Alert archive / Alabama / Flash Flood Warnings in 2011

Flash Flood Warning 31, NWS Birmingham, AL

July 14, 2011Cherokee County, Alabama

NWS Birmingham, AL issued this flash flood warning at Jul 14, 2011, 9:30 PM CDT for Cherokee County, Alabama. It was in force for 3 hr. 1 report 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 14, 2011, 9:30 PM CDT (02:30 UTC)
Expired: Jul 15, 2011, 12:30 AM CDT
In force: 3 hr
Issued by: NWS Birmingham, AL
Area: Storm-based polygon
Flood severity: None

County Cherokee County, AL

The radar

The Northeast Alabama radar (KHTX), 95 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 02:33 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.

What was reported inside it

Time	Report	Where	Remark
Jul 14, 9:45 PM CDT	FLASH FLOOD	1 Ne Centre, AL	PORTIONS OF NORTHWOOD DRIVE AND CEDAR BLUFF ROAD/HIGHWAY 68 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

Peachtre/Fal Fld, GA (KFFC), launched 00:00Z, 2.5 hours before the alert went out and 138 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: 1967 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -11 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 1274 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 9 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: -39 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: -22 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.

752 
WGUS54 KBMX 150230
FFWBMX
ALC019-150530-
/O.NEW.KBMX.FF.W.0031.110715T0230Z-110715T0530Z/
/00000.0.ER.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.OO/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
930 PM CDT THU JUL 14 2011

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN BIRMINGHAM HAS ISSUED A

* FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR...
  CENTRAL CHEROKEE COUNTY IN NORTHEAST ALABAMA...

* UNTIL 1230 AM CDT

* AT 928 PM CDT...THE PUBLIC REPORTED SLOW MOVING THUNDERSTORMS WITH 
  VERY HEAVY RAINFALL ACROSS THE WARNED AREA. 2 TO 3 INCHES HAVE     
  FALLEN OVER THE LAST HOUR AND ANOTHER 1 TO 2 INCHES IS LIKELY      
  THROUGH 11 PM.

* RUNOFF FROM THIS EXCESSIVE RAINFALL WILL CAUSE FLASH FLOODING TO
  OCCUR. SOME LOCATIONS THAT WILL EXPERIENCE FLOODING INCLUDE...CEDAR
  BLUFF...CENTRE...CHEROKEE ROCK VILLAGE...GAYLESVILLE...LEESBURG...
  MOSHAT...SAND ROCK...TENNALA AND WEISS LAKE.

AREAS IN AND AROUND CENTRE AND LEESBURG ARE ALREADY SEEING MORE THAN 
3 INCHES ON AREA ROADWAYS.  PLEASE AVOID DRIVING IN THESE AREAS IF 
AT ALL POSSIBLE.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

THIS IS A VERY DANGEROUS AND LIFE THREATENING FLOODING SITUATION. YOU
SHOULD NOT ATTEMPT TO TRAVEL. STAY HOME UNLESS YOU ARE FORCED TO
EVACUATE TO HIGHER GROUND.

BE ESPECIALLY CAUTIOUS AT NIGHT WHEN IT IS HARDER TO RECOGNIZE THE
DANGERS OF FLOODING. IF FLASH FLOODING IS OBSERVED ACT QUICKLY. DO
NOT ENTER THE WATER. TURN AROUND AND MOVE UP TO HIGHER GROUND TO
ESCAPE FLOOD WATERS. DO NOT STAY IN AREAS SUBJECT TO FLOODING WHEN
WATER BEGINS RISING.

&&

TO REPORT SEVERE WEATHER...
CALL 1-800-856-0758.

LAT...LON 3414 8548 3410 8557 3401 8557 3402 8575
      3410 8580 3412 8579 3413 8582 3414 8582
      3424 8583 3432 8561 3432 8549

$$

27

1 follow-up statement

357 
WGUS74 KBMX 150414
FFSBMX

FLASH FLOOD STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
1114 PM CDT THU JUL 14 2011

ALC019-150530-
/O.CON.KBMX.FF.W.0031.000000T0000Z-110715T0530Z/
/00000.0.ER.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.OO/
CHEROKEE AL-
1114 PM CDT THU JUL 14 2011

...FLASH FLOOD WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR CENTRAL CHEROKEE COUNTY
UNTIL 1230 AM CDT...

AT 1110 PM CDT...THE PUBLIC REPORTED THUNDERSTORMS WITH VERY HEAVY 
RAINFALL ACROSS THE WARNED AREA AND THOUGH THE RAINS HAVE LET UP 
SLIGHTLY...THERE IS STILL THE POTENTIAL FOR ANOTHER ONE HALF INCH IN 
THE EFFECTED AREAS.

RUNOFF FROM THIS EXCESSIVE RAINFALL WILL CAUSE FLASH FLOODING TO
OCCUR. SOME LOCATIONS THAT WILL EXPERIENCE FLASH FLOODING INCLUDE...
CEDAR BLUFF...CENTRE...GAYLESVILLE...LEESBURG...MOSHAT...SAND ROCK...
TENNALA AND WEISS LAKE.

REPORTS FROM THE CITY OF CENTRE AS WELL AS SURROUNDING RURAL ROADS 
ARE SHOWING THE POTENTIAL FOR DEEP WATER ACROSS ROADWAYS.  THIS 
INCLUDES STRETCHES OF U.S. 411 THROUGHOUT THE COUNTY.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

THIS IS A VERY DANGEROUS AND LIFE THREATENING FLOODING SITUATION. YOU
SHOULD NOT ATTEMPT TO TRAVEL. STAY HOME UNLESS YOU ARE FORCED TO
EVACUATE TO HIGHER GROUND.

BE ESPECIALLY CAUTIOUS AT NIGHT WHEN IT IS HARDER TO RECOGNIZE THE
DANGERS OF FLOODING. IF FLOODING IS OBSERVED...ACT QUICKLY. DO NOT
ENTER THE WATER. TURN AROUND AND MOVE UP TO HIGHER GROUND. DO NOT
STAY IN AREAS SUBJECT TO FLOODING WHEN WATER BEGINS RISING.

&&

LAT...LON 3414 8548 3410 8557 3401 8557 3402 8575
      3410 8580 3412 8579 3413 8582 3414 8582
      3424 8583 3432 8561 3432 8549

$$

27

The office that day

Everything else NWS Birmingham, AL issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Jul 14, 7:50 PM CDT	Special Weather Statement	BMX	Cleburne, Randolph	40 min
Jul 14, 8:27 PM CDT	Special Weather Statement	BMX	Cleburne	33 min
Jul 14, 9:46 PM CDT	Flash Flood Warning	BMX	Etowah	3 hr
Jul 14, 9:56 PM CDT	Flash Flood Warning	BMX	Calhoun	82 min
Jul 15, 12:29 AM CDT	Flash Flood Warning	BMX	Calhoun, Etowah, St. Clair	3 hr
Jul 15, 12:46 AM CDT	Areal Flood Advisory	BMX	Calhoun, Cleburne, St. Clair, Talladega	119 min
Jul 15, 12:22 PM CDT	Areal Flood Advisory	BMX	Elmore, Macon, Montgomery	113 min
Jul 15, 2:19 PM CDT	Areal Flood Advisory	BMX	Bullock, Montgomery, Pike	116 min

Nearby

Flash Flood Warnings in Alabama, 2011 Every flash flood warning in 2011

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; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.