Flash Flood Warning 47, NWS Houston/Galveston, TX

Issued

Sep 19, 2002, 11:18 PM CDT (04:18 UTC)

Expired

Sep 20, 2002, 2:15 AM CDT

In force

3 hr

Issued by

NWS Houston/Galveston, TX

Area

Counties, with a storm outline in the text

Counties Austin County, TX, Fort Bend County, TX, Wharton County, TX

The Houston radar (KHGX), 91 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 04:17 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.

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.

000 
WGUS54 KHGX 200418
FFWHOU
TXC015-157-481-200715-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON/GALVESTON TX
1116 PM CDT THU SEP 19 2002

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN LEAGUE CITY HAS ISSUED A

* FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR...
  AUSTIN COUNTY IN SOUTHEAST TEXAS
  FORT BEND COUNTY IN SOUTHEAST TEXAS
  WHARTON COUNTY IN SOUTHEAST TEXAS

* UNTIL 215 AM CDT

* AT 1112 PM CDT...DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED VERY HEAVY RAINFALL 
  OCCURRING OVER SOUTHERN AUSTIN COUNTY AND THE NORTHERN PORTIONS OF 
  FORT BEND AND WHARTON COUNTIES.

* FLOODING IS EXPECTED IN OR NEAR...
  PIERCE...WHARTON...WALLIS...SIMONTON

RADAR ESTIMATES OF UP TO 3.5 INCHES PER HOUR WERE OCCURRING OVER 
THESE LOCATIONS AT 1115 PM.  THE THUNDERSTORMS PRODUCING THE 
RAINFALL WILL CONTINUE OVER AN AREA BETWEEN EGYPT...WALLIS...AND 
FULSHEAR THROUGH MIDNIGHT.  RAINFALL AMOUNTS OF 3 TO 6 INCHES ARE 
POSSIBLE BY 1 AM.

DO NOT CROSS ANY LOCATION WHERE WATER COVERS THE ROAD

USE EXTRA CAUTION AT NIGHT WHEN IT IS HARDER TO RECOGNIZE THE DEPTH
AND SPEED OF FLASH FLOOD WATERS.

PLEASE REPORT FLOODING TO THE COUNTY SHERIFF...LOCAL POLICE...OR
DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY. THEY WILL RELAY YOUR REPORT TO THE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE.

LAT...LON 2979 9583 2968 9563 2920 9622 2935 9640
          2968 9616 2975 9595

NWS Houston/Galveston, TX wrote its last area forecast discussion before this flash flood warning went out at Sep 19, 8:59 PM CDT, 2 hours 19 minutes earlier.

SOUTHEAST TEXAS FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON/GALVESTON TX
859 PM CDT THU SEP 19 2002

A COMBINATION OF A STRONG COLD FRONT AND SHORTWAVE TROUGHS AHEAD OF
THE MAIN UPPER TROUGH WILL PROVIDE FOR THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS SE TX
TONIGHT.  THE MAIN PROBLEM CONCERNS RAINFALL AMOUNTS...POPS...AND
STRENGTH OF STORMS.  THE 18Z AVN LOOKS TO BE THE BEST MODEL WITH THE
00Z RUC AGREEING.  BOTH BRING THE COLD FRONT THROUGH CLL BY 06Z...IAH
AND THE COASTAL AREAS NEAR MATAGORDA BY AROUND 09Z OR 10Z...AND THE
UPPER COAST AROUND 12Z.

THE 01Z SURFACE ANALYSIS SHOWED THE FRONT THROUGH A KACT TO KSAT
LINE...WHILE A TROUGH WAS FROM KBPT TO JUST EAST OF KLBX.  AN MCS
FORMED OVER EASTERN HARRIS AND LIBERTY COUNTIES EARLIER AND CONVECTION
HAS CONTINUED TO FIRE ALONG THE SURFACE TROUGH OVER CHAMBERS AND
NORTHERN GALVESTON COUNTIES.  HEAVY RAINFALL CONTINUES TO BE A
THREAT...RAINFALL RATES BETWEEN 8 AND 9 PM HERE AT THE OFFICE HAS BEEN
FROM 2 TO 3 INCHES PER HOUR.  THIS IS REASONABLE GIVEN THE PW/S AND
MOISTURE ALOFT.  THE PW OF 2.54 INCHES AT LCH MAY BE A BIT SUSPECT
GIVEN THE SOUNDING WAS SATURATED BETWEEN 900 AND 775 MB...YET CRP WAS
AT 2.60.  THESE VALUES ARE AT OR ABOVE THE MAXIMUM FOR THE HISTORICAL
DATA FOR THIS DATE.  DEWPOINTS IN EXCESS OF 8 AT 700 MB AND 18 AT 850
MB WERE RIGHT ALONG THE UPPER TX COAST.  OTHER CONVECTION WAS FIRING
OVER THE MID TEXAS COAST IN ASSOCIATION WITH A SHORTWAVE TROUGH
EVIDENT ON THE 850...700...AND 500 MB SURFACES.  THESE STORMS SHOULD
AFFECT MAINLY THE COASTAL COUNTIES.  FEEL THAT THE THREAT FOR HEAVY
RAINFALL WILL BE OVER THE COASTAL COUNTIES...INCLUDING HARRIS AND
LIBERTY COUNTIES...AND NOT THE CENTRAL OR WESTERN COUNTIES.  THE
SEVERE THREAT LOOKS TO BE DIMINISHED.  WILL UPDATE TO MAKE THESE
CHANGES AND TO LOWER POPS OVER THE INLAND COUNTIES.

PL-40
43

.HGX...NONE.

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

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.