Alert archive / Iowa / Flash Flood Warnings in 2004

Flash Flood Warning 33, NWS Sioux Falls, SD

September 15, 2004Clay County, Dickinson County, O'Brien County, Iowa

NWS Sioux Falls, SD issued this flash flood warning at Sep 15, 2004, 7:01 AM CDT for Clay County, Dickinson County, O'Brien County, Iowa. It was in force for 119 min. 2 reports 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
Sep 15, 2004, 7:01 AM CDT (12:01 UTC)
Expired
Sep 15, 2004, 9:00 AM CDT
In force
119 min
Issued by
NWS Sioux Falls, SD
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

Counties Clay County, IA, Dickinson County, IA, O'Brien County, IA

The radar

The Sioux Falls radar (KFSD), 112 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 12:01 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
Sep 15, 8:10 AM CDTFLOODRoyal, IASEVERAL HOUSES HAD BASEMENT FLOODING DUE TO HEAVY RAINFALL.
Sep 15, 8:15 AM CDTFLOODSpirit Lake, IAHIGHWAY 9/71 PARTIALLY UNDERWATER IN SPIRIT LAKE. 255TH AVENUE UNDERWATER NEAR FRANCIS SITES SOUTH OF SPIRIT LAKE.

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

The nearest sounding before it

Omaha, NE (KOAX), launched 12:00Z, 0.0 hours before the alert went out and 220 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, Omaha, NE at 12:00Z on 2004-09-15Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 0 joules per kilogram.LCL10008507005003002001001 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, Omaha, NE at 12:00Z on 2004-09-15The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity -71 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
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL
1061 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
56 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
-71 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
-84 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 
WGUS53 KFSD 151202
FFWFSD
IAC041-059-141-151400-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SIOUX FALLS SD
701 AM CDT WED SEP 15 2004

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN SIOUX FALLS HAS ISSUED A

* FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR...
  CLAY COUNTY IN NORTHWEST IOWA
  DICKINSON COUNTY IN NORTHWEST IOWA
  OBRIEN COUNTY IN NORTHWEST IOWA

* UNTIL 900 AM CDT

* AT 635 AM CDT...TRAINED WEATHER SPOTTERS REPORTED FLOODING OF A 
FEW ROADWAYS AND OTHER LOW LYING AREAS ACROSS CLAY COUNTY. DOPPLER 
RADAR INDICATED THAT 3 TO 6 INCHES OF RAIN FELL OVERNIGHT ACROSS 
CLAY...DICKINSON AND OBRIEN COUNTY. ALTHOUGH THE MAJORITY OF RAIN 
HAS ENDED...RUNOFF FROM OVERNIGHT RAINS WILL CONTINUE TO CAUSE 
FLOODING OF LOW SPOTS AND SOME ROADWAYS.

EXCESSIVE RUNOFF FROM HEAVY RAINFALL WILL CAUSE FLOODING OF SMALL
CREEKS AND STREAMS...HIGHWAYS AND UNDERPASSES. ADDITIONALLY...COUNTRY
ROADS AND FARMLANDS ALONG THE BANKS OF CREEKS...STREAMS AND OTHER LOW
LYING AREAS ARE SUBJECT TO FLOODING.

LAT...LON 4292 9586 4292 9492 4349 9491 4350 9541
      4324 9539 4326 9586

$$

JRM
2 follow-up statements
000 
WGUS73 KFSD 151334
FFSFSD
IAC041-059-141-151400-

FLASH FLOOD STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SIOUX FALLS SD
833 AM CDT WED SEP 15 2004

...A FLASH FLOOD WARNING CONTINUES UNTIL 900 AM CDT FOR CLAY...
OBRIEN AND DICKINSON COUNTIES...

AT 825 AM CDT...RAINFALL HAS ENDED ACROSS THE AREA.  
HOWEVER...FLOODING DOES CONTINUE ACROSS THE WARNING AREA AS RUNOFF 
FROM HEAVY RAINFALL LAST NIGHT CONTINUES.  AT 815 AM CDT...DICKINSON 
COUNTY SHERIFF REPORTED THERE WAS WATER ON THE ROADWAY ON HIGHWAY 9 
AND 71 IN SPIRIT LAKE.  IN ADDITION...WATER WAS OVER 255TH AVENUE 
NEAR FRANCIS SITES SOUTH OF SPIRIT LAKE.  AT 810 AM CDT...LOCAL 
MEDIA ALSO REPORTED THAT BASEMENTS WERE BEING FLOODED NEAR ROYAL.

RADAR ESTIMATES OF 5 TO 8 INCHES WERE REPORTED IN A LARGE PORTION OF 
DICKINSON...CLAY AND SOUTHERN OBRIEN COUNTIES.  SOME ROADS MAY 
STILL HAVE WATER RUNNING OVER THEM...ESPECIALLY IN LOW LYING AREAS.

EXCESSIVE RUNOFF FROM HEAVY RAINFALL WILL CAUSE FLOODING OF SMALL 
CREEKS AND STREAMS...HIGHWAYS AND UNDERPASSES. 
ADDITIONALLY...COUNTRY ROADS AND FARMLANDS ALONG THE BANKS OF 
CREEKS...STREAMS AND OTHER LOW LYING AREAS ARE SUBJECT TO FLOODING.

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.

LAT...LON 4292 9586 4292 9492 4349 9491 4350 9541
      4324 9539 4326 9586

$$

SCHUMACHER
000 
WGUS73 KFSD 151410
FFSFSD
IAC041-059-141-151417-

FLASH FLOOD STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SIOUX FALLS SD
907 AM CDT WED SEP 15 2004

...THE FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR CLAY...OBRIEN AND DICKINSON COUNTIES 
WAS ALLOWED TO EXPIRE AT 900 AM CDT...

WATER LEVELS IN STREETS AND FIELDS WERE DROPPING ACROSS THE AREA AS 
THE RUNOFF FROM THE HEAVY RAINS OVERNIGHT AND EARLY THIS MORNING 
MADE ITS WAY INTO THE RIVERS. PONDING OF WATER IN LOW LYING AREAS IS 
STILL POSSIBLE...BUT THE FLOOD THREAT IS SHIFTING TO THE MAIN RIVERS 
IN THE REGION. THEREFORE THE FLASH FLOOD WARNING HAS BEEN ALLOWED TO 
EXPIRE.

LAT...LON 4292 9586 4292 9492 4349 9491 4350 9541
      4324 9539 4326 9586

$$

MG

The office that day

Everything else NWS Sioux Falls, SD issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Sep 14, 7:12 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningFSDBuena Vista, Cherokee, Clay, Dickinson, O'Brien4 hr
Sep 15, 3:20 AM CDTFlash Flood WarningFSDLyon3 hr
Sep 15, 4:06 AM CDTFlash Flood WarningFSDClay, Dickinson, O'Brien, Osceola114 min
Sep 15, 5:26 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFSDBuena Vista34 min

Nearby

Flash Flood Warnings in Iowa, 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.