Alert archive / Hawaii / Flash Flood Warnings in 2004

Flash Flood Warning 55, NWS Honolulu, HI

August 3, 2004Kalawao County, Hawaii

NWS Honolulu, HI issued this flash flood warning at Aug 3, 2004, 2:20 PM HST for Kalawao County, Hawaii. 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: Aug 3, 2004, 2:20 PM HST (00:20 UTC)
Expired: Aug 3, 2004, 5:20 PM HST
In force: 3 hr
Issued by: NWS Honolulu, HI
Area: Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Kalawao County, HI

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 00:00Z, 0.3 hours before the alert went out and 159 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: 724 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -1 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 561 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 16 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: -7 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 45 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 040023
FFWHFO
HIC009-040320-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HONOLULU HI
220 PM HST TUE AUG 3 2004

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN HONOLULU HAS ISSUED A

* FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR...
  THE ISLAND OF MAUI IN MAUI COUNTY

* UNTIL 520 PM HST

* EXCESSIVE RUNOFF AND ROAD CLOSURES CONTINUE ALONG THE PIILANI 
  HIGHWAY NEAR KAUPO AND STREAM LEVELS REMAIN HIGH AT KIPAHULU.

* LOCATIONS IMPACTED INCLUDE KIPAHULU...HAMOA...KAUPO AND ULUPALAKUA

ALTHOUGH RAINFALL IS DIMINISHING ALONG THE SOUTHEASTERN SLOPE OF 
HALEAKALA...HEAVY RUNOFF WILL CONTINUE FOR A FEW MORE HOURS.

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...DON/T
DROWN

LAT...LON 2067 15597 2076 15604 2066 15637 2056 15637

$$

KODAMA

1 follow-up statement

000 
WGHW70 PHFO 040203
FFSHFO
HIC009-040225-

FLASH FLOOD STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HONOLULU HI
355 PM HST TUE AUG 3 2004

...THE FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR THE ISLAND OF MAUI IN MAUI COUNTY IS
CANCELLED...

A FLASH FLOOD WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR MAUI COUNTY UNTIL 600 AM 
HST WEDNESDAY.

RAINFALL HAS DIMINISHED ALONG THE SOUTHEASTERN SLOPE OF HALEAKALA 
AND STREAM GAGE DATA INDICATE RAPIDLY LOWERING WATER LEVELS.  

THE RAIN GAGE AT KAUPO GAP INDICATED 5.82 INCHES AND THE USGS RAIN 
GAGE AT OHEO GULCH INDICATED 2.69 INCHES OVER THE SIX HOUR PERIOD 
ENDING AT 3 PM HST.

LAT...LON 2067 15597 2076 15604 2066 15637 2056 15637

$$

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 Aug 3, 10:00 AM HST, 4 hours 20 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 3, 10:00 AM HST, 4 hours 20 minutes before

HAWAIIAN ISLANDS FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HONOLULU HI
1000 AM HST TUE AUG 3 2004

.SYNOPSIS...
THE REMNANTS OF DARBY WILL CONTINUE TO AFFECT THE ISLANDS THROUGH
WEDNESDAY AS IT MAKES ITS WESTWARD JOURNEY ACROSS THE ISLANDS.
SCATTERED SHOWERS AND ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS CAN BE EXPECTED. MORE
TYPICAL TRADE WIND WEATHER CAN BE EXPECTED THURSDAY AND FRIDAY AS
SHOWERS BECOME MORE ISOLATED MAINLY OVER WINDWARD AND MAUKA AREAS.

&&

.DISCUSSION...
SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS CONTINUE TO AFFECT THE ISLANDS THIS
MORNING AS THE REMNANT MOISTURE OF DARBY INTERACTS WITH AN UNSTABLE
ATMOSPHERE IN PLACE OVER THE ISLANDS. THE INSTABILITY IS DUE TO AN
UPPER LEVEL TROUGH JUST WEST OF KAUAI. THE THUNDERSTORMS HAVE BEEN
AFFECTING MAINLY THE BIG ISLAND AND ADJACENT WATERS BUT THE REST OF
THE STATE MAY SEE MORE OF THE ACTIVITY LATER TODAY AND TONIGHT.
SHOWERY WEATHER LIKELY LINGER INTO WEDNESDAY ESPECIALLY OVER THE
WESTERN END OF THE MAIN ISLAND CHAIN SINCE THE MOISTURE FIELD IS
ONLY MOVING GRADUALLY WESTWARD. WINDS ARE BASICALLY LIGHT TRADES
ACROSS THE STATE BUT THE REMNANT LOW AND ASSOCIATED THUNDERSTORMS IS
CAUSING SOME VARIABILITY IN WIND DIRECTION AND SPEEDS ESPECIALLY
AROUND MAUI AND THE BIG ISLAND.

BY THURSDAY AND FRIDAY MORE TYPICAL TRADE WIND WEATHER IS EXPECTED
THANKS TO HIGH PRESSURE FAR NORTH OF THE STATE. TRADE WINDS WILL BE
IN THE 10 TO 20 MPH RANGE WITH SHOWERS MAINLY CONFINED TO WINDWARD
AND MAUKA AREAS.

&&

.LONG TERM...
WE ARE ALSO WATCHING ANOTHER AREA OF SHOWERY WEATHER THAT MAY
APPROACH THE ISLANDS OVER THE WEEKEND. TROPICAL DEPRESSION SIX-E IS
LOCATED ABOUT 1500 MILES EAST SOUTHEAST OF HONOLULU. THE NATIONAL
HURRICANE CENTER IN MIAMI HAS REDUCED THE CHANCES OF THIS SYSTEM
DEVELOPING BUT THE GFS AND NOGAPS MODELS STILL BRING A LARGE AREA OF
TROPICAL MOISTURE OVER THE STATE LATE FRIDAY INTO SATURDAY BRINGING
THE THREAT OF HEAVY RAINFALL ONCE AGAIN TO THE STATE.

&&

.HFO WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
FLASH FLOOD WARNING NORTH AND SOUTH KONA ON THE BIG ISLAND.
HIGH SURF ADVISORY EAST SHORES OF KAUAI OAHU MOLOKAI MAUI AND THE
BIG ISLAND.
FLASH FLOOD WATCH ALL ISLANDS.

&&

BURKE

In the hours before

Local storm report, Aug 3, 12:12 PM HST, 2 hours 8 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HONOLULU HI
1212 PM HST TUE AUG 03 2004

..TIME...   ...EVENT...     ...CITY LOCATION...      ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....     ..COUNTY LOCATION...ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

1127 AM     FLASH FLOOD      15 SW HANA              20.62N 156.16W
08/03/2004                   MAUI               HI   EMERGENCY MNGR

            MAUI CD REPORTED THE CLOSURE OF PIILANI HWY NEAR KAUPO
            DUE TO EXCESSIVE RUNOFF.

&&

KODAMA

The office that day

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

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Aug 3, 7:11 PM HST	Flash Flood Warning	HFO	Kalawao	3 hr
Aug 4, 3:45 AM HST	Flash Flood Warning	HFO	Honolulu	3 hr
Aug 4, 6:45 AM HST	Flash Flood Warning	HFO	Honolulu	3 hr
Aug 4, 9:32 AM HST	Flash Flood Warning	HFO	Honolulu	3 hr
Aug 4, 10:45 AM HST	Flash Flood Warning	HFO	Kauai	3 hr

Nearby

Flash Flood Warnings in Hawaii, 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.