Alert archive / Pennsylvania / Flash Flood Warnings in 2004

Flash Flood Warning 13, NWS State College, PA

May 26, 2004Columbia County, Lycoming County, Pennsylvania

NWS State College, PA issued this flash flood warning at May 26, 2004, 9:01 PM EDT for Columbia County, Lycoming County, Pennsylvania. It was in force for 6 hr. 1 report came from inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The outline as issued, with what was reported inside it.

The facts

Issued
May 26, 2004, 9:01 PM EDT (01:01 UTC)
Expired
May 27, 2004, 3:00 AM EDT
In force
6 hr
Issued by
NWS State College, PA
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

Counties Columbia County, PA, Lycoming County, PA

The radar

The State College radar (KCCX), 99 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 01:02 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.

What was reported inside it

TimeReportWhereRemark
May 26, 10:00 PM EDTFLASH FLOODFairmount Spgs, PANUMEROUS WASHED OUT ROADS. CREEKS OUT OF BANKS. ALSO IN HUNLOCK CREEK TWP.

Local storm reports filed while the alert was in force, from inside its polygon or its counties.

The nearest sounding before it

Buffalo Intl Airport, NY (KBUF), launched 00:00Z, 1.0 hours before the alert went out and 243 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, Buffalo Intl Airport, NY at 00:00Z on 2004-05-27Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 73 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, Buffalo Intl Airport, NY at 00:00Z on 2004-05-27The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity -98 square meters per square second.1939587897117Sfc1 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
73 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-11 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
934 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
55 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
-98 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
177 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
-0.0
Supercell composite
-0.5

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WGUS51 KCTP 270107
FFWCTP
PAC037-081-270700-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE STATE COLLEGE PA
901 PM EDT WED MAY 26 2004

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN STATE COLLEGE PA HAS ISSUED A

* FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR...
  COLUMBIA COUNTY IN CENTRAL PENNSYLVANIA
  LYCOMING COUNTY IN NORTH CENTRAL PENNSYLVANIA

* UNTIL 300 AM EDT.

* AT 852 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED   
  A NEARLY STATIONARY EAST TO WEST LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS             
  PRODUCING VERY HEAVY RAINFALL.

SLOW MOVING THUNDERSTORMS ARE PRODUCING TORRENTIAL RAINFALL AT THE 
RATE OF ONE AND ONE HALF...TO TWO INCHES PER HOUR OVER IN THE WARNED 
AREA. RUNOFF FROM THIS EXCESSIVE RAINFALL WILL CAUSE FLASH FLOODING 
ACROSS THE SOUTHERN HALF OF LYCOMING COUNTY AND NORTHERN COLUMBIA 
COUNTY. AREAS MOST LIKELY TO SEE FLASH FLOODING ARE JERSEY 
SHORE...WILLIAMSPORT...MUNCY...PICTURE ROCKS...HUGHESVILLE... 
UNITYVILLE...BENTON AND CENTRAL. 

DO NOT DRIVE YOUR VEHICLE INTO AREAS WHERE THE WATER COVERS THE
ROADWAY. VEHICLES CAUGHT IN RISING WATER SHOULD BE ABANDONED. MOVE TO
HIGHER GROUND.

SMALL CREEKS AND STREAMS WILL RAPIDLY FLOOD...POSSIBLY WASHING OUT
ROADS AND FLOODING NEARBY LOW AREAS.

BE ESPECIALLY CAUTIOUS AT NIGHT WHEN IT IS HARDER TO RECOGNIZE THE
DANGERS OF FLOODS AND FLASH FLOODS.

A FLASH FLOOD WARNING MEANS THAT FLOODING IS OCCURRING OR IS
IMMINENT. NEVER ATTEMPT TO CROSS HIGH WATER IN A VEHICLE OR ON FOOT


LAT...LON 4128 7737 4110 7720 4115 7672 4113 7629
          4132 7633

$$

LAMBERT
2 follow-up statements
000 
WGUS71 KCTP 270238
FFSCTP
PAC037-081-270830-

FLASH FLOOD STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE STATE COLLEGE PA
1037 PM EDT WED MAY 26 2004


...A FLASH FLOOD WARNING CONTINUES FOR COLUMBIA AND LYCOMING COUNTIES
UNTIL 300 AM EDT...

AT 1031 PM EDT...LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICIALS AND SKYWARN 
SPOTTERS REPORTED THAT THE HEAVY RAIN HAD MOVED TO THE EAST AND 
SOUTH OF THE AREA...BUT FLASH FLOODING PROBLEMS HAVE BEGUN.

THE HEAVY RAINFALL HAD CAUSED A MUDSLIDE ALONG ROUTE 442 IN SOUTHERN 
LYCOMING COUNTY. OTHER PROBLEMS INCLUDE 3 FEET OF WATER FLOWING 
ACROSS FOGELMAN ROAD BETWEEN MUNCY AND CLARKSTOWN.

EVEN THOUGH THE RAIN HAS ENDED...THE WATER IS RUNNING OFF INTO THE 
STREAMS AND CREEKS IN THE AREA. THESE SMALL CREEKS AND STREAMS WILL 
RAPIDLY FLOOD...POSSIBLY WASHING OUT ROADS AND FLOODING NEARBY LOW 
AREAS.

BE ESPECIALLY CAUTIOUS AT NIGHT WHEN IT IS HARDER TO RECOGNIZE THE
DANGERS OF FLOODS AND FLASH FLOODS.

DO NOT DRIVE YOUR VEHICLE INTO AREAS WHERE THE WATER COVERS THE
ROADWAY. VEHICLES CAUGHT IN RISING WATER SHOULD BE ABANDONED. MOVE TO
HIGHER GROUND.

AGAIN...A FLASH FLOOD WARNING CONTINUES THROUGH 3 AM EDT FOR 
LYCOMING AND COLUMBIA COUNTIES.

LAT...LON 4128 7737 4110 7716 4112 7627 4135 7636

$$

DANGELO
000
WGUS71 KCTP 270404
FFSCTP
PAC037-081-270800-

FLASH FLOOD STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE STATE COLLEGE PA
1203 AM EDT THU MAY 27 2004


...THE FLASH FLOOD WARNING WHICH WAS IN EFFECT UNTIL 3 AM EDT FOR 
COLUMBIA AND LYCOMING COUNTIES HAS BEEN CANCELLED...

THE HEAVY RAIN ENDED OVER THE WARNED AREA AROUND 11 PM...AND THE 
STREAMS AND CREEKS IN AREA HAVE RECEDED OR WERE BEGINNING TO 
RECEDE...ENDING THE FLASH FLOOD THREAT. EVEN THOUGH STREAMS AND 
CREEKS ARE RECEDING...SOME ROADWAYS STILL MAY BE COVERED WITH WATER. 
MOTORISTS ARE ADVISED TO AVOID DRIVING THROUGH FLOODED ROADWAYS.

BE ESPECIALLY CAUTIOUS AT NIGHT WHEN IT IS HARDER TO RECOGNIZE THE 
DANGERS OF FLOODS AND FLASH FLOODS.

$$

DANGELO

The office that day

Everything else NWS State College, PA issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 27, 7:38 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCTPUnion37 min
May 27, 7:53 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCTPMontour, Northumberland52 min

Nearby

Flash Flood Warnings in Pennsylvania, 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; local storm reports from the same archive; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.