Alert archive / North Carolina / Flash Flood Warnings in 2003

Flash Flood Warning 102, NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC

August 4, 2003Union County, North Carolina

NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC issued this flash flood warning at Aug 4, 2003, 9:22 PM EDT for Union County, North Carolina. 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 counties it named.

The facts

Issued
Aug 4, 2003, 9:22 PM EDT (01:22 UTC)
Expired
Aug 5, 2003, 12:15 AM EDT
In force
3 hr
Issued by
NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC
Area
Whole counties

County Union County, NC

The radar

The Columbia radar (KCAE), 128 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 01:23 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

Greensboro/Hi Pt, NC (KGSO), launched 00:00Z, 1.4 hours before the alert went out and 134 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, Greensboro/Hi Pt, NC at 00:00Z on 2003-08-05Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1386 joules per kilogram.LCLEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Greensboro/Hi Pt, NC at 00:00Z on 2003-08-05The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 37 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
1386 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-4 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1048 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
25 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
37 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
40 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.2
Supercell composite
1.4

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WGUS52 KGSP 050122
FFWGSP
NCC179-050415-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
922 PM EDT MON AUG 4 2003

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG HAS ISSUED A

* FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR...
  CENTRAL AND EASTERN UNION COUNTY IN THE PIEDMONT OF NORTH CAROLINA

* UNTIL 1215 AM EDT

* AT 912 PM EDT...THE 911 CENTER REPORTED VERY HEAVY RAIN            
  CAUSING STREET FLOODING IN AND AROUND MONROE. MORE HEAVY RAIN IS   
  EXPECTED TO MOVE ACROSS UNION COUNTY THROUGH MIDNIGHT.             
  THEREFORE...SEVERE URBAN FLOODING IS LIKELY IN THESE AREAS.


* HEAVY RAIN WILL CAUSE FLOODING ALONG BEARSKIN AND RICHARDSON       
  CREEK...AND THEIR TRIBUTARIES IN THE TOWN OF MONROE... ESPECIALLY  
  ALONG PLYLER MILL...BUFORD SHORT CUT...ROCKY RIVER...LANDSFORD AND 
  GRIFFITH ROADS.

DURING HEAVY RAIN EVENTS...SEVERE URBAN FLOODING CAN OCCUR IN AREAS
SUCH AS UNDERPASSES AND LOW AREAS WHERE WATER TENDS TO COLLECT.
CHILDREN SHOULD BE KEPT AWAY FROM SMALL STREAMS AND FLOODED STORM
DRAINS.

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. EVEN MODERN SPORT UTILITY VEHICLES CANNOT BE
SAFELY DRIVEN THROUGH FLOOD WATERS.

$$

JRL/PT
1 follow-up statement
000 
WGUS72 KGSP 050231
FFSGSP
NCC179-050330-

FLASH FLOOD STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
1025 PM EDT MON AUG 4 2003

...A FLASH FLOOD WARNING CONTINUES UNTIL 1130 PM EDT FOR...

HEAVY RAIN CONTINUES TO FALL ACROSS UNION COUNTY. MONROE 911 CENTER 
HAS RECEIVED SEVERAL REPORTS OF STREET FLOODING. MORGAN MILL ROAD 
...CHARLOTTE AVENUE AND OLIVE BRANCH ROAD WERE ALL FLOODED. RUNOFF 
FROM THE HEAVY RAIN WILL KEEP STREAMS LEVELS HIGH OR WILL CAUSE THEM 
TO CONTINUE TO RISE OVER THE NEXT HOUR. THE RAIN SHOULD START TO 
TAPER OFF WITHIN THE NEXT HOUR.  

DURING HEAVY RAIN EVENTS...SEVERE URBAN FLOODING CAN OCCUR IN AREAS
SUCH AS UNDERPASSES...AND LOW AREAS WHERE WATER TENDS TO COLLECT.
CHILDREN SHOULD BE KEPT AWAY FROM SMALL STREAMS AND STORM DRAINS.

DO NOT BECOME A FATALITY DO NOT CROSS FLOODED ROADS...THE ROAD COULD
BE WASHED OUT FROM THE FLOW OF THE WATER...AND YOUR CAR COULD BE
SWEPT AWAY BY THE SWIFTLY MOVING WATER.

$$
PT

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 Greenville-Spartanburg, SC wrote its last area forecast discussion before this flash flood warning went out at Aug 4, 2:23 PM EDT, 6 hours 59 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 4, 2:23 PM EDT, 6 hours 59 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
223 PM EDT MON AUG 4 2003

UPPER LEVEL TROUGH AXIS TO REMAIN W OF AREA. REMNANTS OF WEAK
SURFACE BOUNDARY APPEAR TO REACH AREA LATE TUE...STALLING OVER
AREA....WITH SURFACE WAVE MOVING INTO AREA FROM W WED. FIRST OF
SEVERALE VORT LOBES MOVES ACROSS AREA THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING.
LEFT POPS AT LIKELY NE THIS EVENING...WHERE GREATEST INSTABILITY
EXPECTED...WITH HIGH CHANCE REST OF AREA. ANOTHER VORT LOBE TO PASS
TO SW OF AREA LATE TUE. CARRIED CHANCE POPS...BEST IN WHERE VORT
LOBE COMES CLOSEST. THIRD VORT MAX APPROACHES WED...AND CARRIED
CHANCE POP ACROSS AREA. WITH VERY MOIST AIR MASS AND POSSIBLE
BOUNDARY...LEFT SLIGHT CHANCE POPS LATE EACH NIGHT. WEAK COLD FRONT
TO CROSS AREA EARLY THU...SUPPORTING ANOTHER DAY OF CHACNE POPS.
TEMPERATURES NEAR PERSISTENCE EACH DAY...GENERALLY LOW TO MID 80S
OVER MID TO UPPER 60S.

POSSIBILITY OF SEVERE WEATHER TO EXIST THROUGH EARLY PART OF
PACKAGE. ALTHOUGH LARGE SCALE QPF NOT EXPECTED TO VERY GREAT ON ANY
GIVEN DAY...CUMULATIVE EFFECT ON ALREADY SOAKED SOIL COULD LEAD TO
FLOODING BY MID WEEK. WILL ISSUE FLOOD POTENTIAL OUTLOOK.

EXTENDED FORECAST FEATURES WEAK STATIONARY FRONT STALLED ACROSS
CENTRAL CAROLINAS. CARRIED CHANCE POPS EACH AFTERNOON/EVENING
WITH SLIGHT CHANCE LATE EACH NIGHT. TEMPERATURES AGAIN NEAR
PERSISTENCE.

FCSTID =    7
GSP   68  87  69  85 /  50  30  30  40
AND   68  88  69  85 /  50  30  30  40
CLT   68  88  70  85 /  60  30  30  40
HKY   65  85  67  83 /  60  30  30  40
AVL   62  83  64  81 /  50  40  40  40

.GSP...
GA...NONE.
NC...NONE.
SC...NONE.

O7
Hazardous weather outlook, Aug 4, 5:17 AM EDT, 16 hours 5 minutes before
GAZ010-017-018-026-028-029-NCZ033>037-048>059-062>072-082-SCZ001>014-
019-041115-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
517 AM EDT MON AUG 4 2003

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA...
UPSTATE SOUTH CAROLINA...AND EXTREME NORTHEAST GEORGIA.

.DAY ONE...TODAY

SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED TO BECOME NUMEROUS
TODAY...ESPECIALLY FROM THIS AFTERNOON TO MIDNIGHT. SOME OF THESE
STORMS COULD BECOME QUITE STRONG AND A FEW COULD REACH SEVERE
LEVELS. LOCALIZED HEAVY RAINFALL CAN ALSO BE ANTICIPATED. SEE THE
LATEST SEVERE WEATHER OUTLOOK (CAESPSGSP) FOR MORE DETAILED
INFORMATION.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...

MAINLY AFTERNOON AND EVENING SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE
THROUGH THE WEEK. ADDITIONAL RAINFALL WILL AUGMENT ONGOING ELEVATED
WATER LEVELS...INCREASING THE CHANCES FOR FLOODING. IN
ADDITION...THESE STORMS COULD ALSO BECOME QUITE STRONG AND A FEW
COULD REACH SEVERE LEVELS.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE REQUIRED THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING.

NED

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Aug 4, 6:19 PM EDT, 3 hours 3 minutes before
NCZ070-071-SCZ009-042315-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
619 PM EDT MON AUG 4 2003

...STRONG THUNDERSTORMS MOVING TOWARD THE CHARLOTTE METRO AREA...

AT 612 PM...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR INDICATED A STRONG
THUNDERSTORM LOCATED ABOUT 12 MILES SOUTHWEST OF GASTONIA...MOVING
EAST AT AROUND 20 MPH. THIS STORM WILL BE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING GUSTY
WINDS OF 40 TO 50 MPH...SMALL HAIL...FREQUENT CLOUD TO GROUND
LIGHTNING...AND HOURLY RAINFALL RATES BETWEEN 1 AND 2 INCHES PER
HOUR AS IT TRACKS NEAR THE GASTON AND YORK COUNTY LINE THROUGH 7
PM. IT IS POSSIBLE THAT THIS STORM COULD BRIEFLY INTENSIFY TO SEVERE
LEVELS...AND THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WILL CONTINUE TO MONITOR
THIS STORM CLOSELY FOR POSSIBLE WARNINGS.

THIS STORM IS EXPECTED TO REACH MECKLENBURG COUNTY BETWEEN 7 AND 730
PM.

STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO OR LOCAL MEDIA OUTLETS FOR THE
LATEST INFORMATION REGARDING THIS WEATHER SITUATION.

LANE
Special weather statement, Aug 4, 7:10 PM EDT, 2 hours 12 minutes before
NCZ070>072-SCZ009-050000-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
710 PM EDT MON AUG 4 2003

...STRONG THUNDERSTORMS TO AFFECT THE CHARLOTTE METRO AREA THROUGH 8
PM...

AT 705 PM...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR INDICATED A LINE OF
STRONG THUNDERSTORMS MOVING INTO WESTERN MECKLENBURG COUNTY. THESE
STORMS WILL BE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING STRONG WIND GUSTS OF 40 TO 50
MPH...TORRENTIAL RAINFALL RATES OF 1 TO 2 INCHES PER HOUR...AND
FREQUENT CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING AS THEY MOVE ACROSS THE METRO
AREA. PONDING OF WATER WILL LIKELY OCCUR ON STREETS AND HIGHWAYS
ACROSS THE AREA...AND FLOODING OF LOW LYING AND POOR DRAINAGE AREAS
WILL BE POSSIBLE. THESE STORMS WILL CONTINUE TO BE MONITORED CLOSELY
FOR POSSIBLE WARNINGS.

LANE
Local storm report, Aug 4, 7:19 PM EDT, 2 hours 3 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE SPARTANBURG SC
719 PM EDT MON AUG 04 2003

TIME(EDT)  .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE  ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

710 PM     ASHEVILLE                 NC   WIND DAMAGE
08/04/03   BUNCOMBE                       BUNCOMBE 911 REPORTED
                                          EXTENSIVE WIND DAMAGE
                                          FROM ENKA THROUGH
                                          ASHEVILLE TO WOODFIN.
                                          NUMEROUS TREES AND
                                          POWERLINES DOWN.

710 PM     3 W ASHEVILLE             NC   1.75 INCH HAIL
08/04/03   BUNCOMBE                       BUNCOMBE 911 REPORTED
                                          GOLF BALL SIZE HAIL. PEA
                                          SIZE HAIL WAS OCCURRING
                                          IN DOWNTOWN ASHEVILLE AT
                                          911 CENTER.

LAMB
Local storm report, Aug 4, 8:28 PM EDT, 54 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE SPARTANBURG SC
828 PM EDT MON AUG 04 2003

TIME(EDT)  .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE  ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

805 PM     MILLS RIVER               NC   WIND DAMAGE
08/04/03   HENDERSON                      MILLS RIVER F.D. REPORTED
                                          ONE TREE DOWN IN MILLS
                                          RIVER AND A LOT OF 0.5
                                          HAIL.

LAMB
Special weather statement, Aug 4, 8:36 PM EDT, 46 minutes before
GAZ018-026-050110-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
836 PM EDT MON AUG 4 2003

...STRONG THUNDERSTORMS APPROACHING STEPHENS AND
FRANKLIN COUNTIES...

STRONG STORMS WILL CONTINUE MOVING IN FROM BANKS COUNTY
INTO STEPHENS AND FRANKLIN COUNTIES THROUGH 930 PM. INTERESTS
ACROSS THESE COUNTIES SHOULD MONITOR THE PROGRESS OF THESE
STORMS AND BE READY FOR VERY HEAVY RAIN...CLOUD TO GROUND
LIGHTNING...AND POSSIBLY SOME HAIL AND STRONG WIND GUSTS.

55
Special weather statement, Aug 4, 8:57 PM EDT, 25 minutes before
NCZ071-082-SCZ009-050145-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
857 PM EDT MON AUG 4 2003

...STRONG THUNDERSTORMS AFFECTING SOUTHERN PORTIONS OF CHARLOTTE
METRO AND SURROUNDING AREAS...

AT 845 PM...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR INDICATED NUMEROUS
THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS EASTERN YORK...SOUTHERN MECKLENBURG...AND UNION
COUNTIES. THE MAIN THREAT FROM THESE STORMS WILL BE VERY HEAVY
RAINFALL...AND AS MUCH AS 2 INCHES OF RAIN IN AN HOUR IS POSSIBLE
WITH THE STRONGEST STORMS. THIS AMOUNT OF RAIN WILL LIKELY PRODUCE
FLOODING OF LOW LYING AND POOR DRAINAGE AREAS...ESPECIALLY IN MONROE
AND PINEVILLE AND OTHER URBAN AREAS. PONDING OF WATER WILL ALSO
OCCUR ON MAJOR HIGHWAYS ACROSS THE AREA...AS WELL AS SIDE ROADS. IN
ADDITION TO TORRENTIAL RAINFALL...GUSTY WINDS AND FREQUENT CLOUD TO
GROUND LIGHTNING CAN ALSO BE EXPECTED.

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.

LANE

The office that day

Everything else NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Aug 4, 8:00 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGSPHenderson75 min
Aug 4, 8:06 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningGSPBuncombe, Henderson3 hr
Aug 4, 8:13 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGSPPolk, Rutherford77 min
Aug 4, 8:37 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningGSPRutherford3 hr
Aug 5, 3:44 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGSPGaston, Lincoln61 min
Aug 5, 4:07 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningGSPHenderson3 hr
Aug 5, 4:56 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGSPGaston49 min
Aug 5, 5:15 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGSPMecklenburg60 min
Aug 5, 5:23 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGSPIredell52 min

Nearby

Flash Flood Warnings in North Carolina, 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.