Alert archive / Alabama / Flash Flood Warnings in 2003

Flash Flood Warning 21, NWS Huntsville, AL

May 6, 2003Jackson County, Madison County, Alabama

NWS Huntsville, AL issued this flash flood warning at May 6, 2003, 10:36 PM CDT for Jackson County, Madison County, Alabama. 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 outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
May 6, 2003, 10:36 PM CDT (03:36 UTC)
Expired
May 7, 2003, 1:30 AM CDT
In force
3 hr
Issued by
NWS Huntsville, AL
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

Counties Jackson County, AL, Madison County, AL

The radar

The Northeast Alabama radar (KHTX), 27 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 03:35 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

Nashville Metro, TN (KBNA), launched 00:00Z, 3.6 hours before the alert went out and 145 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, Nashville Metro, TN at 00:00Z on 2003-05-07Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1519 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Nashville Metro, TN at 00:00Z on 2003-05-07The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 92 square meters per square second.1939587897Sfc1 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
1519 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-20 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
720 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
56 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
92 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
120 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.9
Supercell composite
3.1

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WGUS54 KHUN 070337
FFWHUN
ALC071-089-070630-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HUNTSVILLE AL
1036 PM CDT TUE MAY 6 2003

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN HUNTSVILLE HAS ISSUED A

* FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR...
  MADISON COUNTY IN NORTH CENTRAL ALABAMA
  JACKSON COUNTY IN NORTHEAST ALABAMA

* UNTIL 130 AM CDT

* AT 1036 PM CDT...WEATHER SERVICE RADAR THUNDERSTORMS CONTAINING    
  VERY HEAVY RAINFALL WERE MOVING INTO MADISON COUNTY. THE           
  THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING NORTHEAST AT 40 MPH. THE GROUND IS       
  SATURATED...ANY ADDITIONAL RAINFALL WILL RESULT IN RUNOFF PROBLEMS.

* SOME LOCATIONS AFFECTED INCLUDE...
  BRIDGEPORT...GURLEY...HARVEST...HAZEL GREEN...HOLLYWOOD...
  HUNTSVILLE...MADISON...MERIDIANVILLE...MOORES MILL...NEW MARKET...
  PISGAH...REDSTONE ARSENAL...SCOTTSBORO...SKYLINE AND STEVENSON

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 TO HIGHER GROUND TO ESCAPE RISING WATERS

LAT...LON 3498 8680 3460 8679 3465 8577 3498 8562

$$
1 follow-up statement
000 
WGUS74 KHUN 070640
FFSHUN
ALC071-089-070700-

FLASH FLOOD STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HUNTSVILLE AL
138 AM CDT WED MAY 7 2003

...FLASH FLOOD WARNINGS FOR MADISON AND JACKSON COUNTIES HAS BEEN    
   ALLOWED TO EXPIRE...

AT 138 AM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED THAT
THE HEAVY RAINFALL HAD ENDED ACROSS MADISON AND JACKSON 
COUNTIES...AND THE FLASH FLOOD THREAT HAD DIMINISHED.  AS A 
RESULT...THE FLASH FLOOD WARNINGS FOR THESE COUNTIES HAVE BEEN 
ALLOWED TO EXPIRE.  

WHILE THE FLASH FLOOD THREAT HAS DIMINISHED...WATER MAY STILL COVER 
ROADWAYS IN A FEW SPOTS ACROSS THE AREA...AND MOTORISTS SHOULD 
EXERCISE CAUTION IF VENTURING OUT EARLY THIS MORNING.  IN 
ADDITION...SIGNIFICANT RIVER FLOODING CONTINUES ALONG THE FLINT AND 
PAINT ROCK RIVERS IN EASTERN MADISON AND WESTERN JACKSON COUNTIES 
DUE TO THE EARLIER HEAVY RAINS.  PERSONS IN THE VICINITY OF THESE 
RIVERS AND THEIR IMMEDIATE TRIBUTARIES SHOULD REMAIN CAUTIOUS AND BE 
PREPARED FOR CONTINUED FLOODING THROUGH AT LEAST THE NEXT ONE TO TWO 
DAYS.  

STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER...OR TO YOUR FAVORITE LOCAL MEDIA FOR THE
LATEST WEATHER INFORMATION.

LAT...LON 3453 8603 3455 8614 3461 8615 3457 8632
          3463 8673 3487 8673 3495 8564 3458 8594

$$

The office that day

Everything else NWS Huntsville, AL issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 6, 9:47 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningHUNLawrence3 hr
May 6, 9:51 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHUNLawrence24 min
May 6, 10:16 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHUNLawrence44 min
May 6, 10:23 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHUNMadison37 min
May 6, 10:47 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHUNMorgan43 min
May 6, 10:48 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHUNFranklin42 min
May 6, 11:01 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHUNJackson, Madison44 min
May 6, 11:04 PM CDTTornado WarningHUNColbert, Franklin41 min
May 7, 8:20 AM CDTFlash Flood WarningHUNColbert, Franklin, Lauderdale4 hr
May 7, 9:10 AM CDTFlash Flood WarningHUNLawrence, Limestone, Madison, Morgan3 hr
May 7, 9:10 AM CDTFlash Flood WarningHUNLawrence, Limestone, Madison, Morgan4 hr
May 7, 10:52 AM CDTFlash Flood WarningHUNJackson, Marshall3 hr
May 7, 11:43 AM CDTFlash Flood WarningHUNDeKalb2 hr
May 7, 12:45 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningHUNMadison4 hr

Nearby

Flash Flood Warnings in Alabama, 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.