Alert archive / Iowa / Flash Flood Watches in 2008

Flash Flood Watch 15, NWS Des Moines, IA

July 18, 200814 counties in Iowa

NWS Des Moines, IA issued this flash flood watch at Jul 18, 2008, 3:43 AM CDT for 14 counties in Iowa. It took effect at Jul 18, 2008, 6:00 PM CDT. It was in force for 7 hr.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
Jul 18, 2008, 3:43 AM CDT (08:43 UTC)
In effect from
Jul 18, 2008, 6:00 PM CDT
Expired
Jul 19, 2008, 1:19 AM CDT
In force
7 hr
Issued by
NWS Des Moines, IA
Flood severity
None

Counties Clarke County, IA, Dallas County, IA, Decatur County, IA, Jasper County, IA, Lucas County, IA, Madison County, IA, Mahaska County, IA, Marion County, IA, Monroe County, IA, Polk County, IA, Poweshiek County, IA, Wapello County, IA, Warren County, IA, Wayne County, IA

The radar

The Des Moines radar (KDMX), 64 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 08:46 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

Omaha, NE (KOAX), launched 00:00Z, 8.7 hours before the alert went out and 258 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 00:00Z on 2008-07-18Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 22 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 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, Omaha, NE at 00:00Z on 2008-07-18The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity -29 square meters per square second.1939Sfc1 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
22 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-363 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1466 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
18 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
-29 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
1 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
-0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

What forecasters said that day

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

NWS Des Moines, IA wrote its last area forecast discussion before this flash flood watch went out at Jul 18, 3:30 AM CDT, 13 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 18, 3:30 AM CDT, 13 minutes before
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Hazardous weather outlook, Jul 17, 11:36 AM CDT, 16 hours 7 minutes before
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DES MOINES IA
1136 AM CDT THU JUL 17 2008

IAZ004>007-015>017-023>028-033>039-044>050-057>059-070-071-181645-
EMMET-KOSSUTH-WINNEBAGO-WORTH-PALO ALTO-HANCOCK-CERRO GORDO-
POCAHONTAS-HUMBOLDT-WRIGHT-FRANKLIN-BUTLER-BREMER-SAC-CALHOUN-
WEBSTER-HAMILTON-HARDIN-GRUNDY-BLACK HAWK-CRAWFORD-CARROLL-GREENE-
BOONE-STORY-MARSHALL-TAMA-AUDUBON-GUTHRIE-DALLAS-CASS-ADAIR-
1136 AM CDT THU JUL 17 2008

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF CENTRAL IOWA.

.DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT

THE THREAT FOR SEVERE WEATHER WILL BEGIN IN THE EARLY AFTERNOON
ALONG THE MINNESOTA BORDER...AS SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS WORK THEIR
WAY SLOWLY SOUTH AND EAST. BY THIS EVENING...STORMS COULD REACH
FROM WEST CENTRAL AND CENTRAL IOWA INTO THE WATERLOO AREA...AND
POINTS NORTH. THE PRIMARY THREAT WILL BE FOR DAMAGING WINDS AND
LARGE HAIL. HEAVY RAINFALL IS POSSIBLE WITH GENERAL RAINFALL
TOTALS AROUND AN INCH...AND ISOLATED AMOUNTS OF 2 TO 3 INCHES
POSSIBLE TONIGHT.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY

THERE WILL BE A CHANCE FOR THUNDERSTORMS OFF AND ON FRIDAY THROUGH
NEXT TUESDAY. THERE IS A SLIGHT CHANCE FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS
BOTH FRIDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING...AND TO A LESSER DEGREE LATE
SATURDAY AFTERNOON AND NIGHT. THE PRIMARY THREAT WILL BE DAMAGING
WINDS AND LARGE HAIL...WITH LOCALLY HEAVY RAINS POSSIBLE ON FRIDAY
AND FRIDAY NIGHT.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE NEEDED FROM AROUND 5 PM THROUGH MIDNIGHT
TONIGHT...AND AGAIN BOTH FRIDAY AND SATURDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING.

IAZ060>062-072>075-081>086-092>097-181645-
POLK-JASPER-POWESHIEK-MADISON-WARREN-MARION-MAHASKA-ADAMS-UNION-
CLARKE-LUCAS-MONROE-WAPELLO-TAYLOR-RINGGOLD-DECATUR-WAYNE-
APPANOOSE-DAVIS-
1136 AM CDT THU JUL 17 2008

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF CENTRAL IOWA.

.DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT

THUNDERSTORMS WILL SPREAD SOUTHEAST ACROSS THE AREA
TONIGHT...MAINLY AFTER MIDNIGHT. SEVERE WEATHER IS NOT LIKELY WITH
THESE STORMS.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY

THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE LIKELY FRIDAY AND FRIDAY NIGHT...THEN OFF
AND ON SATURDAY THROUGH NEXT TUESDAY. THERE IS A SLIGHT CHANCE
FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS BOTH FRIDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING...AND
TO A LESSER DEGREE LATE SATURDAY AFTERNOON AND NIGHT. THE PRIMARY
THREAT WILL BE DAMAGING WINDS AND LARGE HAIL. LOCALLY HEAVY
RAINFALL WILL BE POSSIBLE FRIDAY AFTERNOON AND NIGHT AS
WELL...WITH GENERAL RAINFALL AMOUNTS OF AROUND AN INCH AND ISOLATED
AMOUNTS OF UP TO 3 INCHES.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE NEEDED BOTH FRIDAY AND SATURDAY AFTERNOON
AND EVENING.

JUNGBLUTH

In the hours before

Local storm report, Jul 17, 10:25 PM CDT, 5 hours 18 minutes before
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Local storm report, Jul 17, 10:35 PM CDT, 5 hours 8 minutes before
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Local storm report, Jul 17, 10:47 PM CDT, 4 hours 56 minutes before
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Local storm report, Jul 17, 11:26 PM CDT, 4 hours 17 minutes before
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The office that day

Everything else NWS Des Moines, IA issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jul 17, 7:11 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXWebster49 min
Jul 17, 7:17 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXHamilton, Webster43 min
Jul 17, 7:29 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXBoone, Greene, Webster46 min
Jul 17, 8:09 PM CDTAreal Flood AdvisoryDMXBlack Hawk, Bremer, Butler, Franklin, Grundy, Hamilton and 3 more2 hr
Jul 17, 8:18 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXBoone42 min
Jul 17, 9:47 PM CDTAreal Flood AdvisoryDMXPolk3 hr
Jul 17, 10:17 PM CDTAreal Flood AdvisoryDMXGrundy, Jasper, Marshall, Poweshiek, Story, Tama3 hr
Jul 18, 12:00 AM CDTRiver Flood WarningDMXPolk3 hr
Jul 18, 10:26 AM CDTRiver Flood WarningDMXLucas27 hr
Jul 18, 6:44 PM CDTAreal Flood AdvisoryDMXBlack Hawk, Bremer, Butler, Grundy114 min

Nearby

Flash Flood Watches in Iowa, 2008Every flash flood watch 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; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.