Alert archive / Iowa / Flash Flood Warnings in 2003

Flash Flood Warning 8, NWS Sioux Falls, SD

July 4, 2003Ida County, Woodbury County, Iowa

NWS Sioux Falls, SD issued this flash flood warning at Jul 4, 2003, 11:03 PM CDT for Ida County, Woodbury County, Iowa. It was in force for 117 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 4, 2003, 11:03 PM CDT (04:03 UTC)
Expired
Jul 5, 2003, 1:00 AM CDT
In force
117 min
Issued by
NWS Sioux Falls, SD
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

Counties Ida County, IA, Woodbury County, IA

The radar

The Omaha radar (KOAX), 131 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 04:07 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, 4.1 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, Omaha, NE at 00:00Z on 2003-07-05Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 2181 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 2003-07-05The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 234 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
2181 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-160 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1546 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
43 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
234 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
386 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
4.4

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WGUS53 KFSD 050404
FFWFSD
IAC093-193-050600-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SIOUX FALLS SD
1103 PM CDT FRI JUL 4 2003

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN SIOUX FALLS HAS ISSUED A

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

* UNTIL 100 AM CDT

* AT 1103 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED
  VERY HEAVY RAINFALL WAS OCCURRING OVER THE WARNED AREA. RADAR
  RAINFALL ESTIMATES BETWEEN 2 AND 3 INCHES OF RAIN HAS OCCURRED OVER
  THE WARNED AREA. 

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.

EXCESSIVE RUNOFF FROM THIS STORM WILL CAUSE FLASH FLOODING OF SMALL
CREEKS AND STREAMS...URBAN AREAS...HIGHWAYS...STREETS AND UNDERPASSES
AS WELL AS OTHER DRAINAGE AREAS AND LOW LYING SPOTS.

LAT...LON 4252 9615 4234 9613 4233 9548 4252 9554

$$

BOUSTEAD
2 follow-up statements
000 
WGUS73 KFSD 050452
FFSFSD
IAC093-193-050515-

FLASH FLOOD STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SIOUX FALLS SD
1150 PM CDT FRI JUL 4 2003

...FLASH FLOOD WARNING CONTINUES UNTIL 1 AM FOR...

...WOODBURY COUNTY IN NORTHWEST IOWA...
...IDA COUNTY IN NORTHWEST IOWA...

NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATES THAT VERY HEAVY 
RAINFALL CONTINUES ACROSS THE SOUTHERN PARTS OF WOODBURY AND IDA 
COUNTIES. RAINFALL RATES OF 1 TO 2 INCHES PER HOUR WILL CONTINUE TO 
FALL ACROSS THE WARNED AREA THROUGH 1 AM...AS THUNDERSTORMS MOVE 
WEST TO EAST...FROM NEAR SERGEANT BLUFF TO IDA GROVE. 

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.

$$

BOUSTEAD
000 
WGUS73 KFSD 050601
FFSFSD
IAC093-193-050615-

FLASH FLOOD STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SIOUX FALLS SD
100 AM CDT SAT JUL 5 2003

...FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR WOODBURY AND IDA COUNTIES HAVE EXPIRED... 

AT 100 AM CDT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED THAT 
THE HEAVIEST RAINFALL HAS MOVED SOUTH OF THE AREA.  THEREFORE...THE 
FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR WOODBURY AND IDA COUNTIES HAVE BEEN ALLOWED 
TO EXPIRE.  MINOR PONDING OF WATER CAN BE EXPECTED TO REMAIN IN THE 
STORMS WAKE FOR THE NEXT COUPLE OF HOURS.

CONTINUE TO MONITOR NOAA WEATHER RADIO...COMMERCIAL RADIO...AND/OR 
TELEVISION TO STAY UP TO DATE ON THE WEATHER SITUATION.

$$

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jul 4, 9:53 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFSDPlymouth, Woodbury37 min
Jul 4, 10:01 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFSDCherokee, Ida29 min
Jul 4, 10:32 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFSDIda28 min
Jul 4, 10:36 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFSDBuena Vista24 min
Jul 4, 10:56 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFSDIda34 min
Jul 4, 11:00 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFSDWoodbury45 min
Jul 4, 11:29 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFSDIda31 min

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.