Alert archive / Texas / Flash Flood Warnings in 2002

Flash Flood Warning 7, NWS Houston/Galveston, TX

July 14, 2002Grimes County, Texas

NWS Houston/Galveston, TX issued this flash flood warning at Jul 14, 2002, 11:35 AM CDT for Grimes County, Texas. It was in force for 55 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
Jul 14, 2002, 11:35 AM CDT (16:35 UTC)
Expired
Jul 14, 2002, 12:30 PM CDT
In force
55 min
Issued by
NWS Houston/Galveston, TX
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Grimes County, TX

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

Lake Charles Mun, LA (KLCH), launched 12:00Z, 4.6 hours before the alert went out and 271 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, Lake Charles Mun, LA at 12:00Z on 2002-07-14Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 2306 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, Lake Charles Mun, LA at 12:00Z on 2002-07-14The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 51 square meters per square second.193958Sfc1 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
2306 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-12 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
580 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
27 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
51 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
46 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
1.9

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WGUS54 KHGX 141635
FFWHOU
TXC185-141730-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON/GALVESTON TX
1134 AM CDT SUN JUL 14 2002

THE HOUSTON/GALVESTON NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A

* FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR...
  GRIMES COUNTY IN SOUTHEAST TEXAS

* UNTIL 1230 PM CDT

* AT 1130 AM CDT...MODERATE TO HEAVY RAINS CONTINUE TO FALL ACROSS 
MUCH OF GRIMES COUNTY. RADAR ESTIMATES SHOW 4 TO 6 INCHES OF RAIN 
HAS FALLEN IN THE PAST THREE HOURS ACROSS THE SOUTHERN PORTIONS OF 
THE COUNTY. NAVASOTA RECEIVED 2 TO 3 INCHES OF RAIN IN TWO HOURS. 
FLASH FLOODING IS EXPECTED TO BEGIN ALONG CREEKS AND NORMALLY FLOOD 
PRONE LOCATIONS ACROSS THE COUNTY AS ADDITIONAL SHOWERS AND 
THUNDERSTORMS TO THE WEST MOVE INTO GRIMES COUNTY. AN ADDITIONAL 1 
TO 3 INCHES OF RAIN IS POSSIBLE IN THE NEXT HOUR.

* FLOODING IS EXPECTED IN OR NEAR...
  ROANS PRAIRIE...RICHARDS...PLANTERSVILLE...IOLA...ANDERSON...      
  CARLOS...CROSS...BEDIAS

DO NOT CROSS ANY LOCATION WHERE WATER COVERS THE ROAD

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 3086 9588 3026 9581 3023 9607 3084 9618

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 Houston/Galveston, TX wrote its last area forecast discussion before this flash flood warning went out at Jul 14, 10:00 AM CDT, 1 hour 35 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 14, 10:00 AM CDT, 1 hour 35 minutes before
SOUTHEAST TEXAS FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON/GALVESTON TX
1000 AM CDT SUN JUL 14 2002

CONVECTION INCREASING ACROSS NW ZONES THIS MORNING THANKS TO UVV
FROM SHORTWAVE WHICH IS NOW MOVING ACROSS NE TX. 12Z 850/700 MB
ANALYSIS SHOWS SLIGHTLY LESS MOISTURE OVER CWA THAN YESTERDAY WITH
DEWPOINTS RUNNING 2-3 C LOWER. HOWEVER DYNAMIC FORCING APPEARS MORE
FAVORABLE FOR CONVECTION TODAY. ANALYZED 50-60 KT JET STREAK OVER NE
TX/NRN LOUISIANA WITH CWA LIKELY TO REMAIN IN RRQ OF JET THROUGH
TONIGHT. FCST MODEL SOUNDINGS DEPICT UNCAPPED ATMOSPHERE WITH
CONVECTIVE TEMPS IN THE MID 80S AND PWS HOVERING AROUND 2-2.1
INCHES. DEVELOPING MESOSCALE BOUNDARIES/OUTFLOWS WILL FOCUS AREAS OF
HEAVIEST RAINFALL...WITH PRIMARY CONVERGENT AREA LIKELY TO BE NW-SE
ACROSS THE CENTRAL ZONES.

WILL KEEP FFA GOING FOR ENTIRE CWA AS IT WILL ONLY TAKE 2-3 INCHES
IN THE AREAS THAT WERE HIT HARD YESTERDAY TO PRODUCE FLASH FLOODING.
WILL LOWER SW ZONES TO 50 POPS WITH SLIGHTLY DRIER AIR IN PLACE.
TEMPS RUNNING MUCH COOLER THAN YESTERDAY AND WITH EXPECTED CLOUD
COVER/PRECIP WILL LOWER INLAND SECTIONS SEVERAL DEGREES.

35/42

.HGX...FFA ALL ZONES THROUGH TONIGHT.

PRELIMS...
CLL TT 086/073 090/073 092 766
IAH TT 087/073 090/073 092 766
GLS TT 088/078 087/078 088 766 SW ZONES 566

PREVIOUS DISCUSSION...
ATMOS HAS STABILIZED IN THE WAKE OF THE WIDESPREAD
CONVECTION DURING THE EVENING HOURS OVER SE TX. RECEIVED VERY
IMPRESSIVE RAINFALL RATES IN TROPICAL AIRMASS WHICH LED TO FLASH
FLOODING IN WHARTON COUNTY AND URBAN STREET FLOODING IN HARRIS
COUNTY.

MAIN ISSUE FOR THE UPCOMING PACKAGE IS HEAVY RAIN/FLOODING THREAT.
OVERALL SYNOPTIC SITUATION CHANGES LITTLE TODAY AND TONIGHT AND FOR
THAT REASON WILL FORECAST LIKELY POPS ALL AREAS TODAY. MESOSCALE
BOUNDARIES WILL DICTATE WHO RECEIVES THE MOST RAINFALL TODAY AND
TONIGHT. WILL THEREFORE NOT TRY TO SELECT ANY FAVORED AREAS WHEN PW
VALES ARE A LITTLE OVER 2 INCHES AREAWIDE. SHORT WAVE ENERGY WILL
CONTINUE TO ROTATE AROUND THE UPPER LOW AND MOVE ACROSS FA THROUGH
MONDAY. SO ONCE ATMOSPHERE RECOVERS...SHWRS AND TSTMS SHOULD
BEGIN TO DEVELOP OVER THE AREA. BELIEVE SCT SHWRS AND TSTMS WILL
DEVELOP SOMETIME THIS MORNING AND COVERAGE WILL INCREASE DURING THE
AFT/EVE HOURS. BELIEVE FLASH FLOOD WATCH IS A GOOD IDEA. HOWEVER...I
HAVE DECIDED TO INCLUDE ALL ZONES DUE TO THE POTENTIAL OF VERY HIGH
HOURLY RAINFALL RATES (4 INCHES/HR) AND THE POSSIBILITY OF
BACKBUILDING AND TRAINING AGAIN IN DIFFLUENT UPPER LEVEL FLOW.

TUE-FRI PERIOD OF THE FORECAST DOES NOT LOOK MUCH
DIFFERENT...ALTHOUGH I QUESTION HOW FAST TROPICAL MOISTURE WILL
ACTUALLY SHIFT NW OF REGION AS AVN IS ADVERTISING AND HAVE RAISED
TUES POPS ESPECIALLY FOR WESTERN ZONES. TEMPS ARE EXPECTED TO WARM
BACK INTO THE MID 90S ON WED.

THANKS LCH FOR COORD.

33/41

The office that day

Everything else NWS Houston/Galveston, TX issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jul 13, 7:06 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHGXBurleson, Washington39 min
Jul 13, 7:36 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHGXAustin, Washington21 days
Jul 13, 7:58 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningHGXWharton3 hr
Jul 13, 11:03 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningHGXWharton4 hr
Jul 14, 9:45 AM CDTFlash Flood WarningHGXBrazos3 hr
Jul 14, 12:29 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningHGXBrazos, Grimes2 hr

Nearby

Flash Flood Warnings in Texas, 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.