Alert archive / South Carolina / Flash Flood Warnings in 2003

Flash Flood Warning 105, NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC

August 5, 2003Union County, South Carolina

NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC issued this flash flood warning at Aug 5, 2003, 8:33 PM EDT for Union County, South Carolina. 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 counties it named.

The facts

Issued: Aug 5, 2003, 8:33 PM EDT (00:33 UTC)
Expired: Aug 5, 2003, 10:30 PM EDT
In force: 117 min
Issued by: NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC
Area: Whole counties

County Union County, SC

The radar

The Greer radar (KGSP), 59 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 00:33 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, 0.6 hours before the alert went out and 220 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: 1051 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -19 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 1040 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 37 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 59 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 80 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.3
Supercell composite: 2.4

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WGUS52 KGSP 060036 CCA
FFWGSP
SCC087-060230-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING...CORRECTED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
833 PM EDT TUE AUG 5 2003

CORRECTED TO REMOVE CHEROKEE COUNTY

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG HAS ISSUED A

* FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR...
  UNION COUNTY IN UPSTATE SOUTH CAROLINA

* UNTIL 1030 PM EDT

* AT 835 PM EDT...WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED VERY
  HEAVY RAIN CONTINUED TO FALL ACROSS THE NORTHERN PART OF THE       
  COUNTY FROM THE PACOLET AREA TO JONESVILLE TO NEAR UNION.    

* RAINFALL UP TO 2 INCHES AN HOUR WILL CAUSE FAIRFOREST... BIG       
  BROWNS AND MILL CREEKS TO RISE RAPIDLY STREAMS AND POSSIBLY FLOOD  
  ROADWAYS ALONG THESE CREEKS. PONDING OF WATER ON ROADWAYS WILL  
  ALSO CAUSE PROBLEMS ESPECIALLY ALONG HIGHWAY 18... 8 AND 176.

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.

$$
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 5, 2:56 PM EDT, 5 hours 37 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 5, 2:56 PM EDT, 5 hours 37 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
256 PM EDT TUE AUG 5 2003

CONVECTION ASSOCIATED WITH UPPER LEVEL SHORTWAVE DEVELOPING IN W AND
SPREADING E. ALTHOUGH SHORTWAVE EXPECTED TO MOVE THROUGH AREA RATHER
QUICKLY...WILL NEED TO CARRY HIGH POPS COINCIDENT WITH SEVERE
THUNDERSTORM WATCHES EARLY THIS EVENING.

UPPER LEVEL TROUGH AXIS TO LINGER OVER E THIS PACKAGE...WITH
ABUNDANT LOW LEVEL MOISTURE REMAINING ALONG AND E OF MOUNTAINS. WEAK
BOUNDARY STILL HINTED AT BY MODELS...MOVING INTO WED AND REMAINING
THROUGH EARLY NEXT WEEK. WEAK UPPER IMPULSES WILL PROVOKE SCATTERED
CONVECTION EACH AFTERNOON AND EVENING...AND WITH NO REAL CHANGE IN
AIR MASS...POPS AND TEMPERATURES NEAR PERSISTENCE THROUGH DAY 7.

FCSTID =    7
GSP   68  86  69  86 /  60  40  40  40
AND   69  88  69  88 /  60  40  40  40
CLT   68  87  69  87 /  60  40  40  40
HKY   65  85  67  84 /  60  40  40  40
AVL   62  82  64  81 /  60  40  40  40

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

O7

Hazardous weather outlook, Aug 5, 5:05 AM EDT, 15 hours 28 minutes before

GAZ010-017-018-026-028-029-NCZ033>037-048>059-062>072-082-SCZ001>014-
019-051100-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
505 AM EDT TUE AUG 5 2003

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

.DAY ONE...TODAY

SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL DEVELOP OVER THE WESTERN CAROLINAS
AND NORTHEAST GEORGIA TODAY. A FEW OF THESE STORMS COULD REACH
SEVERE LEVELS THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING. LOCALIZED HEAVY RAINFALL
CAN ALSO BE ANTICIPATED. SEE THE LATEST SEVERE WEATHER OUTLOOK
(CAESPSGSP) FOR MORE DETAILED INFORMATION.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...

SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL PERSIST THROUGH THE PERIOD...MAINLY
IN THE AFTERNOON AND EVENING. WITH THE GROUND NEARLY SATURATED
RAINFALL WILL RUNOFF INTO NEARBY STREAMS AND CREEKS. IF THESE HEAVY
RAIN PRODUCING THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOP THROUGHOUT THE WEEK AS
EXPECTED...FLOODING MAY RESULT. SEE THE LATEST FLOOD POTENTIAL
OUTLOOK (ESFGSP) FOR MORE DETAILED INFORMATION.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE REQUIRED THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING.

NED

In the hours before

Local storm report, Aug 5, 5:09 PM EDT, 3 hours 24 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE SPARTANBURG SC
509 PM EDT TUE AUG 05 2003

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

418 PM     SHARON                    SC   WIND DAMAGE
08/05/03   YORK                           TREE DOWN.

439 PM     CLOVER                    SC   WIND DAMAGE
08/05/03   YORK                           TREE AND POWERLINES DOWN
                                          ON HIGHWAY 45.

RB

    LOTS MID WHEEL LEVEL.
                                          MANY ROADWAYS COVERED
                                          WITH WATER AND NUMEROUS
                                          POWER OUTAGES REPORTED.

KRENTZ

Local storm report, Aug 5, 5:09 PM EDT, 3 hours 24 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT...CORRECTED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE SPARTANBURG SC
509 PM EDT TUE AUG 05 2003

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

418 PM     SHARON                    SC   WIND DAMAGE
08/05/03   YORK                           TREE DOWN.

439 PM     CLOVER                    SC   WIND DAMAGE
08/05/03   YORK                           TREE AND POWERLINES DOWN
                                          ON HIGHWAY 45.

RB

Local storm report, Aug 5, 5:21 PM EDT, 3 hours 12 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE SPARTANBURG SC
521 PM EDT TUE AUG 05 2003

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

515 PM     MOUNT HOLLY               NC   .75 INCH HAIL
08/05/03   GASTON                         DIME SIZED HAIL REPORTED
                                          BY DUKE POWER COMPANY
                                          METEOROLOGIST.

KRENTZ

Local storm report, Aug 5, 5:32 PM EDT, 3 hours 1 minute before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE SPARTANBURG SC
532 PM EDT TUE AUG 05 2003

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

525 PM     UNION GROVE               NC   .75 INCH HAIL
08/05/03   IREDELL                        3/4 INCH HAIL REPORTED BY
                                          SKYWARN SPOTTER NEAR
                                          HARMONY AND UNION GROVE.

KRENTZ

Local storm report, Aug 5, 5:46 PM EDT, 2 hours 47 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE SPARTANBURG SC
546 PM EDT TUE AUG 05 2003

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

528 PM     WEST CHARLOTTE            NC   WIND DAMAGE
08/05/03   MECKLENBURG                    COUNTY 911 OFFICIALS
                                          REPORTED TREE DOWN ON
                                          HOUSE.

537 PM     3 E UNION GROVE           NC   1.75 INCH HAIL
08/05/03   IREDELL                        GOLF BALL SIZE HAIL
                                          REPORTED BY HAM RADIO
                                          SPOTTER.

KRENTZ

Local storm report, Aug 5, 8:15 PM EDT, 18 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE SPARTANBURG SC
815 PM EDT TUE AUG 05 2003

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

756 PM     JONESVILLE                SC   WIND DAMAGE
08/05/03   UNION                          COUNTY 911 OFFICALS
                                          REPORTED ROOF BLOWN OFF
                                          MOBILE HOME.

KRENTZ

The office that day

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

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Aug 5, 8:15 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	GSP	Union	45 min
Aug 5, 8:33 PM EDT	Flash Flood Warning	GSP	Cherokee, Union	117 min
Aug 5, 9:48 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	GSP	Laurens	57 min
Aug 5, 10:08 PM EDT	Flash Flood Warning	GSP	Laurens	3 hr
Aug 5, 11:17 PM EDT	Flash Flood Warning	GSP	Greenville, Spartanburg	118 min
Aug 6, 4:59 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	GSP	Spartanburg	46 min

Nearby

Flash Flood Warnings in South Carolina, 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; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.