Alert archive / North Carolina / Flash Flood Warnings in 2003
Flash Flood Warning 123, NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC
NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC issued this flash flood warning at Aug 17, 2003, 5:02 PM EDT for Cleveland County, North Carolina. It was in force for 118 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
- Aug 17, 2003, 5:02 PM EDT (21:02 UTC)
- Expired
- Aug 17, 2003, 7:00 PM EDT
- In force
- 118 min
- Issued by
- NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC
- Area
- Counties, with a storm outline in the text
County Cleveland County, NC
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
Greensboro/Hi Pt, NC (KGSO), launched 12:00Z, 9.0 hours before the alert went out and 163 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.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 994 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -68 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 1043 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 18 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- -1 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 1 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.0
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000
WGUS52 KGSP 172102
FFWGSP
NCC045-172300-
BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
502 PM EDT SUN AUG 17 2003
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG HAS ISSUED A
* FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR...
CENTRAL AND EASTERN CLEVELAND COUNTY IN THE PIEDMONT OF NORTH
CAROLINA
* UNTIL 700 PM EDT
* AT 5 PM EDT...WEATHER RADAR SHOWED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS
OVER CLEVELAND COUNTY...MAINLY EAST OF A LINE FROM CASAR TO EARL.
RAINFALL WAS EXTREMELY HEAVY...WITH RADAR ESTIMATING AS MUCH AS
TWO AND A HALF INCHES OF RAIN JUST NORTHEAST OF SHELBY...AND
NEARLY TWO INCHES OF RAIN IN NORTHEAST CLEVELAND COUNTY. A HAM
RADIO OPERATOR REPORTED AN INCH AND A HALF OF RAIN FELL IN FALLSTON
IN 30 MINUTES.
* THROUGH 7 PM...MODERATE TO HEAVY RAIN WILL BE SLOW TO LEAVE AREAS
OF CENTRAL AND EASTERN CLEVELAND COUNTY THAT HAVE ALREADY RECEIVED
HEAVY RAIN SINCE MID AFTERNOON. STREAMS AND CREEKS WILL EXPERIENCE
RISES TO NEAR BANKFULL...AND SOME MAY COME OUT OF THEIR BANKS TO
FLOOD ROADS AND THREATEN PROPERTY. SOME CREEKS THAT ARE SUSCEPTIBLE
TO FLASH FLOODING INCLUDE BUFFALO CREEK...MAPLE CREEK AND LONG
BRANCH. THESE COULD IMPACT HIGHWAYS 182...180 AND 18. SEVERE URBAN
FLOODING COULD DEVELOP ON THE EAST SIDE OF SHELBY...AND IN KINGS
MOUNTAIN.
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.
TO REPORT FLOODING HAVE THE NEAREST LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY RELAY YOUR
REPORT TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FORECAST OFFICE IN
GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG.
LAT...LON 3544 8146 3517 8133 3518 8161 3557 8161
3555 8153
$$
BURRUS2 follow-up statements
000 WGUS72 KGSP 172213 FFSGSP NCC045-172300- FLASH FLOOD STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC 607 PM EDT SUN AUG 17 2003 ...A FLASH FLOOD WARNING CONTINUES UNTIL 700 PM EDT FOR CENTRAL AND EASTERN CLEVELAND COUNTY... AT 605 PM...WEATHER RADAR SHOWED A BATCH OF MODERATE RAINFALL STRETCHING FROM NEAR FALLSTON...TO STUBBS. RAINFALL RATES WERE NOT AS LARGE AS THEY WERE EARLIER...BUT WILL STILL BE HIGH ENOUGH TO RESULT IN FLOODING OF SHALLOWER STREAMS AND CREEKS. COUNTY PERSONNEL REPORTED FLOODING ALONG WATTERSON ROAD IN THE GROVER AREA. STREAMS AND CREEKS WERE RUNNING NEAR BANKFULL IN THE NORTHERN END OF THE COUNTY...BUT NO FLOODING HAD BEEN REPORTED FROM NORTHERN CLEVELAND COUNTY. THE FLASH FLOOD WARNING WILL REMAIN IN EFFECT THROUGH ITS VALID EXPIRATION TIME. DO NOT BECOME A FATALITY DO NOT CROSS FLOODED ROADS...THE ROAD COULD BE WASHED OUT FROM THE FLOW OF THE WATER...AND YOUR CAR COULD BE SWEPT AWAY BY THE SWIFTLY MOVING WATER. $$ BURRUS
000 WGUS72 KGSP 172304 FFSGSP NCC045-172330- FLASH FLOOD STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC 704 PM EDT SUN AUG 17 2003 ...THE FLASH FLOOD WARNING WHICH WAS IN EFFECT FOR CENTRAL AND EASTERN CLEVELAND COUNTY HAS EXPIRED AS OF 700 PM EDT... AT 7 PM...WEATHER RADAR SHOWED SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS MOVING OUT OF EASTERN RUTHERFORD COUNTY...INTO WESTERN CLEVELAND COUNTY. NO RAINFALL REMAINED OVER THE CENTRAL OR EASTERN PARTS OF THE COUNTY. THROUGH THE REMAINDER OF THE EVENING...SCATTERED STORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE JUST ABOUT ANYWHERE IN THE COUNTY...BUT RAINFALL RATES ARE FORECAST TO BE MUCH LESS THAN THEY WERE EARLIER...WHEN MANY LOCATIONS RECEIVED 2 TO 3 INCHES OF RAINFALL. THROUGH 7 PM...THE ONLY REPORT OF FLOODING WAS ON WATTERSON ROAD...NEAR THE TOWN OF GROVER. COUNTY OFFICIALS REPORT THE ROAD HAD CLEARED UP...AND THERE WERE NO OTHER KNOWN FLOOD PROBLEMS. WATER LEVELS COULD TEMPORARILY RISE AGAIN...AND SOME STREAMS OR CREEKS MAY APPROACH BANKFULL...BUT ADDITIONAL FLASH FLOODING IS NOT ANTICIPATED UNLESS STORMS REMAIN OVER ONE LOCATION FOR LONG PERIODS OF TIME. 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. $$ BURRUS
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 17, 2:41 PM EDT, 2 hours 21 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Aug 17, 2:41 PM EDT, 2 hours 21 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC 241 PM EDT SUN AUG 17 2003 EAST COAST UPPER TROUGH TO PERSIST THROUGH MON...THEN WILL START PROGRESSING E. BY WED UPPER RIDGE LOCATED OVER OH VALLEY WITH WEAK LOW SOMEWHERE IN DEEP S. COLD FRONT TO DROP S INTO AREA ACCOMPANIED BY STRONG SHORTWAVE. WILL CARRY AFTERNOON CONVECTION OVER INTO EVENING AS LIKEY POPS. WITH SLOW PROGRESS TO FRONT...HAVE SLIGHT CHANCE POP OVERNIGHT. FRONT SLOW TO PUSH S...AND ENOUGH MOISTURE AND INSTABILITY REMAIN FOR SLIGHT CHANCE POPS TUE-THU. BY FRI ANOTHER E COAST TROUGH IS CARVED OUT AS OH VALLEY RIDGE PROGRESSES. MOISTURE INCREASES IN ADVANCE OF ANOTHER COLD FRONT...AND HAVE ADDED CHANCE POPS TO FRI. COLD FRONT CROSSES AREA SAT...WITH ANOTHER DAY OF CHANCE POPS. FRONT SLOWS JUST SE OF AREA SUN...WITH ENOUGH MOISTURE TO WARRANT SLIGHT CHANCE POPS. NOT MUCH TEMPERATURE OR DEW POINT CHANGE THIS PACKAGE...AS COOLING BEHIND FRONTS ALMOST NEGLIGIBLE. TEMPERATURES BASICALLY NEAR CLIMATIC NORMALS...WITH A SLIGHT DROP OFF LATE IN WEEK. FCSTID = 7 GSP 70 89 68 88 / 60 30 30 20 AND 70 90 69 89 / 60 30 30 20 CLT 70 89 69 88 / 60 30 30 20 HKY 69 88 67 87 / 60 30 30 20 AVL 64 85 64 83 / 60 30 30 20 .GSP... GA...NONE. NC...NONE. SC...NONE. O7
Hazardous weather outlook, Aug 17, 5:45 AM EDT, 11 hours 17 minutes before
GAZ010-017-018-026-028-029-NCZ033>037-048>059-062>072-082-SCZ001>014- 019-171145- HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC 545 AM EDT SUN AUG 17 2003 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA... UPSTATE SOUTH CAROLINA...AND EXTREME NORTHEAST GEORGIA. .DAY ONE...TODAY A COLD FRONT WILL MOVE SLOWLY TOWARD THE WESTERN CAROLINAS AND NORTHEAST GEORGIA TODAY. SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL ACCOMPANY THIS FRONT INTO THE AREA. SOME OF THESE STORMS COULE PRODUCE SEVERE WEATHER AND LOCALIZED FLASH FLOODING. PLEASE SEE THE SEVERE WEATHER OUTLOOK...CAESPSGSP FOR FURTHER INFORMATION. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN... WIDELY SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED ON MONDAY. A FEW SEVERE STORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE. THE REMAINDER OF THE WEEK IS EXPECTED TO BE DRIER...WITH NO MORE THAN ISOLATED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS EXPECTED THROUGH THE PERIOD. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE REQUIRED TODAY. LANE
In the hours before
Special weather statement, Aug 17, 11:38 AM EDT, 5 hours 24 minutes before
GAZ010-017-018-026-028-029-NCZ033>037-048>059-062>072-082-SCZ001>014- 019-172100- SEVERE WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC 1138 AM EDT SUN AUG 17 2003 ...SEVERE WEATHER POSSIBLE THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING... A FRONT DRAPED ACROSS THE OHIO VALLEY AND CENTRAL APPALACHIANS THIS MORNING...WILL SAG SLOWLY TOWARD THE WESTERN CAROLINAS AND NORTHEAST GEORGIA THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING. AN UPPER AIR DISTURBANCE WILL ALSO MOVE TOWARD THE AREA. AS THIS DISTURBANCE INTERACTS WITH THE FRONT AND AN UNSTABLE AIRMASS...SCATTERED TO NUMEROUS SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED TO DEVELOP EARLY TO MID AFTERNOON ACROSS THE MOUNTAINS...FOOTHILLS...AND PIEDMONT OF WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA. THE STORMS SHOULD THEN MOVE INTO UPSTATE SOUTH CAROLINA AND NORTHEAST GEORGIA. THE ATMOSPHERE WAS WORKED OVER PRETTY WELL YESTERDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING BY THUNDERSTORMS...AND SURFACE MOISTURE WAS NOT QUITE AS HIGH LATE THIS MORNING...AS IT HAS BEEN DURING RECENT DAYS. HOWEVER...THE DEGREE OF INSTABILITY EXPECTED DURING THE AFTERNOON AND EVENING STILL WILL BE ENOUGH TO CAUSE SOME STORMS TO BECOME SEVERE...WITH DAMAGING STRAIGHT LINE WINDS BEING THE PRIMARY THREAT. IN ADDITION...LOCALLY HEAVY OR EXCESSIVE RAINFALL MAY RESULT IN FLASH FLOODING IN SOME AREAS. ALSO...LARGE HAIL TO ABOUT QUARTER SIZE MAY OCCUR IN SOME STORMS. SPOTTER GROUPS SHOULD BE PREPARED TO ACTIVATE QUICKLY LATE THIS AFTERNOON AND THIS EVENING. DISPATCHERS SHOULD ENSURE COUNTY EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT OFFICIALS ARE AWARE OF THIS INFORMATION. JONES
Special weather statement, Aug 17, 3:32 PM EDT, 1 hour 30 minutes before
GAZ010-017-018-026-028-029-SCZ011-012-019-180000- SEVERE WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC 332 PM EDT SUN AUG 17 2003 ...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM THREAT BECOMING MORE LIKELY FOR NORTHEAST GEORGIA AND THE LOWER PIEDMONT IN SOUTH CAROLINA... SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCHES HAVE ALREADY BEEN ISSUED FARTHER NORTH. ISOLATED TO SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE TO DEVELOP OVER UPSTATE SOUTH CAROLINA AND NORTHEAST GEORGIA LATE THIS AFTERNOON. SOME OF THESE MAY BECOME SEVERE...PRODUCING LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WIND GUSTS. ALSO...LOCALLY EXCESSIVE RAINFALL MAY OCCUR...CAUSING URBAN OR FLASH FLOODING. AN EVEN BETTER CHANCE OF ORGANIZED SEVERE WEATHER MAY COME LATER IN THE EVENING...WHEN LINES OR CLUSTER OF STORMS ARE EXPECTED TO MOVE THROUGH. STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO OR THE MEDIA FOR THE LATEST WEATHER INFORMATION OR SEVERE WEATHER WATCHES OR WARNINGS. JONES
Special weather statement, Aug 17, 4:18 PM EDT, 44 minutes before
NCZ068>071-SCZ009-172119- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC 418 PM EDT SUN AUG 17 2003 ...STRONG THUNDERSTORMS TO AFFECT LAKE NORMAN AND THE CHARLOTTE METRO AREA... AT 415 PM EDT...WEATHER SERVICE RADAR SHOWED A CLUSTER OF STRONG THUNDERSTORMS OVER EASTERN LINCOLN COUNTY...MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 25 MPH. THROUGH 5 PM...THESE STORMS WILL AFFECT THE SOUTHERN PART OF LAKE NORMAN AS WELL AS INTERSTATE 77 BETWEEN HUNTERSVILLE AND CHARLOTTE. ANOTHER CLUSTER OF STRONG STORMS WILL AFFECT THE SOUTHEAST PART OF CLEVELAND COUNTY...BETWEEN SHELBY AND KINGS MOUNTAIN. BOTH OF THESE CLUSTERS OF STRONG THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING WINDS OF UP TO 55 MPH...CONTINUOUS CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING...SMALL HAIL AND TORRENTIAL RAIN. IF THE STORMS BECOME A LITTLE STRONGER...WARNINGS WILL BE NEEDED. MCAVOY
Local storm report, Aug 17, 4:46 PM EDT, 16 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE SPARTANBURG SC
446 PM EDT SUN AUG 17 2003
TIME(EDT) .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
410 PM 7 E LINCOLNTON NC WIND DAMAGE
08/17/03 LINCOLN TRAINED HAM SPOTTER
REPORTED TWO TREES DOWN
ON HWY 150...ONE 18 IN
DIAMETER AND THE OTHER
ABOUT 12.
415 PM 3 E CHERRYVILLE NC NON-SVR REPORT
08/17/03 GASTON HAM REPORTED 45-50 MPH
WIND GUST...TORRENTIAL
RAIN PARTIALLY IMPEDING
TRAFFIC AND FREQUENT
LIGHTNING.
LAMBThe office that day
Everything else NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 17, 4:44 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | GSP | Cleveland, Gaston, Lincoln | 61 min |
| Aug 17, 5:55 PM EDT | Flash Flood Warning | GSP | Rowan | 110 min |
| Aug 17, 7:50 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | GSP | Davie | 40 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.