Alert archive / Virginia / Flash Flood Warnings in 2003

Flash Flood Warning 2, NWS Wakefield, VA

May 25, 2003Mecklenburg County, Virginia

NWS Wakefield, VA issued this flash flood warning at May 25, 2003, 9:19 PM EDT for Mecklenburg County, Virginia. It was in force for 5 hr. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued: May 25, 2003, 9:19 PM EDT (01:19 UTC)
Expired: May 26, 2003, 2:15 AM EDT
In force: 5 hr
Issued by: NWS Wakefield, VA
Area: Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Mecklenburg County, VA

The nearest sounding before it

Roanoke, VA (KRNK), launched 00:00Z, 1.3 hours before the alert went out and 111 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-p

Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.

Hodograph

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: 77 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -15 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 953 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 61 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 31 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 162 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 0.3

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WGUS51 KAKQ 260121
FFWAKQ
VAC117-260620-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WAKEFIELD VA
919 PM EDT SUN MAY 25 2003

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN WAKEFIELD HAS ISSUED A

* FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR...
  MECKLENBURG COUNTY IN SOUTH CENTRAL VIRGINIA

* UNTIL 215 AM EDT

* AT 915 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED   
  A LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS WITH VERY HEAVY RAINFALL EXTENDING FROM    
  JUST WEST OF SOUTH HILL TO CLARKSVILLE AND BUFFALO                 
  SPRINGS...DRIFTING NORTH AT 5 MPH.  DOPPLER RADAR ESTIMATED 1 TO 2 
  INCHES OF RAIN PER HOUR.

* SLOW MOVING THUNDERSTORMS ARE PRODUCING TORRENTIAL RAINFALL IN THE
  WARNED AREA. RUNOFF FROM THIS EXCESSIVE RAINFALL WILL CAUSE FLASH
  FLOODING TO OCCUR. SOME LOCATIONS THAT WILL EXPERIENCE FLASH
  FLOODING INCLUDE...SOUTH HILL...CHASE CITY...HITESBURG...
  CLARKSVILLE AND BOYDTON.

EXCESSIVE RUNOFF FROM THIS STORM WILL CAUSE FLASH FLOODING OF SMALL 
CREEKS AND STREAMS...HIGHWAYS AND UNDERPASSES. ADDITIONALLY...COUNTRY
ROADS AND FARMLANDS ALONG THE BANKS OF CREEKS AND STREAMS AND OTHER 
LOW LYING AREAS ARE SUBJECT TO FLASH FLOODING.

BE ESPECIALLY CAUTIOUS AT NIGHT WHEN IT IS HARDER TO RECOGNIZE THE
DANGERS OF FLOODS AND FLASH FLOODS. IF FLASH FLOODING IS OBSERVED ACT
QUICKLY. MOVE UP TO HIGHER GROUND TO ESCAPE FLOOD WATERS. DO NOT STAY
IN AREAS SUBJECT TO FLOODING WHEN WATER BEGINS RISING.

LAT...LON 3681 7851 3659 7880 3658 7815 3676 7810
$$

NS

1 follow-up statement

000 
WGUS71 KAKQ 260358
FFSAKQ
VAC111-117-260615-

FLASH FLOOD STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WAKEFIELD VA
1152 PM EDT SUN MAY 25 2003

...A FLASH FLOOD WARNING CONTINUES UNTIL 215 AM EDT FOR LUNENBURG 
AND MECKLENBURG COUNTIES...

AT 1150 PM...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A 
NEARLY STATIONARY BAND OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS OVER MECKLENBURG 
AND LUNENBURG COUNTIES.  LOCALLY 3 TO 5 INCHES OF RAIN HAS FALLEN 
FROM BUFFALO SPRINGS THROUGH CHASE CITY AND KENBRIDGE.  AN 
ADDITIONAL 1 TO 3 INCHES OF RAIN IS LIKELY IN THESE AREAS THROUGH 2 
AM.

THE HEAVY RAINFALL WAS CAUSING FLASH FLOODING IN AREAS AROUND CHASE 
CITY AND KENBRIDGE...WHERE MANY ROADS ARE CLOSED...AND RESCUES FROM 
HOUSES AND CARS CONTINUE.

EXCESSIVE RUNOFF FROM THIS STORM WILL CAUSE FLASH FLOODING OF SMALL 
CREEKS AND STREAMS...HIGHWAYS AND UNDERPASSES. ADDITIONALLY...COUNTRY
ROADS AND FARMLANDS ALONG THE BANKS OF CREEKS AND STREAMS AND OTHER 
LOW LYING AREAS ARE SUBJECT TO FLASH FLOODING.

BE ESPECIALLY CAUTIOUS AT NIGHT WHEN IT IS HARDER TO RECOGNIZE THE
DANGERS OF FLOODS AND FLASH FLOODS. IF FLASH FLOODING IS OBSERVED ACT
QUICKLY. MOVE UP TO HIGHER GROUND TO ESCAPE FLOOD WATERS. DO NOT STAY
IN AREAS SUBJECT TO FLOODING WHEN WATER BEGINS RISING.

$$

NS
&&
LAT...LON 3671 7847 3668 7825 3698 7807 3708 7843

The office that day

Everything else NWS Wakefield, VA issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
May 25, 10:06 PM EDT	Flash Flood Warning	AKQ	Lunenburg	4 hr
May 25, 11:20 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	AKQ	Dinwiddie	30 min
May 26, 12:54 AM EDT	Flash Flood Warning	AKQ	Nottoway	4 hr
May 26, 1:45 AM EDT	Flash Flood Warning	AKQ	Lunenburg, Mecklenburg	3 hr
May 26, 2:06 AM EDT	Flash Flood Warning	AKQ	Chesterfield, Dinwiddie	3 hr

Nearby

Flash Flood Warnings in Virginia, 2003 Every flash flood warning in 2003

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.