Alert archive / Virginia / Flash Flood Warnings in 2003

Flash Flood Warning 83, NWS Blacksburg, VA

September 27, 2003Rockbridge County, City of Buena Vista, City of Lexington, Virginia

NWS Blacksburg, VA issued this flash flood warning at Sep 27, 2003, 6:38 PM EDT for Rockbridge County, City of Buena Vista, City of Lexington, Virginia. 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
Sep 27, 2003, 6:38 PM EDT (22:38 UTC)
Expired
Sep 27, 2003, 9:15 PM EDT
In force
3 hr
Issued by
NWS Blacksburg, VA
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

Counties City of Buena Vista, VA, City of Lexington, VA, Rockbridge County, VA

The radar

The Roanoke radar (KFCX), 118 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 22:38 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, 10.6 hours before the alert went out and 71 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, Roanoke, VA at 12:00Z on 2003-09-27Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 55 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, Roanoke, VA at 12:00Z on 2003-09-27The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 124 square meters per square second.193958Sfc1 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
55 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-125 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
652 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
28 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
124 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
129 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 272242
FFWRNK
VAC163-530-678-280115-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BLACKSBURG VA
638 PM EDT SAT SEP 27 2003

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN BLACKSBURG HAS ISSUED A

* FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR...
  BUENA VISTA IN WEST CENTRAL VIRGINIA
  LEXINGTON IN WEST CENTRAL VIRGINIA
  ROCKBRIDGE COUNTY IN WEST CENTRAL VIRGINIA

* UNTIL 915 PM EDT

* AT 638 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR INDICATED THUNDERSTORMS
  WITH VERY HEAVY RAINS MOVING EAST AT 20 MPH ACROSS THE COUNTY. RADAR
  ALSO SHOWED THAT ONE HOUR RAINFALL RATES OF 3 INCHES WERE OCCURRING
  WITH THESE STORMS. THIS WILL CAUSE FLASH FLOODING ALONG THE SOUTH 
  RIVER...AS WELL AS CREEKS THAT FLOW INTO THIS RIVER.

* SOME LOCATIONS THREATENED BY HEAVY RAIN THROUGH 915 PM EDT INCLUDE
  ROCKBRIDGE BATHS...
  MARLBROOK...
  VESUVIUS...
  RIVERSIDE...
  CORNWALL...

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.

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 3789 7918 3761 7947 3773 7965 3789 7960
          3800 7940

$$

05
1 follow-up statement
000 
WGUS71 KRNK 280105
FFSRNK
VAC163-530-678-280130-

FLASH FLOOD STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BLACKSBURG VA
904 PM EDT SAT SEP 27 2003

...THE FLASH FLOOD WARNING WHICH WAS IN EFFECT FOR THE INDEPENDENT 
CITIES OF BUENA VISTA...AND LEXINGTON AND THE COUNTY OF ROCKBRIDGE 
WILL BE ALLOWED TO EXPIRE AT 915 PM EDT...

THE HEAVY RAIN HAS ENDED OVER THE WARNED AREA. STREAMS AND CREEKS IN
THE WARNED AREA HAVE RECEDED OR WERE BEGINNING TO RECEDE...ENDING THE
FLASH FLOOD THREAT.

$$

WP

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Sep 27, 4:57 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningRNKAlleghany, City of Covington3 hr
Sep 27, 5:14 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningRNKGiles2 hr

Nearby

Flash Flood Warnings in Virginia, 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.