Alert archive / Iowa / Flash Flood Warnings in 2004

Flash Flood Warning 13, NWS La Crosse, WI

May 22, 2004Howard County, Mitchell County, Iowa

NWS La Crosse, WI issued this flash flood warning at May 22, 2004, 12:11 AM CDT for Howard County, Mitchell County, Iowa. 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 22, 2004, 12:11 AM CDT (05:11 UTC)
Expired: May 22, 2004, 3:15 AM CDT
In force: 3 hr
Issued by: NWS La Crosse, WI
Area: Counties, with a storm outline in the text

Counties Howard County, IA, Mitchell County, IA

The radar

The La Crosse radar (KARX), 130 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 05:15 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

Minneapolis, MN (KMPX), launched 00:00Z, 5.2 hours before the alert went out and 185 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: 2 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: 0 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 512 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 74 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 215 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 257 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 0.3

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WGUS53 KARX 220511
FFWARX
IAC089-131-220815-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LA CROSSE WI
1211 AM CDT SAT MAY 22 2004

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN LA CROSSE HAS ISSUED A

* FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR...
  MITCHELL COUNTY IN NORTH CENTRAL IOWA
  HOWARD COUNTY IN NORTHEAST IOWA

* UNTIL 315 AM CDT

* AT 1210 AM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR DETECTED
  THUNDERSTORMS PRODUCING VERY HEAVY RAIN ACROSS THE WARNED AREA.
  ESTIMATES FROM RADAR INDICATED THAT NEARLY 3 INCHES OF RAIN HAS
  FALLEN DURING THE PAST 3 HOURS OVER THE WARNED AREA. THE STORMS
  PRODUCING THE VERY HEAVY RAINFALL WERE MOVING EAST AT 45 MPH.
  THIS WARNING EXTENDS THE PREVIOUS FLASH FLOOD WARNING ISSUED FOR
  MITCHELL AND HOWARD COUNTIES.

* SOME LOCATIONS THAT MAY BE AFFECTED INCLUDE...CRESCO...ELMA...LIME
  SPRINGS...OSAGE...RICEVILLE...ST. ANSGAR AND STACYVILLE.

BE ESPECIALLY CAUTIOUS AT NIGHT WHEN IT IS HARDER TO RECOGNIZE THE
DANGERS OF FLOODS. IF FLOODING IS OBSERVED ACT QUICKLY. MOVE TO
HIGHER GROUND TO ESCAPE FLOOD WATERS. DO NOT STAY IN AREAS SUBJECT TO
FLOODING WHEN WATER BEGINS RISING.

LAT...LON 4323 9302 4323 9210 4348 9210 4350 9302

$$

RABERDING

1 follow-up statement

000 
WGUS73 KARX 220612
FFSARX
IAC089-131-220815-

FLASH FLOOD STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LA CROSSE WI
111 AM CDT SAT MAY 22 2004

...A FLASH FLOOD WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR MITCHELL AND HOWARD
COUNTIES UNTIL 315 AM CDT...

AT 111 AM CDT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR DETECTED THUNDERSTORMS 
PRODUCING VERY HEAVY RAIN ACROSS MUCH OF THE AREA. RAINFALL RATES 
BETWEEN 1 AND 2 INCHES PER HOUR WILL CONTINUE ACROSS THE WARNED AREA 
OVER THE NEXT HOUR. THE ADDITIONAL RAINFALL WILL ONLY AGGRAVATE THE 
FLASH FLOODING. LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICIALS REPORT THAT SAND BAGGING 
OPERATIONS WERE ONGOING IN PROTIVIN AND MANY RIVERS AND CREEKS WERE 
OUT OF THEIR BANKS. THIS IS A ESPECIALLY DANGEROUS SITUATION.

BE ESPECIALLY CAUTIOUS AT NIGHT WHEN IT IS HARDER TO RECOGNIZE THE
DANGERS OF FLOODS. IF FLOODING IS OBSERVED ACT QUICKLY. MOVE TO
HIGHER GROUND TO ESCAPE FLOOD WATERS. DO NOT STAY IN AREAS SUBJECT TO
FLOODING WHEN WATER BEGINS RISING.

$$

RABERDING

The office that day

Everything else NWS La Crosse, WI issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
May 21, 7:00 PM CDT	Flash Flood Warning	ARX	Chickasaw, Floyd	3 hr
May 21, 7:25 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	ARX	Clayton	35 min
May 21, 7:41 PM CDT	Flash Flood Warning	ARX	Allamakee, Winneshiek	3 hr
May 21, 8:35 PM CDT	Flash Flood Warning	ARX	Clayton, Fayette	3 hr
May 21, 9:08 PM CDT	Flash Flood Warning	ARX	Howard, Mitchell	3 hr
May 21, 9:09 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	ARX	Clayton	51 min
May 21, 9:57 PM CDT	Flash Flood Warning	ARX	Chickasaw, Floyd	3 hr
May 21, 10:45 PM CDT	Flash Flood Warning	ARX	Allamakee, Winneshiek	3 hr
May 21, 11:28 PM CDT	Flash Flood Warning	ARX	Clayton, Fayette	3 hr
May 22, 12:18 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	ARX	Floyd	57 min
May 22, 12:59 AM CDT	Flash Flood Warning	ARX	Chickasaw, Floyd	3 hr
May 22, 2:07 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	ARX	Fayette	38 min
May 22, 2:16 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	ARX	Clayton	44 min

Nearby

Flash Flood Warnings in Iowa, 2004 Every flash flood warning in 2004

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.