Alert archive / Hawaii / Flash Flood Warnings in 2004

Flash Flood Warning 20, NWS Honolulu, HI

February 27, 2004

NWS Honolulu, HI issued this flash flood warning at Feb 27, 2004, 11:42 AM HST. 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
Feb 27, 2004, 11:42 AM HST (21:42 UTC)
Expired
Feb 27, 2004, 2:45 PM HST
In force
3 hr
Issued by
NWS Honolulu, HI
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

Did it verify

Not verified. The Iowa Environmental Mesonet's Cow found no qualifying storm report inside this flash flood warning while it was in force. That is not proof nothing happened: reports are thin where few people live.

Cow counts a report within 15 km of the polygon while the warning was in force: a tornado for a tornado warning; hail of 1 inch or more, a gust of 58 mph or more or wind damage for a severe thunderstorm warning; a flash flood report for a flash flood warning.

The nearest sounding before it

Hilo, (PITO), launched 12:00Z, 9.7 hours before the alert went out and 359 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, Hilo, at 12:00Z on 2004-02-27Temperature 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°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Hilo, at 12:00Z on 2004-02-27The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 100 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
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL
1073 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
27 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
100 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
139 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 
WGHW50 PHFO 272145
FFWHI 
HIZ002-280045-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HONOLULU HI
1142 AM HST FRI FEB 27 2004

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN HONOLULU HAS EXTENDED A

* FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR
  OAHU

* UNTIL 245 PM HST

* AT 1140 AM HST...RADAR INDICATED VERY HEAVY RAIN OVER HONOLULU 
  AND HEAVY RAIN OVER CENTRAL AND NORTH OAHU.

EXCESSIVE RUNOFF FROM THIS STORM WILL CAUSE FLASH FLOODING OF
STREAMS...HIGHWAYS...UNDERPASSES AND LOW LYING AREAS.

MOTORISTS SHOULD BE ALERT FOR FLOODING AND SHOULD NOT ATTEMPT TO
CROSS FAST FLOWING OR RISING WATER. MANY FLASH FLOOD DEATHS OCCUR
WHEN MOTORISTS TRY CROSSING FLOODED ROADWAYS. TURN AROUND...DO NOT
DROWN

ESCAPE RISING WATER BY CLIMBING DIRECTLY TO HIGHER GROUND. NEVER TRY
TO OUTRACE A FLOOD...EITHER ON FOOT OR IN YOUR VEHICLE. DO NOT CAMP
NEAR STREAMS OR OTHER AREAS SUBJECT TO FLOODING.

STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO OR OTHER LOCAL MEDIA SOURCES FOR THE
LATEST SEVERE WEATHER INFORMATION. REPORT FLOODING TO THE POLICE FOR
IMMEDIATE RELAY TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE.

LAT...LON 2125 15762 2174 15797 2159 15832 2128 15813
$$

KODAMA

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before this flash flood warning went out, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Honolulu, HI wrote its last area forecast discussion before this flash flood warning went out at Feb 27, 10:00 AM HST, 1 hour 42 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Feb 27, 10:00 AM HST, 1 hour 42 minutes before
HAWAIIAN ISLANDS FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HONOLULU HI
10 AM HST FRI FEB 27 2004

.SYNOPSIS...
STRONG WINDS...HEAVY SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS NOW AFFECTING KAUAI
AND OAHU WILL SPREAD TO MAUI COUNTY THIS AFTERNOON AND TO THE BIG
ISLAND TONIGHT. A COLD FRONT...STILL WEST OF KAUAI THIS MORNING...
WILL MOVE EASTWARD ACROSS THE STATE THROUGH SATURDAY. COOL...
UNSTABLE AIR BEHIND THE FRONT WILL KEEP ISOLATED HEAVY SHOWERS AND
POSSIBLE AFTERNOON THUNDERSTORMS OVER THE ISLANDS SATURDAY...BUT
MORE SUNSHINE ALONG WITH LIGHT WINDS WILL MAKE FOR A BETTER SUNDAY.

&&

.DISCUSSION...
A COLD FRONT STILL WEST OF KAUAI IS MOVING EAST SOUTHEAST AT ABOUT
20 MPH. THE FRONT HAS HEAVY SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS IN BANDS TO
ITS EAST. THESE BANDS DROPPED AS MUCH AS 9 INCHES OF RAINFALL ON THE
ISLAND OF KAUAI OVERNIGHT...AND ARE EXPECTED TO BRING 2 TO 6 INCHES
OF RAINFALL TO OAHU TODAY AS THEY MOVE THROUGH. THE HEAVY RAIN WILL
MOVE OVER MAUI COUNTY THIS AFTERNOON...REACHING THE BIG ISLAND OF
HAWAII TONIGHT. THE FRONT AND ASSOCIATED HEAVY RAIN BANDS ARE
ASSOCIATED WITH A DEVELOPING LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM NOW NORTH OF THE
STATE. THE LOW IS EXPECTED TO MOVE SLOWLY OVER THE NEXT 24 TO 36
HOURS...AS THE UPPER LOW ASSOCIATED WITH THIS SYSTEM DOES A LOOP
NORTH OF THE STATE...THEN MOVE OFF TOWARD THE NORTH NORTHEAST. THE
UPPER LOW WILL CONTINUE INSTABILITY OVER THE ISLANDS ON SATURDAY...
BUT MORE STABLE CONDITIONS WILL REPLACE THE WET WEATHER BEGINNING ON
SUNDAY AS THE SURFACE AND UPPER LEVEL LOWS MOVE NORTH NORTHEAST AND
AWAY FROM THE STATE.

&&

.MARINE...
A NORTHWEST SWELL GENERATED BY A LARGE LOW NEAR THE KAMCHATKA
PENINSULA WILL RESULT IN RISING SURF TO WARNING LEVELS TODAY.

&&

.HFO WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
HIGH WIND WARNING TODAY KAUAI...OAHU...MOLOKAI...LANAI AND MAUI
FLOOD WATCH TODAY KAUAI...OAHU...MOLOKAI...LANAI AND MAUI
HIGH WIND WATCH THROUGH SATURDAY BIG ISLAND SUMMITS
HIGH SURF WARNING NORTH AND WEST FACING SHORES OF KAUAI...OAHU...
MOLOKAI AND MAUI
HIGH SURF ADVISORY WEST FACING SHORES OF THE BIG ISLAND OF HAWAII

FARRELL

The office that day

Everything else NWS Honolulu, HI issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Feb 26, 4:35 PM HSTFlash Flood WarningHFO2 hr
Feb 27, 12:15 AM HSTFlash Flood WarningHFOKauai3 hr
Feb 27, 3:15 AM HSTFlash Flood WarningHFOKauai3 hr
Feb 27, 6:16 AM HSTFlash Flood WarningHFOKauai3 hr

Nearby

Flash Flood Warnings in Hawaii, 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.