Alert archive / Massachusetts / Flash Flood Warnings in 2004

Flash Flood Warning 4, NWS Boston/Norton, MA

September 18, 2004Worcester County, Massachusetts

NWS Boston/Norton, MA issued this flash flood warning at Sep 18, 2004, 11:50 AM EDT for Worcester County, Massachusetts. It was in force for 6 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 18, 2004, 11:50 AM EDT (15:50 UTC)
Expired
Sep 18, 2004, 5:45 PM EDT
In force
6 hr
Issued by
NWS Boston/Norton, MA
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Worcester County, MA

The radar

The Boston radar (KBOX), 86 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 15:51 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

Brookhaven, NY (KOKX), launched 12:00Z, 3.8 hours before the alert went out and 176 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, Brookhaven, NY at 12:00Z on 2004-09-18Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1385 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, Brookhaven, NY at 12:00Z on 2004-09-18The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 226 square meters per square second.19395878Sfc1 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
1385 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-10 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
550 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
46 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
226 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
206 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
1.3
Supercell composite
5.3

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WGUS51 KBOX 181551
FFWBOX
MAC027-182145-
/0..000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.OO/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAUNTON MA
1150 AM EDT SAT SEP 18 2004

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN TAUNTON HAS ISSUED A

* FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR...
  WORCESTER COUNTY IN CENTRAL MASSACHUSETTS
  THIS INCLUDES THE CITY OF LEOMINSTER

* UNTIL 545 PM EDT

* AT 1145 AM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR INDICATED THAT
  MORE VERY HEAVY RAIN WAS LIKELY TO FALL ACROSS WORCESTER COUNTY
  THROUGH MID AFTERNOON.  FLASH FLOODING OF SMALL STREAMS IS LIKELY
  ESPECIALLY ACROSS NORTHERN AND WESTERN WORCESTER COUNTY. 

* OTHER LOCATIONS IN THE WARNING INCLUDE BUT ARE NOT LIMITED TO
  WESTMINSTER...WEST BROOKFIELD...WEST BOYLSTON...WARREN...
  TEMPLETON...STERLING...SPENCER...RUTLAND...PRINCETON...
  PHILLIPSTON...PETERSHAM...PAXTON...OAKHAM...NORTH BROOKFIELD...NEW
  BRAINTREE...LEICESTER...LANCASTER...HOLDEN...HARDWICK...GARDNER...
  EAST BROOKFIELD...CLINTON...BROOKFIELD AND BARRE.

IF YOU LIVE OR ARE CAMPING ALONG A FLOOD PRONE STREAM NOW IS THE 
TIME TO TAKE ACTION TO PROTECT LIFE AND PROPERTY. RAPID RISES ON 
SMALL RIVERS AND STREAMS CAN FLOOD HOMES...BUSINESSES AND ROADWAYS 
VERY QUICKLY.

MOST FLASH FLOOD DEATHS OCCUR IN AUTOMOBILES. NEVER ATTEMPT TO CROSS
BRIDGES OR ROADS WHERE WATER COVERS THE ROADWAY. IT ONLY TAKES A FOOT
OR TWO OF WATER TO WASH MOST CARS AWAY.

LAT...LON 4215 7225 4213 7201 4251 7158 4268 7218

$$

THOMPSON

The office that day

Everything else NWS Boston/Norton, MA issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Sep 18, 11:00 AM EDTFlash Flood WarningBOXFranklin6 hr
Sep 18, 12:02 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningBOXHampden, Hampshire6 hr
Sep 18, 12:24 PM EDTSpecial Marine WarningBOX81 min
Sep 18, 12:24 PM EDTSpecial Marine WarningBOX81 min
Sep 18, 12:24 PM EDTSpecial Marine WarningBOX81 min
Sep 18, 12:24 PM EDTSpecial Marine WarningBOX81 min
Sep 18, 2:06 PM EDTSpecial Marine WarningBOX84 min
Sep 18, 2:06 PM EDTSpecial Marine WarningBOX84 min

Nearby

Flash Flood Warnings in Massachusetts, 2004Every 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.