Alert archive / Arizona / Flash Flood Warnings in 2002

Flash Flood Warning 57, NWS Flagstaff, AZ

September 10, 2002Apache County, Arizona

NWS Flagstaff, AZ issued this flash flood warning at Sep 10, 2002, 9:40 PM MST for Apache County, Arizona. It was in force for 65 min. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Sep 10, 2002, 9:40 PM MST (04:40 UTC)
Expired
Sep 10, 2002, 10:45 PM MST
In force
65 min
Issued by
NWS Flagstaff, AZ
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Apache County, AZ

The radar

The Flagstaff radar (KFSX), 249 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 04:44 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.

Did it verify

Not verified. The Iowa Environmental Mesonet's Cow found no qualifying storm report inside this flash flood warning while it was in force. That is not proof nothing happened: reports are thin where few people live.

Cow counts a report within 15 km of the polygon while the warning was in force: a tornado for a tornado warning; hail of 1 inch or more, a gust of 58 mph or more or wind damage for a severe thunderstorm warning; a flash flood report for a flash flood warning.

The nearest sounding before it

Flgstf/Belemont, AZ (KFGZ), launched 00:00Z, 4.7 hours before the alert went out and 242 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, Flgstf/Belemont, AZ at 00:00Z on 2002-09-11Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 213 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Flgstf/Belemont, AZ at 00:00Z on 2002-09-11The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 514 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
213 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-54 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
936 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
87 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
514 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
537 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.6
Supercell composite
10.5

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.

000 
WGUS55 KFGZ 110449
FFWFGZ
AZC001-110645-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FLAGSTAFF AZ
940 PM MST TUE SEP 10 2002

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A

* FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR...
  NORTH CENTRAL APACHE COUNTY IN NORTHEAST ARIZONA

* UNTIL 1145 PM MST (1245 PM MDT)

* AT 940 PM MST (1040 PM MDT)...THE NAVAJO POLICE DEPARTMENT IN 
CHINLE INDICATED FLOODING ALONG CHINLE WASH FROM CHINLE NORTHWARD TO 
ROCK POINT. EVACUATIONS WERE CONTINUING ALONG THE WASH. THE RIVER 
GAGE ON CHINLE CREEK SHOWED A FLOW OF 450 CUBIC FEET PER SECOND AT 6 
PM MST...UP FROM A READING OF ZERO CFS EARLIER IN THE AFTERNOON. 
LIGHT RAINFALL WILL CONTINUE OVER NORTHERN APACHE COUNTY THROUGH 100 
AM MDT WEDNESDAY MORNING. 

A FLASH FLOOD WARNING MEANS THAT FLOODING IS IMMINENT OR OCCURRING.
IF YOU ARE IN THE WARNING AREA MOVE TO HIGHER GROUND IMMEDIATELY. 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.

TO REPORT SEVERE WEATHER HAVE THE NEAREST LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY
RELAY YOUR REPORT TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FORECAST OFFICE.

LAT...LON 3603 10953 3608 10935 3673 10934 3676 10969

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 Flagstaff, AZ wrote its last area forecast discussion before this flash flood warning went out at Sep 10, 9:28 PM MST, 12 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Sep 10, 9:28 PM MST, 12 minutes before
NORTHERN ARIZONA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FLAGSTAFF AZ
925 MST TUE SEP 10 2002

.SYNOPSIS...TROPICAL MOISTURE WILL CONTINUE TO STREAM ACROSS ARIZONA
THROUGH WEDNESDAY. EXPECT NUMEROUS SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS TO
CONTINUE TONIGHT AND TOMORROW...BEFORE DIMINISHING IN COVERAGE LATER
IN THE WEEK. EXPECT A DRYING TREND WITH MOSTLY CLEAR SKIES BY THE
WEEKEND. TEMPERATURES WILL REMAIN BELOW NORMAL FOR THE NEXT FEW
DAYS...THEN RISE TO NORMAL BY THE WEEKEND.

.DISCUSSION...WILL HAVE TO MAKE THIS QUICK...AS EXTENSIVE CONVECTIVE
ACTIVITY CONTINUES TO BLANKET THE CWA. HAVE CONTINUED TO ISSUE
AND/OR EXTEND FLASH FLOOD WARNINGS AND URBAN AND SMALL STREAM FLOOD
ADVISORIES THROUGHOUT THE EVENING. AT LEAST IT LOOKS LIKE MOST OF
THIS AFTERNOONS SEVERE THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY HAS QUIETED
DOWN...EXCEPT OVER SOUTH CENTRAL YAVAPAI COUNTY. MAIN THREAT FOR THE
EVENING WILL BE FLOODING. WITH SATURATED SOILS...CONTINUED MODERATE
TO HEAVY RAINFALL...REPORTS OF FLOODING AND RISING STREAM LEVELS
THROUGHOUT THE AREA...WILL EXTEND THE FFA TIL MORNING. THINK
WEDNESDAY WILL BE ANOTHER ACTIVE DAY AS SOCAL LOW LIFTS NORTH AND
DYNAMICS REMAIN FAVORABLE.

KREITNER

.FGZ...FFA ALL ZONES UNTIL MIDNIGHT MST. WILL EXTEND FFA UNTIL 600
AM MST WEDNESDAY MORNING.

.CODED TEMPERATURES/POPS FOR SELECTED CITIES IN NORTHERN ARIZONA

CITY             TEMPERATURES LO/HI           PROBABILITY OF PRECIP
                 TON WED   THU     FRI        TON WED   THU     FRI
FLAGSTAFF        050/070 046/073 044/074      080 060 040 040 030 020
WINSLOW          058/077 056/080 054/081      070 050 040 030 020 000
PRESCOTT         057/077 054/081 053/082      080 060 040 030 020 000
PAGE             065/080 064/082 063/083      060 050 040 030 020 000
WINDOW ROCK      053/070 050/072 047/073      080 070 060 050 040 030
CANYON DE CHELLY 060/076 057/078 054/079      080 070 060 050 040 020
COTTONWOOD       065/088 062/092 061/093      080 060 040 030 020 000
GRAND CANYON     051/071 047/074 045/075      080 060 040 040 020 000
GREER            049/067 045/070 043/071      080 060 040 040 030 030
HEBER            053/075 049/078 047/079      080 060 040 040 030 020
JACOB LAKE       050/067 046/070 044/071      060 050 040 030 020 000
NAVAJO N.M.      059/068 056/070 053/071      070 050 040 030 020 020
PAYSON           057/081 054/085 053/086      070 050 040 030 020 000
SEDONA           064/085 061/089 060/090      080 060 040 030 020 000
SELIGMAN         050/080 047/084 046/085      080 060 040 040 020 000
SHOW LOW         059/076 055/079 053/080      080 060 040 040 030 030
ST. JOHNS        054/073 052/076 050/077      080 060 040 040 030 020
WUPATKI N.M.     060/079 058/082 056/083      070 050 040 030 020 000

The office that day

Everything else NWS Flagstaff, AZ issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Sep 10, 5:01 PM MSTTornado WarningFGZApache29 min
Sep 10, 5:01 PM MSTTornado WarningFGZApache29 min
Sep 10, 5:08 PM MSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGZCoconino, Gila37 min
Sep 10, 5:26 PM MSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGZCoconino, Yavapai34 min
Sep 10, 5:43 PM MSTFlash Flood WarningFGZCoconino, Yavapai2 hr
Sep 10, 5:44 PM MSTFlash Flood WarningFGZCoconino, Yavapai3 hr
Sep 10, 5:45 PM MSTFlash Flood WarningFGZApache, Navajo3 hr
Sep 10, 5:45 PM MSTFlash Flood WarningFGZApache, Navajo2 hr
Sep 10, 5:55 PM MSTFlash Flood WarningFGZCoconino2 hr
Sep 10, 5:58 PM MSTFlash Flood WarningFGZCoconino3 hr
Sep 10, 7:45 PM MSTFlash Flood WarningFGZApache105 min
Sep 10, 7:45 PM MSTFlash Flood WarningFGZApache45 min
Sep 10, 8:35 PM MSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGZYavapai25 min
Sep 10, 8:54 PM MSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGZYavapai36 min
Sep 10, 9:49 PM MSTFlash Flood WarningFGZApache116 min
Sep 11, 1:25 AM MSTFlash Flood WarningFGZCoconino3 hr
Sep 11, 1:25 AM MSTFlash Flood WarningFGZCoconino2 hr
Sep 11, 12:25 PM MSTFlash Flood WarningFGZCoconino3 hr
Sep 11, 12:25 PM MSTFlash Flood WarningFGZCoconino110 min
Sep 11, 12:28 PM MSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGZCoconino, Navajo32 min
Sep 11, 2:00 PM MSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGZNavajo45 min
Sep 11, 3:05 PM MSTFlash Flood WarningFGZCoconino3 hr
Sep 11, 3:05 PM MSTFlash Flood WarningFGZCoconino2 hr

Nearby

Flash Flood Warnings in Arizona, 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.