Alert archive / South Carolina / Flash Flood Warnings in 2012

Flash Flood Warning 9, NWS Columbia, SC

July 31, 2012Lexington County, Richland County, South Carolina

NWS Columbia, SC issued this flash flood warning at Jul 31, 2012, 5:02 PM EDT for Lexington County, Richland County, South Carolina. It was in force for 34 min. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Jul 31, 2012, 5:02 PM EDT (21:02 UTC)
Expired
Jul 31, 2012, 5:36 PM EDT
In force
34 min
Issued by
NWS Columbia, SC
Area
Storm-based polygon
Flood severity
None

Counties Lexington County, SC, Richland County, SC

The radar

The Columbia radar (KCAE), 11 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 21:02 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

Charleston AFB, SC (KCHS), launched 12:00Z, 9.0 hours before the alert went out and 156 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, Charleston AFB, SC at 12:00Z on 2012-07-31Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 873 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, Charleston AFB, SC at 12:00Z on 2012-07-31The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 35 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
873 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-30 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
605 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
11 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
35 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
46 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.

855 
WGUS52 KCAE 312102
FFWCAE
SCC063-079-312200-
/O.NEW.KCAE.FF.W.0009.120731T2102Z-120731T2200Z/
/00000.0.ER.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.OO/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE COLUMBIA SC
502 PM EDT TUE JUL 31 2012

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN COLUMBIA HAS ISSUED A

* FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR...
  EASTERN LEXINGTON COUNTY IN CENTRAL SOUTH CAROLINA...
  CENTRAL RICHLAND COUNTY IN CENTRAL SOUTH CAROLINA...
  THIS INCLUDES THE CITIES OF...FOREST ACRES...COLUMBIA...

* UNTIL 600 PM EDT

* AT 458 PM EDT...OVER THREE QUARTERS OF AN INCH OF RAIN HAS FALLEN
  DOWNTOWN COLUMBIA IN THE LAST HALF HOUR. THIS WILL CAUSE FLOODING
  IN POORLY DRAINED AREAS IN COLUMBIA...ESPECIALLY THE 5 POINTS AREA.

* LOCATIONS IN THE WARNING INCLUDE BUT ARE NOT LIMITED TO FIVE POINTS

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

EXCESSIVE RUNOFF FROM HEAVY RAINFALL WILL CAUSE FLOODING OF THE FIVE
POINTS AREA EXTENDING DOWNSTREAM ALONG ROCKY BRANCH CREEK. THIS
INCLUDES MAXCY GREGG PARK...THE PICKENS BLOSSOM STREET INTERSECTION
AND THE WHALEY MAIN STREET INTERSECTION.

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 FLASH FLOOD WARNING MEANS THAT FLOODING IS IMMINENT OR OCCURRING.
IF YOU ARE IN THE WARNING AREA MOVE TO HIGHER GROUND IMMEDIATELY.
RESIDENTS LIVING ALONG STREAMS AND CREEKS SHOULD TAKE IMMEDIATE
PRECAUTIONS TO PROTECT LIFE AND PROPERTY. DO NOT ATTEMPT TO CROSS
SWIFTLY FLOWING WATERS OR WATERS OF UNKNOWN DEPTH BY FOOT OR BY
AUTOMOBILE.

REPORT FLOODING TO YOUR COUNTY SHERIFF...OR CALL THE NATIONAL WEATHER
SERVICE...TOLL FREE 1 877 6 3 3...6 7 7 2.

&&

LAT...LON 3403 8108 3406 8100 3398 8095 3396 8103

$$
1 follow-up statement
430 
WGUS72 KCAE 312136
FFSCAE

FLASH FLOOD STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE COLUMBIA SC
536 PM EDT TUE JUL 31 2012

SCC063-079-312145-
/O.CAN.KCAE.FF.W.0009.000000T0000Z-120731T2200Z/
/00000.0.ER.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.OO/
LEXINGTON SC-RICHLAND SC-
536 PM EDT TUE JUL 31 2012

...THE FLASH FLOOD WARNING HAS BEEN CANCELLED FOR RICHLAND AND
LEXINGTON COUNTIES...

THE HEAVY RAIN THAT CAUSED THE FLOOD THREAT HAS MOVED NORTHEAST OF 
THE AREA. ONLY A FEW LIGHT RAIN SHOWERS REMAIN AND ARE EXPECTED TO 
DIMINISH.

REPORT FLOODING TO YOUR COUNTY SHERIFF...OR CALL THE NATIONAL WEATHER
SERVICE TOLL FREE AT 1 877 6 3 3...6 7 7 2.

LAT...LON 3403 8108 3406 8100 3398 8095 3396 8103

$$

The office that day

Everything else NWS Columbia, SC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jul 30, 8:24 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCAEAiken23 min
Jul 31, 1:59 PM EDTSpecial Weather StatementCAEBarnwell61 min
Jul 31, 2:07 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCAEAiken, Bamberg, Barnwell, Orangeburg35 min
Jul 31, 4:35 PM EDTAreal Flood AdvisoryCAELexington, Richland55 min

Nearby

Flash Flood Warnings in South Carolina, 2012Every flash flood warning in 2012

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.