Alert archive / Virginia / Red Flag Warnings in 2012
Red Flag Warning 4, NWS Blacksburg, VA
NWS Blacksburg, VA issued this red flag warning at Apr 11, 2012, 3:59 AM EDT for 14 counties in Virginia; 4 counties in North Carolina. It took effect at Apr 11, 2012, 12:00 PM EDT. It was in force for 8 hr. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.
The area
The counties it named.
The facts
- Issued
- Apr 11, 2012, 3:59 AM EDT (07:59 UTC)
- In effect from
- Apr 11, 2012, 12:00 PM EDT
- Expired
- Apr 11, 2012, 8:00 PM EDT
- In force
- 8 hr
- Issued by
- NWS Blacksburg, VA
Counties Stokes County, NC, Surry County, NC, Wilkes County, NC, Yadkin County, NC, Alleghany County, VA, Amherst County, VA, Bath County, VA, Bedford County, VA, Botetourt County, VA, City of Martinsville, VA, City of Roanoke, VA, City of Salem, VA, Craig County, VA, Franklin County, VA, Henry County, VA, Patrick County, VA, Roanoke County, VA, Rockbridge County, VA
The radar
The Roanoke radar (KFCX), 22 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 08:03 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
Roanoke, VA (KRNK), launched 00:00Z, 8.0 hours before the alert went out and 49 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.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 0 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- No buoyant parcel
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 3483 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 67 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 24 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 127 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.0
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
357 WWUS81 KRNK 110759 RFWRNK URGENT - FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BLACKSBURG VA 359 AM EDT WED APR 11 2012 ...CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS CONTINUE TODAY... .THE COMBINATION OF GUSTY WINDS BEHIND A PASSING COLD FRONT...LOW HUMIDITY LEVELS AND DRY FUELS WILL AGAIN MAKE FOR VERY HIGH FIRE DANGER THIS AFTERNOON. VAZ018>020-022>024-032>035-043-111600- /O.NEW.KRNK.FW.W.0004.120411T1600Z-120412T0000Z/ CRAIG-ALLEGHANY VA-BATH-ROANOKE-BOTETOURT-ROCKBRIDGE-PATRICK- FRANKLIN-BEDFORD-AMHERST-HENRY- 359 AM EDT WED APR 11 2012 ...RED FLAG WARNING IN EFFECT FROM NOON TODAY TO 8 PM EDT THIS EVENING FOR THE COMBINATION OF GUSTY WINDS...LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITIES...AND DRY FUELS... THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN BLACKSBURG HAS ISSUED A RED FLAG WARNING FOR CRITICAL FIRE CONDITIONS...WHICH IS IN EFFECT FROM NOON TODAY TO 8 PM EDT THIS EVENING. * WINDS...NORTHWEST 10 TO 20 MPH WITH GUSTS UP TO 35 MPH. * TIMING...NOON THROUGH 8 PM. * RELATIVE HUMIDITY...AS LOW AS AROUND 20 PERCENT. * TEMPERATURES...IN THE UPPER 40S TO LOWER 50S. * IMPACTS...LIMITED RECENT RAINFALL HAS RESULTED IN DRY FUELS ACROSS THE REGION. RELATIVE HUMIDITY AND WIND SPEEDS WILL BE NEAR OR ABOVE CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER THRESHOLDS FOR A RED FLAG WARNING THIS AFTERNOON INTO EARLY THIS EVENING...CREATING DANGEROUS FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS. GUSTY WINDS CAN RESULT IN ERRATIC FIRE WEATHER BEHAVIOR. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... A RED FLAG WARNING MEANS THAT CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS ARE EITHER OCCURRING NOW...OR WILL SHORTLY. A COMBINATION OF STRONG WINDS...LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY...AND WARM TEMPERATURES WILL CREATE EXPLOSIVE FIRE GROWTH POTENTIAL. && $$ FOR MORE INFORMATION FROM NOAA/NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE VISIT... HTTP://WWW.ERH.NOAA.GOV/ER/RNK/EMER/EMER_FIRE.PHP (ALL LOWER CASE)
2 follow-up statements
284 WWUS81 KRNK 111604 RFWRNK URGENT - FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BLACKSBURG VA 1204 PM EDT WED APR 11 2012 ...CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS CONTINUE TODAY... .THE COMBINATION OF GUSTY WINDS...LOW HUMIDITY LEVELS AND DRY FUELS WILL AGAIN MAKE FOR VERY HIGH FIRE DANGER THIS AFTERNOON. NCZ003-004-019-020-120000- /O.EXA.KRNK.FW.W.0004.120411T1600Z-120412T0000Z/ SURRY-STOKES-WILKES-YADKIN- 1204 PM EDT WED APR 11 2012 ...RED FLAG WARNING IN EFFECT UNTIL 8 PM EDT THIS EVENING FOR A COMBINATION OF LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY...GUSTY WINDS AND DRY FUELS FOR THE NORTH CAROLINA FOOTHILLS... THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN BLACKSBURG HAS ISSUED A RED FLAG WARNING FOR CRITICAL FIRE CONDITIONS..WHICH IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 8 PM EDT THIS EVENING. * WINDS...NORTHWEST 10 TO 20 MPH WITH GUSTS UP TO 30 MPH. * TIMING...THROUGH 8 PM THIS EVENING. * RELATIVE HUMIDITY...AS LOW AS AROUND 20 PERCENT. * TEMPERATURES...IN THE MID 50S. * IMPACTS...LIMITED RECENT RAINFALL HAS RESULTED IN DRY FUELS ACROSS THE REGION. RELATIVE HUMIDITY AND WIND SPEEDS WILL BE NEAR OR ABOVE CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER THRESHOLDS FOR A RED FLAG WARNING THIS AFTERNOON INTO EARLY THIS EVENING...CREATING DANGEROUS FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS. GUSTY WINDS CAN RESULT IN ERRATIC FIRE WEATHER BEHAVIOR. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... A RED FLAG WARNING MEANS THAT CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS ARE EITHER OCCURRING NOW...OR WILL SHORTLY. A COMBINATION OF STRONG WINDS...LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY...AND WARM TEMPERATURES WILL CREATE EXPLOSIVE FIRE GROWTH POTENTIAL. && $$ VAZ018>020-022>024-032>035-043-120000- /O.CON.KRNK.FW.W.0004.000000T0000Z-120412T0000Z/ CRAIG-ALLEGHANY VA-BATH-ROANOKE-BOTETOURT-ROCKBRIDGE-PATRICK- FRANKLIN-BEDFORD-AMHERST-HENRY- 1204 PM EDT WED APR 11 2012 ...RED FLAG WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 8 PM EDT THIS EVENING FOR THE COMBINATION OF GUSTY WINDS...LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITIES... AND DRY FUELS... * WINDS...NORTHWEST 10 TO 20 MPH WITH GUSTS UP TO 35 MPH. * TIMING...THROUGH 8 PM THIS EVENING. * RELATIVE HUMIDITY...AS LOW AS 20 TO 25 PERCENT. * TEMPERATURES...IN THE UPPER 40S TO MID 50S. * IMPACTS...LIMITED RECENT RAINFALL HAS RESULTED IN DRY FUELS ACROSS THE REGION. RELATIVE HUMIDITY AND WIND SPEEDS WILL BE NEAR OR ABOVE CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER THRESHOLDS FOR A RED FLAG WARNING THIS AFTERNOON INTO EARLY THIS EVENING...CREATING DANGEROUS FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS. GUSTY WINDS CAN RESULT IN ERRATIC FIRE WEATHER BEHAVIOR. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... A RED FLAG WARNING MEANS THAT CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS ARE EITHER OCCURRING NOW...OR WILL SHORTLY. A COMBINATION OF STRONG WINDS...LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY...AND WARM TEMPERATURES WILL CREATE EXPLOSIVE FIRE GROWTH POTENTIAL. && $$ FOR MORE INFORMATION FROM NOAA/NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE VISIT... HTTP://WWW.ERH.NOAA.GOV/ER/RNK/EMER/EMER_FIRE.PHP (ALL LOWER CASE)
256 WWUS81 KRNK 112357 RFWRNK URGENT - FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BLACKSBURG VA 757 PM EDT WED APR 11 2012 NCZ003-004-019-020-VAZ018>020-022>024-032>035-043-120100- /O.EXP.KRNK.FW.W.0004.000000T0000Z-120412T0000Z/ SURRY-STOKES-WILKES-YADKIN-CRAIG-ALLEGHANY VA-BATH-ROANOKE- BOTETOURT-ROCKBRIDGE-PATRICK-FRANKLIN-BEDFORD-AMHERST-HENRY- 757 PM EDT WED APR 11 2012 ...RED FLAG WARNING WILL EXPIRE AT 8 PM EDT THIS EVENING FOR PORTIONS OF SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA AND NORTHWEST NORTH CAROLINA... NORTHWEST WINDS WILL BE DIMINISHING TONIGHT WHILE HUMIDITY LEVELS RECOVER TO ABOUT 65 TO 80 PERCENT. $$ FOR MORE INFORMATION FROM NOAA/NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE VISIT... HTTP://WWW.ERH.NOAA.GOV/ER/RNK/EMER/EMER_FIRE.PHP (ALL LOWER CASE)
The office that day
Everything else NWS Blacksburg, VA issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 11, 3:13 PM EDT | Freeze Warning | RNK | Alleghany, Amherst, Bath, Bedford, Bland, Botetourt and 28 more | 18 hr |
| Apr 11, 3:25 PM EDT | Freeze Watch | RNK | Alleghany, Bath, Bland, Botetourt, Carroll, Craig and 17 more | 24 hr |
Nearby
Red Flag Warnings in Virginia, 2012Red Flag Warnings in North Carolina, 2012Every red flag 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.