Alert archive / Rhode Island / Flash Flood Warnings in 2008

Flash Flood Warning 7, NWS Boston/Norton, MA

July 23, 20085 counties in Rhode Island; Bristol County, Massachusetts

NWS Boston/Norton, MA issued this flash flood warning at Jul 23, 2008, 3:51 PM EDT for 5 counties in Rhode Island; Bristol County, Massachusetts. It was in force for 84 min. 10 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: Jul 23, 2008, 3:51 PM EDT (19:51 UTC)
Expired: Jul 23, 2008, 5:15 PM EDT
In force: 84 min
Issued by: NWS Boston/Norton, MA
Area: Storm-based polygon
Flood severity: None

Counties Bristol County, MA, Bristol County, RI, Kent County, RI, Newport County, RI, Providence County, RI, Washington County, RI

What was reported inside it

Time	Report	Where	Remark
Jul 23, 3:59 PM EDT	FLASH FLOOD	West Warwick, RI	ROUTE 33 AT 115 AND WASHINGTON STREET HAD 10 INCHES OF WATER ON THE ROAD.
Jul 23, 4:05 PM EDT	FLASH FLOOD	Warwick, RI	2.5 FEET OF WATER FLOODING ROUTE 2.
Jul 23, 4:10 PM EDT	FLASH FLOOD	East Providence, RI	4.5 INCHES OF RAIN IN 45 MINUTES MEASURED IN RUMFORD SECTION OF EAST PROVIDENCE. WATER 2 FEET DEEP AT ALEXANDER AVE AND NORTH BROADWAY. TIME APPROXIMATE.
Jul 23, 4:10 PM EDT	FLASH FLOOD	Providence, RI	ROUTE 10 IMPASSABLE DUE TO FLOODING.
Jul 23, 4:10 PM EDT	FLASH FLOOD	Warwick, RI	CARS REPORTED TO BE FLOATING AT THE INTERSECTION OF ROUTE 5 AND NEW LONDON AVENUE. RADAR RAINFALL RATES OF 8 TO 10 INCHES PER HOUR WERE INDICATED AT THE TIME.
Jul 23, 4:14 PM EDT	FLASH FLOOD	West Warwick, RI	FIRE DEPARTMENT HQ WAS FLOODED.
Jul 23, 4:20 PM EDT	FLASH FLOOD	Cranston, RI	PONTIAC AVENUE CLOSED DUE TO FLOODING.
Jul 23, 4:35 PM EDT	HEAVY RAIN 1.75	East Providence, RI	RAIN FELL BETWEEN 4 AND 430 PM. ALSO REPORTED 1/4 INCH DIAMETER HAIL.
Jul 23, 4:49 PM EDT	FLASH FLOOD	Taunton, MA	WINTHROP STREET FLOODED WITH 2 FEET OF WATER. COUNTY STREET HAD CAR STUCK IN FLOOD WATERS. 2.12 INCHES OF RAIN REPORTED.
Jul 23, 5:03 PM EDT	FLASH FLOOD	Swansea, MA	STEVENS ROAD CLOSED DUE TO FLOODING.

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

The nearest sounding before it

Chatham, MA (KCHH), launched 12:00Z, 7.9 hours before the alert went out and 106 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: 891 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -62 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 581 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 40 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 33 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 100 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 2.3

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WGUS51 KBOX 231951
FFWBOX
MAC005-RIC001-003-005-007-009-232115-
/O.NEW.KBOX.FF.W.0007.080723T1951Z-080723T2115Z/
/00000.0.ER.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.OO/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAUNTON MA
351 PM EDT WED JUL 23 2008

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN TAUNTON HAS ISSUED A

* FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR...
  BRISTOL COUNTY IN RHODE ISLAND...
  THIS INCLUDES THE CITIES OF...BRISTOL...BARRINGTON...
  EASTERN KENT COUNTY IN RHODE ISLAND...
  THIS INCLUDES THE CITY OF WARWICK...
  NORTHWESTERN NEWPORT COUNTY IN RHODE ISLAND...
  SOUTHEASTERN PROVIDENCE COUNTY IN RHODE ISLAND...
  THIS INCLUDES THE CITY OF PROVIDENCE...
  EXTREME NORTHEASTERN WASHINGTON COUNTY IN RHODE ISLAND...
  BRISTOL COUNTY IN SOUTHEAST MASSACHUSETTS...
  THIS INCLUDES THE CITIES OF...TAUNTON...NORTH ATTLEBOROUGH...FALL
  RIVER...ATTLEBOROUGH...

* UNTIL 515 PM EDT

* AT 346 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED   
  FLASH FLOODING WAS LIKELY TO OCCUR FROM THUNDERSTORMS WITH 
  TORRENTIAL RAINFALL. A SPOTTER IN HOPE VALLEY REPORTED NEARLY ONE 
  AND A HALF INCHES OF RAIN IN 30 MINUTES.

  THESE STORMS WERE ALONG A LINE FROM SMITHFIELD TO EAST
  GREENWICH...MOVING  NORTHEAST AT 20 MPH.

* OTHER LOCATIONS IN THE WARNING INCLUDE BUT ARE NOT LIMITED TO
  JOHNSTON...NORTH PROVIDENCE...LINCOLN...EAST PROVIDENCE...CENTRAL
  FALLS...PAWTUCKET...SEEKONK...WARREN...TIVERTON...REHOBOTH...
  SWANSEA...SOMERSET...NORTON...DIGHTON...MANSFIELD...BERKLEY...
  FREETOWN...EASTON AND RAYNHAM

EXCESSIVE RUNOFF FROM HEAVY RAIN WILL CAUSE RAPID FLOODING OF SMALL
CREEKS AND STREAMS. FLOODING OF URBAN AREAS...INCLUDING ROADS AND
UNDERPASSES IS ALSO EXPECTED.

SIGNIFICANT ROADWAY FLOODING IS EXPECTED IN WARWICK AND PROVIDENCE...
AS WELL AS IN SOUTHEAST MASSACHUSETTS.

DO NOT DRIVE INTO FLOODED AREAS. TURN AROUND...DONT DROWN

LAT...LON 4186 7161 4209 7108 4185 7099 4181 7103
      4178 7101 4178 7096 4172 7094 4158 7135
      4162 7135 4165 7139 4155 7142 4153 7148

$$

JWD

1 follow-up statement

000 
WGUS71 KBOX 232027
FFSBOX

FLASH FLOOD STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAUNTON MA
427 PM EDT WED JUL 23 2008

MAC005-RIC001-003-005-007-009-232115-
/O.CON.KBOX.FF.W.0007.000000T0000Z-080723T2115Z/
/00000.0.ER.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.OO/
BRISTOL RI-NEWPORT RI-BRISTOL MA-WASHINGTON RI-PROVIDENCE RI-KENT RI-
427 PM EDT WED JUL 23 2008

...A FLASH FLOOD WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 515 PM EDT FOR
BRISTOL COUNTY IN SOUTHEAST MASSACHUSETTS...AND EASTERN KENT...
SOUTHEASTERN PROVIDENCE...EXTREME NORTHEASTERN WASHINGTON...
NORTHWESTERN NEWPORT AND BRISTOL COUNTIES IN RHODE ISLAND...

AT 424 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR CONTINUED TO 
INDICATE A CLUSTER OF THUNDERSTORMS PRODUCING TORRENTIAL DOWNPOURS.  
AT TF GREEN AIRPORT IN WARWICK...RAIN FELL AT A RATE OF 8 TO 10 
INCHES PER HOUR...THIS IS VERY HEAVY RAIN ONE URBAN FLOOD REPORT IN 
WARWICK INDICATED CARS FLOATING ON ROUTE 5.  

ONCE THE RAIN ARRIVES IN YOUR COMMUNITY...IT IS EXPECTED TO LAST FOR 
ABOUT ONE HALF HOUR.

WIDESPREAD URBAN FLASH FLOODING IS LIKELY AS IT  CROSSES THROUGH FAR 
EASTERN RHODE ISLAND THROUGH THE TAUNTON...ATTLEBORO...REHOBOTH... 
AND FALL RIVER AREAS IN SOUTHEAST MASSACHUSETTS. 

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. MOVE TO HIGHER GROUND.

A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 1000 PM EDT
WEDNESDAY EVENING FOR NORTHERN CONNECTICUT AND MASSACHUSETTS AND
CENTRAL RHODE ISLAND.

LAT...LON 4186 7161 4209 7108 4185 7099 4181 7103
      4178 7101 4178 7096 4172 7094 4158 7135
      4162 7135 4165 7139 4155 7142 4153 7148

$$

NMB

The office that day

Everything else NWS Boston/Norton, MA issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Jul 23, 2:18 PM EDT	Flood Watch	BOX	Bristol, Kent, Newport, Providence, Washington	36 hr
Jul 23, 3:10 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BOX	Bristol, Kent, Providence, Washington	65 min
Jul 23, 3:25 PM EDT	Areal Flood Advisory	BOX	Kent, Newport, Providence, Washington	3 hr
Jul 23, 3:50 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BOX	Bristol, Kent, Newport, Providence, Washington	44 min
Jul 23, 4:04 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	BOX	Bristol, Kent, Providence	25 min
Jul 23, 4:36 PM EDT	High Surf Advisory	BOX	Newport, Washington	48 hr
Jul 23, 1:34 PM EDT	Areal Flood Advisory	BOX	Franklin, Hampden, Hampshire, Worcester	3 hr
Jul 23, 3:35 PM EDT	Special Marine Warning	BOX		55 min
Jul 23, 4:21 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	BOX	Bristol, Plymouth	28 min
Jul 23, 4:38 PM EDT	Areal Flood Advisory	BOX	Essex, Middlesex, Suffolk	3 hr
Jul 23, 4:47 PM EDT	Flash Flood Warning	BOX	Bristol, Norfolk, Plymouth	88 min
Jul 23, 4:54 PM EDT	Special Marine Warning	BOX		96 min
Jul 23, 5:03 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BOX	Bristol, Plymouth	40 min
Jul 23, 6:06 PM EDT	Special Marine Warning	BOX		39 min
Jul 23, 7:24 PM EDT	Special Marine Warning	BOX		66 min

Nearby

Flash Flood Warnings in Rhode Island, 2008 Flash Flood Warnings in Massachusetts, 2008 Every flash flood warning in 2008

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.