Alert archive / California / Flash Flood Warnings in 2012

Flash Flood Warning 12, NWS San Francisco Bay Area, CA

December 23, 2012Sonoma County, California

NWS San Francisco Bay Area, CA issued this flash flood warning at Dec 23, 2012, 1:41 PM PST for Sonoma County, California. 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
Dec 23, 2012, 1:41 PM PST (21:41 UTC)
Expired
Dec 23, 2012, 4:30 PM PST
In force
3 hr
Issued by
NWS San Francisco Bay Area, CA
Area
Storm-based polygon
Flood severity
None

County Sonoma County, CA

The radar

The Sacramento radar (KDAX), 85 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 21:43 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

Oakland, CA (KOAK), launched 12:00Z, 9.7 hours before the alert went out and 62 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, Oakland, CA at 12:00Z on 2012-12-23Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 5 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, Oakland, CA at 12:00Z on 2012-12-23The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 178 square meters per square second.1939587897Sfc1 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
5 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-19 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
833 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
62 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
178 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
210 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.

803 
WGUS56 KMTR 232141
FFWMTR
CAC097-240030-
/O.NEW.KMTR.FF.W.0012.121223T2141Z-121224T0030Z/
/00000.0.ER.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.OO/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN FRANCISCO CA
141 PM PST SUN DEC 23 2012

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN THE SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA HAS
ISSUED A

* FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR...
  SONOMA COUNTY IN WESTERN CALIFORNIA...
  THIS INCLUDES THE CITY OF PETALUMA...

* UNTIL 430 PM PST.

* AT 103 PM PST...NWS DOPPLER RADAR AND AUTOMATED RAIN GAGES   
INDICATED THAT RAINFALL WILL CONTINUE TO MOVE THROUGH THE AREA INTO 
THE AFTERNOON HOURS.  SOME PETALUMA AREA STREAM GAGES HAVE NOT YET 
CRESTED AND CONTINUE TO RISE, AND A PORTION OF THESE GAGES HAVE 
REACHED FLOOD STAGE.


A FLASH FLOOD WARNING MEANS THAT FLOODING IS OCCURRING OR IS
IMMINENT.

RUNOFF FROM HEAVY RAINFALL WILL CAUSE LOCALIZED FLOODING OF SMALL
CREEKS AND STREAMS AS WELL AS ROADWAYS...UNDERPASSES AND OTHER LOW
LYING SPOTS. DO NOT ATTEMPT TO CROSS SWIFTLY FLOWING WATER OR WATER 
OF UNKNOWN DEPTH. TURN AROUND...DONT DROWN.

IF FLASH FLOODING IS OBSERVED ACT QUICKLY. MOVE UP TO HIGHER GROUND 
TO ESCAPE FLOOD WATERS. DO NOT STAY IN AREAS SUBJECT TO FLOODING 
WHEN WATER BEGINS RISING.

TO REPORT FLOODING...HAVE THE NEAREST LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY RELAY
YOUR REPORT TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FORECAST OFFICE.

LAT...LON 3826 12259 3813 12243 3812 12249 3816 12256
      3819 12258 3818 12261 3821 12266 3829 12268

$$

STRUDLEY
1 follow-up statement
648 
WGUS76 KMTR 240030
FFSMTR

FLASH FLOOD STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN FRANCISCO CA
430 PM PST SUN DEC 23 2012

CAC097-240037-
/O.EXP.KMTR.FF.W.0012.000000T0000Z-121224T0030Z/
/00000.0.ER.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.OO/
SONOMA CA-
430 PM PST SUN DEC 23 2012

...THE FLASH FLOOD WARNING WILL EXPIRE AT 430 PM PST FOR SONOMA
COUNTY...

RAINFALL HAS GREATLY DIMINISHED OVER THE PETALUMA AREA AND CREEK 
LEVELS HAVE FALLEN.  THEREFORE THE FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR THIS AREA 
IS BEING ALLOWED TO EXPIRE.

LAT...LON 3826 12259 3813 12243 3812 12249 3816 12256
      3819 12258 3818 12261 3821 12266 3829 12268

$$

STRUDLEY/DYKEMA

The office that day

Everything else NWS San Francisco Bay Area, CA issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Dec 23, 8:55 AM PSTFlash Flood WarningMTRSonoma4 hr
Dec 23, 9:31 AM PSTFlash Flood WatchMTRMarin, Napa, Sonoma5 hr
Dec 23, 2:17 PM PSTRiver Flood WarningMTRNapa8 hr
Dec 23, 2:17 PM PSTRiver Flood WarningMTRNapa11 hr
Dec 23, 2:33 PM PSTSmall Craft Advisory for Hazardous SeasMTR15 hr
Dec 23, 2:38 PM PSTFlash Flood WarningMTRSanta Cruz5 hr
Dec 23, 3:12 PM PSTFlash Flood WatchMTRSanta Cruz4 hr

Nearby

Flash Flood Warnings in California, 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.