Alert archive / Texas / Flash Flood Warnings in 2003

Flash Flood Warning 60, NWS Austin/San Antonio, TX

July 16, 2003Karnes County, Texas

NWS Austin/San Antonio, TX issued this flash flood warning at Jul 16, 2003, 1:27 PM CDT for Karnes County, Texas. It was in force for 2 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
Jul 16, 2003, 1:27 PM CDT (18:27 UTC)
Expired
Jul 16, 2003, 3:30 PM CDT
In force
2 hr
Issued by
NWS Austin/San Antonio, TX
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Karnes County, TX

The radar

The Austin/San Antonio radar (KEWX), 101 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 18:30 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

Corpus Christi, TX (KCRP), launched 12:00Z, 6.5 hours before the alert went out and 131 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, Corpus Christi, TX at 12:00Z on 2003-07-16Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 2535 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, Corpus Christi, TX at 12:00Z on 2003-07-16The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity -5 square meters per square second.1939Sfc1 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
2535 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-8 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
625 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
13 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
-5 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
18 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WGUS54 KEWX 161827
FFWSAT
TXC255-162030-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AUSTIN/SAN ANTONIO TX
127 PM CDT WED JUL 16 2003

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN AUSTIN SAN ANTONIO HAS ISSUED A

* FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES...
  KARNES

* UNTIL 330 PM CDT

* AT 127 PM...WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED VERY HEAVY RAIN
  6 MILES SOUTHEAST OF KENEDY...MOVING NORTHWEST AT 25 MPH.

THIS AREA HAS ALREADY SEEN AS MUCH AS 7 INCHES OF RAIN OVER THE PAST 
30 HOURS. ADDITIONAL RAINFALL AMOUNTS OF 1 TO 2 INCHES ARE 
EXPECTED...AND THIS WILL QUICKLY CAUSE FLASH FLOODING OF SMALL 
CREEKS AND STREAMS AS WELL AS LOW WATER CROSSINGS AND UNDERPASSES ON 
URBAN AND RURAL ROADWAYS.

MOST FLASH FLOOD DEATHS OCCUR IN AUTOMOBILES. DO NOT ATTEMPT TO 
CROSS BRIDGES...DIPS...OR OTHER LOW SPOTS IF WATER COVERS THE 
ROADWAY. NEVER TRY TO CROSS A FLOWING STREAM...EVEN A SMALL ONE...ON 
FOOT. TO ESCAPE RISING WATER MOVE UP TO HIGHER GROUND.


LAT...LON 2872 9797 2873 9787 2871 9776 2882 9761
          2907 9779 2889 9811

$$

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 Austin/San Antonio, TX wrote its last area forecast discussion before this flash flood warning went out at Jul 16, 7:00 AM CDT, 6 hours 27 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 16, 7:00 AM CDT, 6 hours 27 minutes before
SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS FORECAST DISCUSSION UPDATED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AUSTIN/SAN ANTONIO TX
700 AM CDT WED JUL 16 2003

RAIN BANDS ASSOCIATED WITH CLAUDETTE EXPECTED TO AFFECT THE AREA
THROUGH THE MORNING BECOMING SCATTERED AREAS OF RAIN EVOLVING IN
THE AFTERNOON.  WILL GO FOR FLASH FLOOD WATCH THRU NOON FOR PARTS
OF SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS AND HILL COUNTRY.   SHOWERS EXPECTED TO
DIMINISH THIS EVENING OVER EAST PART OF AREA AND CONTINUE OVER
WESTERN PORTIONS OF SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS THROUGH THE EVENING AND
TO EARLY MORNING HOURS.  ON THURSDAY EXPECT SCATTERED SHOWERS
AND THUNDERSTORMS TO FORM WITH DAYTIME HEATING AND THEN DIMINISH
QUICKLY IN THE EARLY EVENING.

MORE STABLE CONDITIONS EXPECTED FRIDAY...WITH WIDELY SCATTERED
SHOWERS.  HIGH ALOFT BUILDS STEADILY OVER SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS
SATURDAY THROUGH TUESDAY...BRINGING STABLE JULY WX PATTERN TO
THE AREA.  WILL GO FOR LITTLE OR NO RAIN THIS WEEKEND TO THE
EARLY PART OF NEXT WEEK.

PRELIMS...
AUS 089/073 092/071 095 52402
DRT 086/073 093/074 095 96422
SAT 087/073 091/074 091 83402

.EWX...HIGH WIND WARNING THRU NOON FOR VAL VERDE COUNTY.
       WIND ADVISORY FOR THE WEST AND SOUTHWEST PART OF
       SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS THRU 4 PM
       FLASH FLOOD WATCH FOR PART OF S CNTRL TX ALONG A WEST OF A
       JOHNSON CITY TO SAN MARCOS TO HALLETTSVILLE LINE THRU NOON
       TODAY.
Hazardous weather outlook, Jul 16, 5:00 AM CDT, 8 hours 27 minutes before
TXZ171>173-183>194-202>209-217>225-228-171000-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AUSTIN/SAN ANTONIO TX
500 AM CDT WED JUL 16 2003

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS.

.DAY ONE...TODAY
CLAUDETTE WILL CONTINUE TO PRODUCE A THREAT OF HEAVY RAIN AND FLASH
FLOODING TODAY OVER MUCH OF SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS AND THE HILL
COUNTRY.  BANDS OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WITH HEAVY WILL
CONTINUE TO SPREAD NORTHWARD INTO THE AREA.  THERE IS ALSO A
SECONDARY THREAT OF ISOLATED SHORT LIVED TORNADOES.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...
CLAUDETTE WILL MOVE WELL WEST INTO MEXICO AND WEST TEXAS BY DAY
TWO...HOWEVER THERE WILL STILL BE A CHANCE OF RESIDUAL SHOWERS AND
THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS THE AREA.  HOWEVER NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS
EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...
SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE REQUIRED TODAY.

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Jul 16, 11:36 AM CDT, 1 hour 51 minutes before
TXZ171>173-183>194-202>209-217>225-228-161715-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AUSTIN/SAN ANTONIO TX
1136 AM CDT WED JUL 16 2003

...AN URBAN AND SMALL STREAM FLOOD ADVISORY IS IN EFFECT FOR DEWITT
COUNTY UNTIL 1 PM TODAY...
...AN URBAN AND SMALL STREAM FLOOD ADVISORY IS IN EFFECT FOR EDWARDS
COUNTY UNTIL 1230 PM TODAY...
...AN URBAN AND SMALL STREAM FLOOD ADVISORY IS IN EFFECT FOR
KINNEY...MAVERICK AND VAL VERDE COUNTIES UNTIL NOON TODAY...
...A FLASH FLOOD WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR THE WESTERN THREE-QUARTERS
OF SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS INCLUDING DEL RIO AND SAN ANTONIO UNTIL 6 PM
TODAY...
...A WIND ADVISORY IS IN EFFECT FOR VAL VERDE COUNTY UNTIL 6 PM
TODAY...

REMNANTS OF TROPICAL STORM CLAUDETTE...CENTERED AROUND 40 MILES WEST
OF LAKE AMISTAD AT 1136 PM...WILL CONTINUE TO WESTWARD AND AWAY FROM
SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS THIS AFTERNOON. HOWEVER...STRONG THUNDERSTORMS
INDIRECTLY ASSOCIATED WITH CLAUDETTE CONTINUE TO MOVE ONSHORE OVER
EASTERN PORTIONS OF SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS. THESE THUNDERSTORMS HAVE
THE POTENTIAL TO PRODUCE LOCALLY HEAVY DOWNPOURS OF 2 TO 4 INCHES OF
ADDITIONAL RAINFALL OVER VERY SATURATED SOILS.

FLASH FLOOD WARNINGS MAY NEED TO BE ISSUED OVER COUNTIES IN THE
EASTERN HALF OF SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS IN THE NEXT HOUR OR TWO AS THESE
THUNDERSTORMS CONTINUE TO INCREASE IN INTENSITY AND AREAL COVERAGE.
IN ADDITION TO THE FLASH FLOOD THREAT...THERE REMAINS A SMALL
POSSIBILITY OF A BRIEF TORNADO DEVELOPING IN THIS SHEARED
ENVIRONMENT.

EXCESSIVE RUNOFF FROM THESE STORMS WILL CAUSE FLOODING OF SMALL
CREEKS AND STREAMS...LOW WATER CROSSINGS AND UNDERPASSES OF
SECONDARY ROADWAYS. 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.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Austin/San Antonio, TX issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jul 15, 9:22 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningEWXAtascosa, Frio, Karnes, Wilson113 min
Jul 15, 10:30 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningEWXBexar, Medina2 hr
Jul 15, 11:12 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningEWXAtascosa, Frio, Karnes, Wilson108 min
Jul 16, 1:05 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningEWXBexar115 min
Jul 16, 1:52 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningEWXMedina113 min
Jul 16, 2:39 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningEWXFrio111 min
Jul 16, 4:26 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningEWXVal Verde2 hr
Jul 16, 6:33 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningEWXLavaca4 hr
Jul 16, 6:42 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningEWXVal Verde3 hr

Nearby

Flash Flood Warnings in Texas, 2003Every 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; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.