Alert archive / Virginia / Flash Flood Warnings in 2003

Flash Flood Warning 25, NWS Blacksburg, VA

June 16, 2003Bedford County, Botetourt County, Virginia

NWS Blacksburg, VA issued this flash flood warning at Jun 16, 2003, 9:49 AM EDT for Bedford County, Botetourt County, Virginia. It was in force for 116 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: Jun 16, 2003, 9:49 AM EDT (13:49 UTC)
Expired: Jun 16, 2003, 11:45 AM EDT
In force: 116 min
Issued by: NWS Blacksburg, VA
Area: Counties, with a storm outline in the text

Counties Bedford County, VA, Botetourt County, VA

The radar

The Roanoke radar (KFCX), 63 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 13:52 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

Roanoke, VA (KRNK), launched 12:00Z, 1.8 hours before the alert went out and 28 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: 148 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -7 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 477 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 35 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 77 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 165 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WGUS51 KRNK 161352
FFWRNK
VAC019-023-515-161545-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BLACKSBURG VA
949 AM EDT MON JUN 16 2003

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN BLACKSBURG HAS ISSUED A

* FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR...
  BEDFORD COUNTY IN SOUTH CENTRAL VIRGINIA
  BOTETOURT COUNTY IN WEST CENTRAL VIRGINIA

* UNTIL 1145 AM EDT

* AT 949 AM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR INDICATED AN AREA 
  OF PERSISTENT HEAVY RAIN OVER EASTERN BOTETOURT AND SOUTHERN
  BEDFORD COUNTIES.  BETWEEN A HALF TO AN INCH OF RAIN IS LIKELY 
  IN LESS THAN AN HOUR...WITH BETWEEN 1 TO 2 INCHES OF RAIN POSSIBLE
  BEFORE THE RAIN ENDS.

* LOCATIONS THREATENED BY HEAVY RAIN INCLUDE...ARCADIA...BLUE
  RIDGE...CHAMBLISSBURG...DALEVILLE...FINCASTLE...GOODE...
  GOODVIEW...LAYMANTOWN...LITHIA...NACE...SEDALIA...SPRINGWOOD AND
  THAXTON...

A FLASH FLOOD WARNING MEANS THAT FLOODING IS OCCURRING OR IS
IMMINENT. MOST FLASH FLOOD DEATHS OCCUR IN AUTOMOBILES. DO NOT
ATTEMPT TO CROSS BRIDGES...DIPS...OR OTHER LOW SPOTS IF WATER COVERS
THE ROADWAY. NEVER TRY TO CROSS A FLOWING STREAM...EVEN A SMALL
ONE...ON FOOT.

RELAY REPORTS OF FLOODING TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN
BLACKSBURG BY CALLING TOLL FREE...1...8 6 6...2 1 5...4 3 2 4.

LAT...LON 3743 8000 3732 7985 3724 7983 3709 7955
          3740 7936 3752 7951 3765 7968

$$

11

1 follow-up statement

000 
WGUS71 KRNK 161507
FFSRNK
VAC019-023-515-161545-

FLASH FLOOD STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BLACKSBURG VA
1056 AM EDT MON JUN 16 2003


...A FLASH FLOOD WARNING CONTINUES FOR THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES AND 
INDEPENDENT CITIES...BOTETOURT...BEDFORD...AND BEDFORD CITY...

UNTIL 1145 AM EDT.

AT 1056 AM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR CONTINUED TO 
INDICATE VERY HEAVY RAIN FROM NEAR DALEVILLE IN BOTETOURT 
COUNTY...ALONG ROUTE 460 THROUGH CENTRAL BEDFORD COUNTY...TO JUST 
SOUTHWEST OF LYNCHBURG.  THIS HEAVY RAINFALL HAS RESULTED IN 
FLOODING IN BONSACK AND HARDY...AND ALONG ROUTE 757 NEAR 
STEWARTSVILLE.

EXCESSIVE RUNOFF FROM THIS STORM WILL CAUSE FLASH FLOODING OF SMALL 
CREEKS AND STREAMS...COUNTRY ROADS...AS WELL AS FARMLAND ALONG THE 
BANKS OF CREEKS AND STREAMS.  FOR YOUR SAFETY...PLEASE AVOID STREAMS 
AND CREEKS...FAST MOVING WATER CAN SWEEP YOU TO YOUR DEATH.

RELAY YOUR REPORTS OF FLOODING TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BY
CALLING TOLL FREE...1...8 6 6...2 1 5...4 3 2 4.

$$

PEM

The office that day

Everything else NWS Blacksburg, VA issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Jun 16, 8:14 AM EDT	Flash Flood Warning	RNK	Roanoke, City of Roanoke, City of Salem	2 hr
Jun 16, 10:35 AM EDT	Flash Flood Warning	RNK	Henry, City of Martinsville	115 min
Jun 16, 11:23 AM EDT	Flash Flood Warning	RNK	Pittsylvania, City of Danville	3 hr
Jun 16, 4:05 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	RNK	Smyth	25 min
Jun 16, 4:47 PM EDT	Flash Flood Warning	RNK	Smyth	3 hr

Nearby

Flash Flood Warnings in Virginia, 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.