Alert archive / North Carolina / Flash Flood Warnings in 2003
Flash Flood Warning 98, NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC
NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC issued this flash flood warning at Aug 1, 2003, 5:15 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 1, 2003, 5:15 PM EDT (21:15 UTC)
- Expired
- Aug 1, 2003, 8:15 PM 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 21:19 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 12:00Z, 9.3 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.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 769 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -3 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 476 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 25 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 31 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 55 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.1
- Supercell composite
- 0.4
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000 WGUS52 KGSP 012119 FFWGSP NCC179-020015- BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED FLASH FLOOD WARNING NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC 515 PM EDT FRI AUG 1 2003 THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG HAS ISSUED A * FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR... NORTHEASTERN UNION COUNTY IN THE PIEDMONT OF NORTH CAROLINA * UNTIL 815 PM EDT * AT 509 PM EDT...WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED VERY HEAVY RAIN OF 3 TO 4 INCHES HAS FALLEN SINCE ABOUT 4 PM BETWEEN WINGATE AND NEW SALEM...AND THUNDERSTORMS CONTINUE TO LINGER NEAR THIS AREA...POSSIBLY RESULTING IN ANOTHER INCH OR TWO OF RAIN. * FLOODING SHOULD DEVELOP ALONG RICHARDSON CREEK...JACKS BRANCH AND SALEM CREEK...AND POSSIBLY EFFECT ROUTES 205...218 AND NEW SALEM AND OLIVE BRANCH ROADS. A FLASH FLOOD WARNING MEANS THAT FLOODING IS IMMINENT OR OCCURRING. IF YOU ARE IN THE WARNING AREA MOVE TO HIGHER GROUND IMMEDIATELY. RESIDENTS LIVING ALONG STREAMS AND CREEKS SHOULD TAKE IMMEDIATE PRECAUTIONS TO PROTECT LIFE AND PROPERTY. DO NOT ATTEMPT TO CROSS SWIFTLY FLOWING WATERS OR WATERS OF UNKNOWN DEPTH BY FOOT OR BY AUTOMOBILE. EVEN MODERN SPORT UTILITY VEHICLES CANNOT BE SAFELY DRIVEN THROUGH FLOOD WATERS. $$ 55
3 follow-up statements
000 WGUS72 KGSP 012228 FFSGSP NCC179-020015- FLASH FLOOD STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC 625 PM EDT FRI AUG 1 2003 ...A FLASH FLOOD WARNING CONTINUES UNTIL 815 PM EDT FOR NORTHEASTERN UNION COUNTY... UNION COUNTY 911 CENTER REPORTS ONLY STANDING WATER ALONG ROUTE 205 ABOUT 5 MILES NORTH OF MARSHVILLE...BUT DOPPLER RADAR ESTIMATES THAT 4 TO 6 INCHES OF RAIN HAS FALLEN SINCE ABOUT 4 PM CENTERED ROUGHLY ON THE FAIRFIELD COMMUNITY. THUNDERSTORMS HAVE REDEVELOPED ACROSS UNION COUNTY...EXTENDING SOUTHWEST INTO LANCASTER COUNTY...AND THESE STORMS WILL CONTINUE TO MOVE NORTHEAST ACROSS THE WARNED AREA THIS EVENING. EXPECT RISES ON RICHARDSON AND SALEM CREEKS...AND ALSO ON JACKS BRANCH. FLOODING MAY DEVELOP ON NUMEROUS ROADS IN THIS VICINITY...INCLUDING ROUTES 205...218 AND ANSONVILLE AND OLIVE BRANCH ROAD. DO NOT BECOME A FATALITY DO NOT CROSS FLOODED ROADS...THE ROAD COULD BE WASHED OUT FROM THE FLOW OF THE WATER...AND YOUR CAR COULD BE SWEPT AWAY BY THE SWIFTLY MOVING WATER. $$ 55
000 WGUS72 KGSP 012316 FFSGSP NCC179-020015- FLASH FLOOD STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC 715 PM EDT FRI AUG 1 2003 ...A FLASH FLOOD WARNING CONTINUES UNTIL 815 PM EDT FOR NORTHEASTERN UNION COUNTY... UNION COUNTY 911 CENTER CONTINUES TO REPORT NO FLOODING PROBLEMS OR ANY ROAD CLOSURES IN THE WARNING AREA. DOPPLER RADAR ESTIMATES THAT 4 TO 6 INCHES OF RAIN HAS FALLEN SINCE ABOUT 4 PM CENTERED ROUGHLY ON THE FAIRFIELD COMMUNITY NORTH OF MARSHVILLE. THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS UNION COUNTY HAVE INDICATED A WEAKENING TREND RECENTLY...BUT ADDITIONAL HEAVY RAINFALL IN THE WARNED AREA IS STILL POSSIBLE. STILL EXPECT RISES ON RICHARDSON AND SALEM CREEKS...AND ALSO ON JACKS BRANCH. FLOODING COULD DEVELOP ON NUMEROUS ROADS IN THIS VICINITY...INCLUDING ROUTES 205...218 AND ANSONVILLE AND OLIVE BRANCH ROAD. 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. $$ 55
000 WGUS72 KGSP 020021 FFSGSP NCC179-020045- FLASH FLOOD STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC 820 PM EDT FRI AUG 1 2003 ...FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR NORTHEASTERN UNION COUNTY EXPIRED... RADAR TRENDS INDICATE THAT STORMS HAVE WEAKENED CONSIDERABLY ACROSS UNION COUNTY. UNION COUNTY 911 CENTER CONTINUES TO REPORT NO FLOODING PROBLEMS OR ANY ROAD CLOSURES IN THE WARNING AREA...THEREFORE THE FLASH FLOOD WARNING HAS BEEN ALLOWED TO EXPIRE. $$ 55
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 1, 3:10 PM EDT, 2 hours 5 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Aug 1, 3:10 PM EDT, 2 hours 5 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC 310 PM EDT FRI AUG 1 2003 CONVECTIVE COVERAGE OVER THE GSP CWA IS FAIRLY LIMITED ATTM. TO THE WEST...THERE IS GOOD COVERAGE ACROSS THE GREAT VALLEY OF TN UNDER THE H5 VORT IN AN AREA THAT HAS HAD MORE SUN AND SLIGHTLY STEEPER LAPSE RATES. TO THE EAST...CONVECTION IS BEGINNING TO UNZIP ALONG A THERMAL GRADIENT...JUST EAST OF ENTRANCE REGION INDUCED MID CLOUD DECK WHICH HAS HELD TEMPS DOWN INTO THE MID 70S ACROSS OUR NC PIEDMONT ZONES DURING THE DAY. LINE OF DRYING EVIDENT ON WATER VAPOR HAS BEEN MUCH SLOWER TO ENTER REGION THAT THE MODELS ADVERTISED. PW THIS MORNING AT GSO WAS 2.11 INCHES...WHILE IT WAS AROUND 1.5 INCHES AT BNA. APPEARS NOW THAT BEST FORCING WL STALL JUST E OF THE CWA...IN THE H3 JET ENTRANCE REGION. HOWEVER...SOME WEAK UPSLOPE/LEE CONVERGENCE CONTINUES...AND AS THE H5 WAVE WORKS ACROSS THE CWA THIS EVENING...THERE SHOULD BE GOOD COVERAGE. HAVE GONE LIKELY POPS IN ROUGHLY THE EASTERN HALF OF THE CWA...AND CHANCE WEST...W/POPS LOWERING LATER TNGT. SO...WL NOT ISSUE ANY KIND OF FFA ATTM...THOUGH WL CERTAINLY HAVE TO KEEP AN EYE ON THE LEE SLOPES LATER THIS EVENING AS UPSLOPE IS PROGGED TO GET BETTER AFTER 00 UTC. HAVE NOT MADE MANY CHANGES TO THE GRIDS FOR SAT. LIKE THE MID SHIFT/S AFTN DEVELOPMENT IN THE LEE. W/CONSIDERABLY LESS CLOUD COVER TMRW (AFTER MORNING STRATUS)...WE SHOULD HAVE BETTER DESTABILIZATION AND MORE TYPICAL CONVECTIVE DEVELOPMENT ALONG THE ESCARPMENT WHICH THEN DRIFTS INTO THE LEE. PW/S ARE PROGGED TO BE LOWER MOST OF THE DAY TMRW...BUT THEY WL STILL BE HIGH ENOUGH FOR ISOLATED HEAVY RAIN. LATE SAT NGHT MCS REMNANTS SHOULD AFFECT THE WRN ZONES. MRX INCREASES THEIR POPS TO LIKELY LATE...AND WE MATCH UP WELL IN THIS REGARD. FLOW IS ORIENTED SUCH THAT ACTIVITY SHOULD NOT MAKE IT TOO FAR E OF THE MTS...THOUGH ACTIVITY MAY POP ALONG THE LEE SLOPES. LONG WAVE SHARPENS CONSIDERABLY ON SUNDAY...PUTTING US IN A DEEP...WET SWLY FLOW. GOOD SHEAR AND PLENTY OF MINOR WAVES SWINGING THROUGH THE TROF. IT IS ANYBODY/S GUESS AS TO EXACTLY WHERE MINOR WAVES WL BE CONSIDERING MCV POTENTIAL W/THIS PATTERN...SO HAVE KEPT POPS AT 50 PERCENT SUN AND SUN NGHT. ON MONDAY THE LONG WAVE CONTINUES TO TRUNDLE SLOWLY TO THE SE. SHEAR IS STRONGER...SO WHILE THE SEVERE THREAT WL BE HIGHER...HOPEFULLY PCPN WL MOVE A LITTLE FASTER. CONSIDERED ISSUING AN ESF FOR SUN/MON HEAVY RAIN THREAT...BUT DECIDED TO HOLD OFF FOR NOW. FCSTID = 14 GSP 69 86 69 86 / 50 50 50 40 AND 70 87 70 87 / 40 40 40 40 CLT 70 86 70 86 / 60 40 40 40 HKY 68 85 68 84 / 50 40 40 40 AVL 65 82 65 81 / 40 40 40 50 .GSP... GA...NONE. NC...NONE. SC...NONE. MCAVOY
Hazardous weather outlook, Aug 1, 5:55 AM EDT, 11 hours 20 minutes before
GAZ010-017-018-026-028-029-NCZ033>037-048>059-062>072-082-SCZ001>014- 019-011200- HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC 555 AM EDT FRI AUG 1 2003 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA... UPSTATE SOUTH CAROLINA...AND EXTREME NORTHEAST GEORGIA. .DAY ONE...TODAY NUMEROUS SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED TO DEVELOP ACROSS THE WESTERN CAROLINAS AND NORTHEAST GEORGIA THIS AFTERNOON AND THIS EVENING. THE THUNDERSTORMS WILL MOVE VERY SLOWLY AND COULD PRODUCE LOCALLY VERY HEAVY RAINFALL. FURTHER DETAILS ON THE POTENTIAL FOR EXCESSIVE RAINFALL LATE TODAY CAN BE FOUND IN THE SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT...SPSGSP...ISSUED EARLIER THIS MORNING. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN... MAINLY AFTERNOON AND EVENING THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE EACH DAY THROUGH NEXT THURSDAY. GIVEN THE CURRENT MOIST SOIL CONDITIONS ACROSS THE REGION...ANY THUNDERSTORMS THAT DEVELOP COULD PRODUCE LOCALIZED FLOODING. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE REQUIRED IF FLOODING DEVELOPS LATER TODAY. HG
In the hours before
Local storm report, Aug 1, 4:24 PM EDT, 51 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE SPARTANBURG SC
424 PM EDT FRI AUG 01 2003
TIME(EDT) .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
415 PM ARDEN NC HEAVY RAIN
08/01/03 BUNCOMBE TRAINED SPOTTER REPORTED
1 INCH OF RAIN FELL IN
LESS THAN TEN MINUTES.
ALSO ESTIMATED WIND GUSTS
OF 40 MPH.
408 PM SKYLAND NC WIND DAMAGE
08/01/03 BUNCOMBE 911 CENTER REPORTED ONE
TREE DOWN ON HOUSE
BETWEEN ARDEN AND
SKYLAND.
LAMBThe office that day
Everything else NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 1, 4:18 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | GSP | Buncombe, Henderson | 42 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.