Alert archive / Massachusetts / Flash Flood Warnings in 2014

Flash Flood Warning 4, NWS Boston/Norton, MA

May 23, 2014Franklin County, Hampden County, Hampshire County, Massachusetts

NWS Boston/Norton, MA issued this flash flood warning at May 23, 2014, 7:33 PM EDT for Franklin County, Hampden County, Hampshire County, Massachusetts. It was in force for 117 min. 11 reports 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: May 23, 2014, 7:33 PM EDT (23:33 UTC)
Expired: May 23, 2014, 9:30 PM EDT
In force: 117 min
Issued by: NWS Boston/Norton, MA
Area: Storm-based polygon
Flood severity: None

Counties Franklin County, MA, Hampden County, MA, Hampshire County, MA

The radar

The Boston radar (KBOX), 121 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 23:33 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
May 23, 7:45 PM EDT	FLOOD	Chicopee, MA	FLOODING ALONG NASH STREET WITH WATER UP TO A FOOT
May 23, 7:51 PM EDT	FLOOD	Chicopee, MA	CAR STUCK IN FLOOD WATERS UNDER THE BRIDGE AT PROSPECT STREET.
May 23, 7:51 PM EDT	FLOOD	Chicopee, MA	CAR STUCK IN FLOOD WATERS UNDER THE BRIDGE AT PROSPECT STREET AND NORTH CHICOPEE STREET.
May 23, 7:53 PM EDT	FLOOD	Northampton, MA	FLOODING A FOOT DEEP ALONG ROUTE 9 AT THE VA HOSPITAL
May 23, 8:01 PM EDT	FLOOD	Wilbraham, MA	BOSTON ROAD FLOODED WITH WATER 1 FOOT DEEP
May 23, 8:03 PM EDT	FLOOD	South Hadley, MA	ROUTE 202 FLOODED OVER WITH AT LEAST ONE FOOT OF WATER
May 23, 8:06 PM EDT	FLOOD	Northampton, MA	FLOODING AT MARKET AND STATE STREET
May 23, 8:08 PM EDT	FLOOD	Northampton, MA	FLOODING AT 221 KING STREET IN FRONT OF THE MCDONALDS
May 23, 8:09 PM EDT	FLOOD	Holyoke, MA	PORTION OF CABOT STREET CLOSED DUE TO FLOODING
May 23, 8:10 PM EDT	FLOOD	Holyoke, MA	CAR STUCK IN THE WATER AT THE UNDERPASS ON APPLETON STREET
May 23, 9:26 PM EDT	FLOOD	Northampton, MA	MULTIPLE BASEMENTS FLOODED 6 TO 8 FEET ALONG CHURCH STREET

Local storm reports filed while the alert was in force, from inside its polygon or its counties.

The nearest sounding before it

Albany, NY (KALY), launched 12:00Z, 11.6 hours before the alert went out and 115 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: 0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL: 733 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 23 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 74 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 76 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.

884 
WGUS51 KBOX 232333
FFWBOX
MAC011-013-015-240130-
/O.NEW.KBOX.FF.W.0004.140523T2333Z-140524T0130Z/
/00000.0.ER.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.OO/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAUNTON MA
733 PM EDT FRI MAY 23 2014

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN TAUNTON HAS ISSUED A

* FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR...
  CENTRAL HAMPDEN COUNTY IN WESTERN MASSACHUSETTS...
  SOUTH CENTRAL HAMPSHIRE COUNTY IN WESTERN MASSACHUSETTS...
  SOUTH CENTRAL FRANKLIN COUNTY IN WESTERN MASSACHUSETTS...

* UNTIL 930 PM EDT

* AT 732 PM EDT...DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED THUNDERSTORMS PRODUCING
  HEAVY RAIN ACROSS THE WARNED AREA. UP TO TWO INCHES OF RAIN HAVE
  ALREADY FALLEN. FLASH FLOODING IS EXPECTED TO BEGIN SHORTLY.

* SOME LOCATIONS THAT WILL EXPERIENCE FLOODING INCLUDE...
  SPRINGFIELD...CHICOPEE...WESTFIELD...HOLYOKE...AMHERST...
  NORTHAMPTON...WEST SPRINGFIELD...LUDLOW...SOUTH HADLEY...
  EASTHAMPTON...BELCHERTOWN...WILBRAHAM...MONSON...GRANBY...
  SOUTHAMPTON...HADLEY...HAMPDEN...SUNDERLAND...HATFIELD...
  WILLIAMSBURG...CONWAY...LEVERETT...SHUTESBURY...WHATELY AND PELHAM.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A FLASH FLOOD WARNING IS ISSUED FOR RAPID AND POTENTIALLY LIFE
THREATENING FLOODING. IN URBAN AREAS AVOID FLOODED ROADS AND OBEY
ROAD CLOSURES. THOSE NEAR SMALL STREAMS MUST HEAD FOR HIGHER GROUND
IMMEDIATELY.

&&

LAT...LON 4246 7243 4227 7245 4209 7236 4212 7272
      4247 7275

$$
FIELD

1 follow-up statement

972 
WGUS71 KBOX 240006
FFSBOX

FLASH FLOOD STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAUNTON MA
806 PM EDT FRI MAY 23 2014

MAC011-013-015-240130-
/O.CON.KBOX.FF.W.0004.000000T0000Z-140524T0130Z/
/00000.0.ER.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.OO/
HAMPDEN MA-HAMPSHIRE MA-FRANKLIN MA-
806 PM EDT FRI MAY 23 2014

...THE FLASH FLOOD WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 930 PM EDT FOR
CENTRAL HAMPDEN...SOUTH CENTRAL HAMPSHIRE AND SOUTH CENTRAL FRANKLIN
COUNTIES...

AT 800 PM EDT...DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED HEAVY RAIN SHOWERS AND 
EMBEDDED THUNDERSTORMS CONTINUING ACROSS WARNED AREA. OVER TWO 
INCHES OF RAIN HAVE ALREADY FALLEN IN SOME LOCATIONS IN THE PAST 
HOUR. THIS WILL CONTINUE TO RESULT IN FLASH FLOODING ACROSS THE 
WARNED AREA.  WE HAVE ALREADY RECEIVED REPORTS OF FLOODING ACROSS 
THE REGION...PARTICULARLY IN THE AREA NEAR THE MASSACHUSETTS 
TURNPIKE AND I-91 INTERCHANGE.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A FLASH FLOOD WARNING IS ISSUED FOR RAPID AND POTENTIALLY LIFE
THREATENING FLOODING. IN URBAN AREAS AVOID FLOODED ROADS AND OBEY
ROAD CLOSURES. THOSE NEAR SMALL STREAMS MUST HEAD FOR HIGHER GROUND
IMMEDIATELY.

&&

LAT...LON 4246 7243 4227 7245 4209 7236 4212 7272
      4247 7275

$$

FRANK

The office that day

Everything else NWS Boston/Norton, MA issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
May 23, 3:42 PM EDT	Small Craft Advisory	BOX		32 hr
May 23, 6:09 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	BOX	Hampden	36 min
May 23, 6:46 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	BOX	Hampden, Worcester	29 min
May 23, 6:52 PM EDT	Areal Flood Advisory	BOX	Hampden, Hampshire	113 min
May 23, 7:08 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	BOX	Hampden	22 min
May 23, 7:47 PM EDT	Areal Flood Advisory	BOX	Hampden	118 min

Nearby

Flash Flood Warnings in Massachusetts, 2014 Every flash flood warning in 2014

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.