TO EXPIRE... AT 1116 AM CDT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR INDICATED THAT RAINFALL HAS DIMINISHED ACROSS SHELBY...TALLADEGA AND JEFFERSON COUNTIES. REPORTS ACROSS THE AREA ALSO SHOW THAT THE FLOODING THREAT HAS DIMISHED...THUS THE WARNING HAS BEEN ALLOWED TO EXPIRE. DURING HEAVY RAINS...KEEP CHILDREN AWAY FROM STORM DRAINS... DITCHES...CREEKS AND STREAMS. SHALLOW...GENTLY FLOWING WATER CAN BECOME A RAGING TORRENT IN A MATTER OF MINUTES WHEN HEAVY RAINS OCCUR. KEEP IN MIND THAT...THIS DEEP...FAST MOVING WATER WILL CONTINUE FOR SEVERAL HOURS AFTER THE RAINS HAVE STOPPED.
The office that day
Everything else NWS Birmingham, AL issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 22, 1:56 AM CDT | Flash Flood Warning | BMX | Clay, Randolph | 4 hr |
| Sep 22, 3:32 AM CDT | Flash Flood Warning | BMX | Jefferson, St. Clair, Shelby, Talladega | 4 hr |
| Sep 22, 4:58 AM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Talladega | 47 min |
| Sep 22, 5:24 AM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Coosa | 51 min |
| Sep 22, 6:03 AM CDT | Flash Flood Warning | BMX | Chilton, Coosa | 4 hr |
| Sep 22, 6:56 AM CDT | Flash Flood Warning | BMX | Bibb, Tuscaloosa | 4 hr |
| Sep 22, 10:00 AM CDT | Flash Flood Warning | BMX | Chilton, Coosa | 60 min |
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.