Alert archive / North Carolina / Flash Flood Warnings in 2003
Flash Flood Warning 33, NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC
NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC issued this flash flood warning at Jun 8, 2003, 10:31 PM EDT for Cabarrus County, Gaston County, Mecklenburg County, North Carolina. It was in force for 4 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
- Jun 8, 2003, 10:31 PM EDT (02:31 UTC)
- Expired
- Jun 9, 2003, 2:30 AM EDT
- In force
- 4 hr
- Issued by
- NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC
- Area
- Whole counties
Counties Cabarrus County, NC, Gaston County, NC, Mecklenburg County, NC
The radar
The Greer radar (KGSP), 133 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 02:35 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, 2.5 hours before the alert went out and 122 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
- 2171 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -3 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 748 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 48 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 72 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 71 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.7
- Supercell composite
- 3.1
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000 WGUS52 KGSP 090233 FFWGSP NCC025-071-119-090630- BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED FLASH FLOOD WARNING NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC 1031 PM EDT SUN JUN 8 2003 THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG HAS ISSUED A * FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR... MECKLENBURG COUNTY IN THE PIEDMONT OF NORTH CAROLINA CABARRUS COUNTY IN THE PIEDMONT OF NORTH CAROLINA GASTON COUNTY IN THE PIEDMONT OF NORTH CAROLINA * UNTIL 230 AM EDT * AT 1025 PM EDT...WEATHER RADAR SHOWED THUNDERSTORMS WITH VERY HEAVY RAIN MOVING FROM GASTONIA...ACROSS THE CHARLOTTE AREA...INTO THE HARRISBURG AND MIDLAND AREAS OF CABARRUS COUNTY. THE STORMS WERE DEVELOPING AND MOVING REPEATEDLY ACROSS THE SAME AREAS. * SEVERE URBAN FLASH FLOODING WILL DEVELOP QUICKLY TONIGHT...AND THERE IS POTENTIAL FOR MORE DAMAGE TO ROADS AND SMALL EARTHEN DAMS. IF YOU LIVE IN A FLASH FLOOD PRONE AREA...YOU SHOULD MOVE TO HIGHER GROUND BEFORE THE FLOODING DEVELOPS. 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 IN HEAVY RAIN OR FLOODED AREAS TONIGHT. NO VEHICLE CAN BE SAFELY DRIVEN THROUGH FLOOD WATER. $$ JONES
2 follow-up statements
000 WGUS72 KGSP 090317 FFSGSP NCC025-071-119-090715- FLASH FLOOD STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC 1115 PM EDT SUN JUN 8 2003 ...A FLASH FLOOD WARNING CONTINUES UNTIL 230 AM EDT FOR GASTON - MECKLENBURG - AND CABARRUS COUNTIES IN THE NORTH CAROLINA PIEDMONT... THUNDERSTORMS WITH VERY HEAVY RAINFALL CONTINUE ACROSS THE AREA. RADAR RAINFALL ESTIMATES...IN JUST ONE HOUR...INDICATE 1 TO 2 INCHES OF RAIN IN EASTERN MECKLENBURG AND CENTRAL CABARRUS COUNTIES. THE MAXIMUM WAS 2.5 INCHES RIGHT AROUND HARRISBURG. ACROSS GASTON COUNTY...AN INCH OR SO OF RAIN IN THE PAST HOUR WAS SHOWN. THREE HOUR ESTIMATES ACROSS THE AREA WERE SIMILAR...WITH UP TO 3 INCHES SHOWN AROUND HARRISBURG. OFFICIALS IN CABARRUS COUNTY HAD RECEIVED A REPORT OF FLOODING ON ROCKY RIVER ROAD...WHERE THE HEAVIEST RAINFALL WAS SHOWN ON RADAR. SOME OF THE HEAVIEST RAIN HAD MOVED EAST OF CABARRUS COUNTY AT 1110 PM. RADAR SHOWED TWO STORMS MOVING ACROSS MECKLENBURG COUNTY...ONE NEAR THE AIRPORT...AND ANOTHER JUST ABOUT OVER THE CITY OF CHARLOTTE. HEAVY RAIN WAS TAPERING OFF QUICKLY IN GASTON COUNTY...FOR THE TIME BEING. DURING HEAVY RAIN EVENTS...SEVERE URBAN FLOODING CAN OCCUR IN AREAS SUCH AS UNDERPASSES...AND LOW AREAS WHERE WATER TENDS TO COLLECT. CHILDREN SHOULD BE KEPT AWAY FROM SMALL STREAMS AND STORM DRAINS. DO NOT BECOME A FATALITY DO NOT CROSS FLOODED ROADS...THE ROAD COULD BE WASHED OUT FROM THE FLOW OF THE WATER...AND YOUR CAR COULD BE SWEPT AWAY BY THE SWIFTLY MOVING WATER. $$ JONES
000 WGUS72 KGSP 090358 FFSGSP NCC025-071-119-090645- FLASH FLOOD STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC 1157 PM EDT SUN JUN 8 2003 ...THE FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR GASTON COUNTY HAS BEEN CANCELED... ...THE FLASH FLOOD WARNINGS FOR MECKLENBURG AND CABARRUS COUNTIES CONTINUES UNTIL 230 AM EDT... HEAVY RAIN HAS MOVED EAST OF GASTON COUNTY...AND THERE WERE NO REPORTS OF FLASH FLOODING. THEREFORE...THE FLASH FLOOD WARNING HAS BEEN CANCELED. HOWEVER...THE SOUTH FORK OF THE CATAWBA RIVER AT LOWELL WAS IN FLOOD...AT A STAGE OF 10.7 FEET AND RISING. A RIVER FLOOD WARNING HAS BEEN ISSUED FOR THAT STREAM. SERIOUS FLASH FLOODING HAS BEEN REPORTED AROUND HARRISBURG IN CABARRUS COUNTY. A NUMBER OF ROADS HAVE BEEN FLOODED ACCORDING TO AREA OFFICIALS BY SMALL STREAMS FLOWING INTO THE ROCKY RIVER. ALSO...A COUPLE OF SUBDIVISIONS HAVE BEEN FLOODED AND SOME EVACUATIONS WERE BECOMING NECESSARY. BE ESPECIALLY CAUTIOUS AT NIGHT WHEN IT IS HARDER TO RECOGNIZE THE DANGERS OF FLOODS AND FLASH FLOODS. USE CAUTION IN OR NEAR ANY SMALL CREEK TONIGHT...AND AVOID ROUTES THAT YOU KNOW ARE FLOOD PRONE. IT IS NEVER SAFE TO DRIVE ACROSS A FLOODED ROAD OR BRIDGE. MANY PEOPLE HAVE BEEN KILLED BY FLOOD WATERS WHEN THEIR VEHICLES WERE SWEPT AWAY. $$ JONES
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 Jun 8, 9:52 PM EDT, 39 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Jun 8, 9:52 PM EDT, 39 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC 952 PM EDT SUN JUN 8 2003 COLD FRONT ENTERING THE MOUNTAINS NOW. CONVECTION CONTINUES TO FIRE ALONG A WELL-DEFINED PRE-FRONTAL TROF...AND NOW RADAR SHOWS NUMEROUS OUTFLOW BOUNDARIES DISPERSING TO THE SOUTH AND SOUTHWEST OF THE MAIN BAND. LOCAL SOUNDINGS SHOW MORE THAN AMPLE INSTABILITY REMAINS OVER THE REGION AHEAD OF THE FRONT. WILL MAINTAIN SMALL CHANCE POPS FOR ALL AREAS OVERNIGHT...EXCEPT FOR THE NORTH CAROLINA MOUNTAINS...WHERE WE WILL CONTINUE TO INDICATE A CHANCE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ONLY UNTIL MIDNIGHT. NO CHANGES TO THE FLOOD WATCH. FLOOD WARNINGS ONGOING NOW FOR PART OF THE NORTHWEST PIEDMONT...WHICH ARE NOT IN A WATCH CURRENTLY BUT EXPANDING THE WATCH IN SPACE AT THIS POINT TO ACCOUNT FOR THOSE AREAS WOULD NOT SERVE MUCH PURPOSE NOW. AREA OF BIGGEST FLOOD POTENTIAL CONTINUES TO BE THE SOUTHERN PIEDMONT OF NORTH CAROLINA...AND THE EASTERN PIEDMONT OF SOUTH CAROLINA...AREAS WHICH SAW EXCESSIVE RAINFALL SATURDAY EVENING. WILL NOT EXPAND INTO THE UPSTATE OR NORTHEAST GEORGIA AT THIS TIME...SINCE CONVECTION HAS BEEN NOTICEABLY ABSENT THERE SO FAR TODAY. FCSTID = 44 GSP 64 87 63 87 / 30 10 10 10 AND 64 88 63 88 / 30 10 10 10 CLT 65 87 63 88 / 30 10 10 10 HKY 63 85 60 85 / 30 10 10 10 AVL 60 83 56 83 / 30 10 10 10 .GSP... GA...NONE. NC...FLOOD WATCH FOR TONIGHT FOR ZONES NCZ069>072...NCZ082. SC...FLOOD WATCH FOR TONIGHT FOR ZONE SCZ009. BURRUS
Hazardous weather outlook, Jun 8, 7:10 AM EDT, 15 hours 21 minutes before
GAZ010-017-018-026-028-029-NCZ033>037-048>059-062>072-082-SCZ001>014- 019-081300- HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC 710 AM EDT SUN JUN 8 2003 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA... UPSTATE SOUTH CAROLINA...AND EXTREME NORTHEAST GEORGIA. .DAY ONE...TODAY A FLOOD WATCH REMAINS IN AFFECT FOR PORTIONS OF THE PIEDMONT OF THE WESTERN CAROLINAS THIS MORNING. SEE CAEFFAGSP AND CAEFLSGSP FOR FURTHER INFORMATION. A COLD FRONT WILL MOVE VERY SLOWLY ACROSS THE MOUNTAINS TODAY...AND SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED TO REDEVELOP AHEAD OF THIS FEATURE DURING THE AFTERNOON. THESE STORMS WILL BE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING ISOLATED HEAVY RAINFALL... AS WELL AS GUSTY WINDS AND FREQUENT LIGHTNING. HOWEVER...THESE STORMS ARE EXPECTED TO REMAIN BELOW SEVERE LEVELS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN... THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE ACROSS THE AREA THURSDAY THROUGH SATURDAY. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT ANTICIPATED. LANE
In the hours before
Local storm report, Jun 8, 6:50 PM EDT, 3 hours 41 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE SPARTANBURG SC
650 PM EDT SUN JUN 08 2003
TIME(EDT) .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
634 PM 15 W MARION NC 1.00 INCH HAIL
06/08/03 MCDOWELL MCDOWELL COUNTY 911
REPORTS QUARTER-SIZED
HAIL IN OLD FORT.
634 PM 15 W MARION NC WIND DAMAGE
06/08/03 MCDOWELL TREES DOWN...ONE ON
INTERSTATE 40 BLOCKING
ONE LANE OF TRAFFIC. THE
OTHER TREE OFF OAKDALE
AVENUE IN OLD FORT.
GENERAL PUBLIC REPORT
RELAYED BY COUNTU 911
CENTER.
640 PM 5 S NEWLAND NC .88 INCH HAIL
06/08/03 AVERY 911 CENTER REPORTED HAIL
COVERED THE GROUND IN
CROSSNORE.
BURRUSLocal storm report, Jun 8, 8:41 PM EDT, 1 hour 50 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE SPARTANBURG SC
841 PM EDT SUN JUN 08 2003
TIME(EDT) .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
805 PM 6 N TAYLORSVILLE NC WIND DAMAGE
06/08/03 ALEXANDER NUMEROUS TREES DOWN AND
CHICKEN HOUSES DESTROYED.
REPORTED BY COUNTY
EMERGENCY COORDINATOR.
MCAVOYLocal storm report, Jun 8, 8:49 PM EDT, 1 hour 42 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE SPARTANBURG SC
849 PM EDT SUN JUN 08 2003
TIME(EDT) .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
845 PM 5 NW COOL SPRINGS NC .75 INCH HAIL
06/08/03 IREDELL SPOTTER REPORTS DIME
SIZED HAIL AND FUNNEL
CLOUD.
KRENTZLocal storm report, Jun 8, 9:07 PM EDT, 1 hour 24 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE SPARTANBURG SC
907 PM EDT SUN JUN 08 2003
TIME(EDT) .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
835 PM LINCOLNTON NC WIND DAMAGE
06/08/03 LINCOLN 2 TREES DOWN IN
LINCOLNTON. REPORTED BY
COUNTY COMMS CENTER.
MCAVOYLocal storm report, Jun 8, 10:04 PM EDT, 27 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE SPARTANBURG SC
1004 PM EDT SUN JUN 08 2003
TIME(EDT) .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
930 PM SHEFFIELD NC 1.00 INCH HAIL
06/08/03 DAVIE QUARTER SIZE HAIL
REPORTED BY SKYWARN
SPOTTER.
KRENTZLocal storm report, Jun 8, 10:06 PM EDT, 25 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE SPARTANBURG SC
1006 PM EDT SUN JUN 08 2003
TIME(EDT) .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
930 PM SHEFFIELD NC SEVERE WINDS
06/08/03 DAVIE 55 TO 60 MPH WINDS
REPORTED BY SKYWARN
SPOTTER.
KRENTZThe office that day
Everything else NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 8, 8:08 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | GSP | Catawba, Lincoln | 67 min |
| Jun 8, 8:19 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | GSP | Iredell | 56 min |
| Jun 8, 9:01 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | GSP | Davie | 44 min |
| Jun 8, 9:06 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | GSP | Rowan | 39 min |
| Jun 8, 9:40 PM EDT | Flash Flood Warning | GSP | Iredell | 3 hr |
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.