Alert archive / North Carolina / Flash Flood Warnings in 2004

Flash Flood Warning 49, NWS Raleigh, NC

September 8, 2004Guilford County, North Carolina

NWS Raleigh, NC issued this flash flood warning at Sep 8, 2004, 12:00 PM EDT for Guilford County, North Carolina. 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
Sep 8, 2004, 12:00 PM EDT (16:00 UTC)
Expired
Sep 8, 2004, 3:00 PM EDT
In force
3 hr
Issued by
NWS Raleigh, NC
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Guilford County, NC

The radar

The Roanoke radar (KFCX), 108 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 16:03 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

Greensboro/Hi Pt, NC (KGSO), launched 12:00Z, 4.0 hours before the alert went out and 6 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, Greensboro/Hi Pt, NC at 12:00Z on 2004-09-08Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 835 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, Greensboro/Hi Pt, NC at 12:00Z on 2004-09-08The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 225 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
835 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-1 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
486 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
37 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
225 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
243 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.9
Supercell composite
5.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WGUS52 KRAH 081603
FFWRAH
NCC081-081900-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RALEIGH NC
1200 PM EDT WED SEP 8 2004

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN RALEIGH HAS ISSUED A

* FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR...
  GUILFORD COUNTY IN CENTRAL NORTH CAROLINA

* UNTIL 300 PM EDT

* AT NOON EDT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED VERY  
  HEAVY RAIN OVER WESTERN GUILFORD COUNTY. A BAND OF SHOWERS WITH    
  HEAVY RAIN EXTENDING FROM WEST GREENSBORO SOUTH TO HIGH POINT AND  
  WADESBORO WILL MOVE NORTH ACROSS THE AREA. RAINFALL RATES UP TO    
  ONE INCH PER HOUR CAN BE EXPECTED. FLOODING IN PORTIONS OF WEST    
  GREENSBORO WILL WORSEN. 

* THUNDERSTORMS ARE CONTINUOUSLY REDEVELOPING AROUND...
  GREENSBORO...
  HIGH POINT...
  SUMMERFIELD...
  INTERSTATE 40 WEST OF GREENSBORO...

SOUTH BUFFALO CREEK IS BEGINNING TO THREATEN APARTMENTS IN THE 
ASHLEY CREEK AREA. LOCATIONS FROM MERRITT DRIVE TO HOLDEN 
ROAD...PINECROFT ROAD AND HIGHWAY 29 COULD ALSO EXPERIENCE FLOODING. 
FURTHER DOWNSTREAM WATER WILL RISE IN AND AROUND LATHAM PARK. 
 
MOST FLOOD DEATHS OCCUR IN AUTOMOBILES. NEVER DRIVE YOUR VEHICLE 
INTO AREAS WHERE THE WATER COVERS THE ROADWAY. THE WATER IS USUALLY 
DEEPER THAN IT APPEARS. JUST ONE FOOT OF FLOWING WATER IS POWERFUL 
ENOUGH TO SWEEP MOST VEHICLES OFF THE ROAD. VEHICLES CAUGHT IN 
RISING WATER SHOULD BE ABANDONED.

LAT...LON 3624 7972 3591 7973 3591 8004 3627 8004

$$

04
2 follow-up statements
000 
WGUS72 KRAH 081635
FFSRAH
NCC057-081-151-167-081800-

FLASH FLOOD STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RALEIGH NC
1230 PM EDT WED SEP 8 2004

...A FLASH FLOOD WARNING CONTINUES IN EFFECT FOR SOUTHWESTERN
GUILFORD...EASTERN DAVIDSON...WESTERN RANDOLPH AND EASTERN STANLY 
COUNTIES UNTIL 2PM...

AT 1229 PM EDT DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED HEAVY RAIN EXTENDING FROM 
THOMASVILLE SOUTH TO DENTON. HEAVY RAIN WITH RAINFALL RATES BETWEEN 
ONE TO TWO INCHES PER HOUR WILL CAUSE FLOODING ACROSS THOMASVILLE AS 
WELL AS WESTERN RANDOLPH COUNTY. RAIN IS TAPERING OFF OVER STANLY 
COUNTY HOWEVER MANY CREEKS AND STREAMS BETWEEN AQUADALE AND NORWOOD 
ARE STILL FLOODING.  

LOCATIONS THREATENED WITH FLASH FLOODING INCLUDE...THOMASVILLE. 

MOST FLOOD DEATHS OCCUR IN AUTOMOBILES. NEVER DRIVE YOUR VEHICLE INTO
AREAS WHERE THE WATER COVERS THE ROADWAY. THE WATER IS USUALLY DEEPER
THAN IT APPEARS. JUST ONE FOOT OF FLOWING WATER IS POWERFUL ENOUGH TO
SWEEP MOST VEHICLES OFF THE ROAD. VEHICLES CAUGHT IN RISING WATER
SHOULD BE ABANDONED.

SMALL CREEKS AND STREAMS WILL RAPIDLY FLOOD...POSSIBLY WASHING OUT
ROADS AND FLOODING NEARBY LOW AREAS. THOSE LIVING IN FLOOD PRONE
AREAS OR NEARBY FLOODING CREEKS AND STREAM SHOULD MOVE TO HIGHER
GROUND IMMEDIATELY.

$$

04
000 
WGUS72 KRAH 081814
FFSRAH
NCC081-081900-

FLASH FLOOD STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RALEIGH NC
210 PM EDT WED SEP 8 2004

...A FLASH FLOOD WARNING CONTINUES IN EFFECT FOR GUILFORD COUNTY 
UNTIL 3 PM...

AT 209 PM EDT DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED HEAVY RAIN EXTENDING FROM 
MONTICELLO TO FOREST OAKS MOVING EAST AT 20 MPH. HEAVY RAIN WILL 
TAPER OFF ACROSS THE ENTIRE COUNTY BY 3 PM. HEAVY HAS ENDED FROM 
GREENSBORO WEST. HOWEVER EXCESSIVE RUNOFF IS STILL CAUSING SOME 
FLOODING ALONG BUFFALO CREEK AS WELL AS ALONG HARVEY ROAD AND STANLY 
ROAD. SEVERAL LOCATIONS ACROSS GREENSBORO HAVE RECEIVED ALMOST 2 
INCHES OF RAIN IN THE LAST HOUR.

MOST FLOOD DEATHS OCCUR IN AUTOMOBILES. NEVER DRIVE YOUR VEHICLE INTO
AREAS WHERE THE WATER COVERS THE ROADWAY. THE WATER IS USUALLY DEEPER
THAN IT APPEARS. JUST ONE FOOT OF FLOWING WATER IS POWERFUL ENOUGH TO
SWEEP MOST VEHICLES OFF THE ROAD. VEHICLES CAUGHT IN RISING WATER
SHOULD BE ABANDONED.

SMALL CREEKS AND STREAMS WILL RAPIDLY FLOOD...POSSIBLY WASHING OUT
ROADS AND FLOODING NEARBY LOW AREAS. THOSE LIVING IN FLOOD PRONE
AREAS OR NEARBY FLOODING CREEKS AND STREAM SHOULD MOVE TO HIGHER
GROUND IMMEDIATELY.

$$

04

The office that day

Everything else NWS Raleigh, NC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Sep 8, 4:39 AM EDTTornado WarningRAHHoke36 min
Sep 8, 5:02 AM EDTFlash Flood WarningRAHHoke88 min
Sep 8, 7:12 AM EDTFlash Flood WarningRAHAnson3 hr
Sep 8, 7:41 AM EDTFlash Flood WarningRAHMontgomery, Stanly3 hr
Sep 8, 8:00 AM EDTFlash Flood WarningRAHDavidson, Randolph3 hr
Sep 8, 8:43 AM EDTFlash Flood WarningRAHGuilford3 hr
Sep 8, 9:45 AM EDTTornado WarningRAHRichmond15 min
Sep 8, 10:21 AM EDTFlash Flood WarningRAHAnson3 hr
Sep 8, 11:02 AM EDTFlash Flood WarningRAHDavidson, Randolph, Stanly3 hr
Sep 8, 11:13 AM EDTTornado WarningRAHLee, Moore32 min
Sep 8, 11:47 AM EDTTornado WarningRAHLee13 min
Sep 8, 12:33 PM EDTTornado WarningRAHOrange27 min
Sep 8, 1:06 PM EDTTornado WarningRAHHarnett24 min
Sep 8, 1:08 PM EDTTornado WarningRAHOrange, Person37 min
Sep 8, 1:46 PM EDTTornado WarningRAHPerson29 min
Sep 8, 3:29 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningRAHHoke91 min

Nearby

Flash Flood Warnings in North Carolina, 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.