Alert archive / Iowa / Flash Flood Warnings in 2013

Flash Flood Warning 2, NWS Des Moines, IA

April 17, 2013Decatur County, Ringgold County, Iowa

NWS Des Moines, IA issued this flash flood warning at Apr 17, 2013, 6:36 PM CDT for Decatur County, Ringgold County, Iowa. It was in force for 6 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: Apr 17, 2013, 6:36 PM CDT (23:36 UTC)
Expired: Apr 18, 2013, 12:30 AM CDT
In force: 6 hr
Issued by: NWS Des Moines, IA
Area: Storm-based polygon
Flood severity: None

Counties Decatur County, IA, Ringgold County, IA

The radar

The Des Moines radar (KDMX), 118 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 23:39 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

Topeka, KS (KFOE), launched 12:00Z, 11.6 hours before the alert went out and 231 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: 8 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: 0 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 423 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 57 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 667 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 666 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 1.2

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.

134 
WGUS53 KDMX 172336
FFWDMX
IAC053-159-180530-
/O.NEW.KDMX.FF.W.0002.130417T2336Z-130418T0530Z/
/00000.0.ER.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.OO/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DES MOINES IA
636 PM CDT WED APR 17 2013

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN DES MOINES HAS ISSUED A

* FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR...
  DECATUR COUNTY IN SOUTH CENTRAL IOWA...
  RINGGOLD COUNTY IN SOUTH CENTRAL IOWA...

* UNTIL 1230 AM CDT

* AT 634 PM CDT...LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICIALS REPORTED NUMEROUS 
STREAMS NEARING BANKFULL IN ADDITION TO SOME ROADS THAT HAVE ALREADY 
BECOME INUNDATED AREA. A WIDESPREAD 3 TO 5 INCHES OR RAINFALL HAS 
ALREADY OCCURRED TODAY.  AN ADDITIONAL 1 TO 2 INCHES OF RAIN IS 
POSSIBLE THROUGH MIDNIGHT.

* RUNOFF FROM THIS EXCESSIVE RAINFALL WILL CAUSE FLASH FLOODING TO
  OCCUR. SOME LOCATIONS THAT WILL EXPERIENCE FLOODING INCLUDE...
  LAMONI...LEON AND MOUNT AYR.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

EXCESSIVE RUNOFF FROM HEAVY RAINFALL WILL CAUSE FLOODING OF SMALL
CREEKS AND STREAMS...COUNTRY ROADS...AS WELL AS FARMLAND ALONG THE
BANKS OF CREEKS AND STREAMS.

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.

&&

LAT...LON 4057 9447 4086 9447 4090 9367 4089 9356
      4058 9356 4056 9446

$$

DONAVON

2 follow-up statements

955 
WGUS73 KDMX 180211
FFSDMX

FLASH FLOOD STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DES MOINES IA
911 PM CDT WED APR 17 2013

IAC053-159-180530-
/O.CON.KDMX.FF.W.0002.000000T0000Z-130418T0530Z/
/00000.0.ER.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.OO/
RINGGOLD IA-DECATUR IA-
911 PM CDT WED APR 17 2013

...FLASH FLOOD WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR DECATUR AND RINGGOLD
COUNTIES UNTIL 1230 AM CDT...

AT 904 PM CDT...LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICIALS REPORTED 
THUNDERSTORMS WITH VERY HEAVY RAINFALL ACROSS THE WARNED AREA. RADAR 
ESTIMATES THAT A WIDESPREAD 3 TO 6 INCHES HAS FALLEN ACROSS THE 
AREAS. AN ADDITIONAL 1 TO 2 INCHES IS POSSIBLE TONIGHT.

RUNOFF FROM THIS EXCESSIVE RAINFALL WILL CAUSE FLASH FLOODING TO
OCCUR. SOME LOCATIONS THAT WILL EXPERIENCE FLASH  FLOODING INCLUDE...
LAMONI...LEON AND MOUNT AYR.

J-20 NEAR THE LONG BRIDGE 2.5 MILES WEST OF INTERSTATE 35 IS CLOSED 
AS WELL AS A PORTION OF ELK CHAPEL ROAD IN DECATUR COUNTY.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

EXCESSIVE RUNOFF FROM HEAVY RAINFALL WILL CAUSE FLOODING OF SMALL
CREEKS AND STREAMS...COUNTRY ROADS... AS WELL AS FARMLAND ALONG THE
BANKS OF CREEKS AND STREAMS.

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 4057 9447 4086 9447 4090 9367 4089 9356
      4058 9356 4056 9446

$$

DONAVON

276 
WGUS73 KDMX 180537
FFSDMX

FLASH FLOOD STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DES MOINES IA
1237 AM CDT THU APR 18 2013

IAC053-159-180548-
/O.EXP.KDMX.FF.W.0002.000000T0000Z-130418T0530Z/
/00000.0.ER.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.OO/
RINGGOLD IA-DECATUR IA-
1237 AM CDT THU APR 18 2013

...THE FLASH FLOOD WARNING THAT WAS IN EFFECT FOR DECATUR AND 
RINGGOLD COUNTIES HAS BEEN TRANSITIONED TO A FLOOD WARNING...

EXCESS RUNOFF FROM HEAVY RAIN HAS TAPERED OFF FOR THE TIME BEING IN 
THE WARNED AREA...AND THE THREAT FOR FLASH FLOODING HAS LESSENED. 
HOWEVER...SEVERAL RURAL ROADS REMAIN UNDER WATER. ADDITIONAL HEAVY 
RAINFALL MAY LEAD TO A RENEWED THREAT OF FLASH FLOODING LATER 
TONIGHT...AND A FLASH FLOOD WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR THE AREA. IF 
FLOODING HAS BEEN OBSERVED...PLEASE REPORT IT TO YOUR LOCAL LAW 
ENFORCEMENT AGENCY.

LAT...LON 4057 9447 4086 9447 4090 9367 4089 9356
      4058 9356 4056 9446

$$

SKOW

The office that day

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

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Apr 17, 3:41 AM CDT	Flash Flood Watch	DMX	Appanoose, Clarke, Davis, Decatur, Jasper, Lucas and 12 more	26 hr
Apr 17, 9:55 AM CDT	River Flood Warning	DMX	Decatur	4 days
Apr 17, 9:55 AM CDT	River Flood Warning	DMX	Lucas, Wayne	60 hr
Apr 17, 9:55 AM CDT	River Flood Warning	DMX	Appanoose	58 hr
Apr 17, 11:21 AM CDT	River Flood Warning	DMX	Mahaska, Wapello	60 hr
Apr 17, 11:21 AM CDT	River Flood Warning	DMX	Wapello	71 hr
Apr 17, 12:17 PM CDT	Flash Flood Warning	DMX	Clarke, Decatur, Lucas, Ringgold, Union, Warren and 1 more	6 hr
Apr 17, 2:17 PM CDT	River Flood Warning	DMX	Appanoose, Wayne	42 hr

Nearby

Flash Flood Warnings in Iowa, 2013 Every flash flood warning in 2013

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.