Alert archive / Iowa / Flash Flood Warnings in 2003

Flash Flood Warning 12, NWS Sioux Falls, SD

July 9, 2003Ida County, Iowa

NWS Sioux Falls, SD issued this flash flood warning at Jul 9, 2003, 3:33 AM CDT for Ida County, Iowa. It was in force for 3 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 9, 2003, 3:33 AM CDT (08:33 UTC)
Expired
Jul 9, 2003, 6:30 AM CDT
In force
3 hr
Issued by
NWS Sioux Falls, SD
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Ida County, IA

The radar

The Omaha radar (KOAX), 140 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 08:32 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.

The nearest sounding before it

Omaha, NE (KOAX), launched 00:00Z, 8.6 hours before the alert went out and 140 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, Omaha, NE at 00:00Z on 2003-07-09Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1531 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, Omaha, NE at 00:00Z on 2003-07-09The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 131 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
1531 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-73 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1503 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
31 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
131 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
235 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.4
Supercell composite
9.9

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WGUS53 KFSD 090836
FFWFSD
IAC093-091130-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SIOUX FALLS SD
333 AM CDT WED JUL 9 2003

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN SIOUX FALLS HAS ISSUED A

* FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR...
  IDA COUNTY IN NORTHWEST IOWA

* UNTIL 630 AM CDT

* AT 333 AM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED   
  THUNDERSTORMS WERE PRODUCING VERY HEAVY RAINFALL APPROACHING IDA 
  COUNTY.  RAINFALL OF 1 TO 3 INCHES HAVE FALLEN IN THE PAST 2 HOURS 
  ACROSS IDA COUNTY.  WITH MORE THUNDERSTORMS APPROACHING ANOTHER 1 
  TO 2 INCHES OF RAIN IS EXPECTED THROUGH 530 AM CDT.  THIS WILL 
  RESULT IN FLASH FLOODING.

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.

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 4255 9567 4227 9566 4223 9546 4255 9543

$$

SCHUMACHER
2 follow-up statements
000 
WGUS73 KFSD 090952
FFSFSD
IAC093-091130-

FLASH FLOOD STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SIOUX FALLS SD
451 AM CDT WED JUL 9 2003

...FLASH FLOOD WARNING CONTINUES UNTIL 630 AM FOR...

...IDA COUNTY IN NORTHWEST IOWA...

RAIN CONTINUES ACROSS IDA COUNTY EARLY THIS MORNING...WITH REPORTS 
OF STREET FLOODING OCCURRING ALONG HIGHWAY M25 NORTH OF GALVA. THE 
VERY HEAVY RAIN THAT FELL EARLIER HAS ENDED...BUT ADDITIONAL 
RAINFALL THROUGH MID MORNING WILL CAUSE CONTINUED PROBLEMS.

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.

$$

08
000 
WGUS73 KFSD 091128
FFSFSD
IAC093-091330-

FLASH FLOOD STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SIOUX FALLS SD
628 AM CDT WED JUL 9 2003

...FLASH FLOOD WARNING WILL EXPIRE AT 630 AM CDT FOR...

...IDA COUNTY IN NORTHWEST IOWA...

THE RAIN HAS ENDED AND FLASH FLOODING IS NO LONGER A THREAT. PLEASE 
USE CAUTION WHILE TRAVELING EARLY THIS MORNING AS PONDING OF WATER 
ON ROADWAYS IS STILL LIKELY.

$$

08

The office that day

Everything else NWS Sioux Falls, SD issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jul 9, 12:48 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFSDCherokee, Ida27 min
Jul 9, 2:16 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFSDCherokee29 min
Jul 9, 2:37 AM CDTFlash Flood WarningFSDCherokee113 min
Jul 9, 2:44 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFSDCherokee31 min
Jul 9, 4:05 AM CDTFlash Flood WarningFSDBuena Vista3 hr

Nearby

Flash Flood Warnings in Iowa, 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.