Alert archive / South Carolina / Flash Flood Warnings in 2014

Flash Flood Warning 4, NWS Charleston, SC

April 19, 2014Charleston County, South Carolina

NWS Charleston, SC issued this flash flood warning at Apr 19, 2014, 5:59 AM EDT for Charleston County, South Carolina. 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
Apr 19, 2014, 5:59 AM EDT (09:59 UTC)
Expired
Apr 19, 2014, 8:45 AM EDT
In force
3 hr
Issued by
NWS Charleston, SC
Area
Storm-based polygon
Flood severity
None

County Charleston County, SC

The radar

The Charleston,SC radar (KCLX), 105 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 10:00 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 00:00Z, 10.0 hours before the alert went out and 13 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 00:00Z on 2014-04-19Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 0 joules per kilogram.LCLEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Charleston AFB, SC at 00:00Z on 2014-04-19The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 384 square meters per square second.19395878Sfc1 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
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL
433 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
55 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
384 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
810 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.

333 
WGUS52 KCHS 190959
FFWCHS
SCC019-191245-
/O.NEW.KCHS.FF.W.0004.140419T0959Z-140419T1245Z/
/00000.0.ER.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.OO/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON SC
559 AM EDT SAT APR 19 2014

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN CHARLESTON HAS ISSUED A

* FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR...
  CENTRAL CHARLESTON COUNTY IN SOUTHEAST SOUTH CAROLINA...

* UNTIL 845 AM EDT

* AT 551 AM EDT...LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICIALS REPORTED FLOODING 
  CONTINUING IN DOWNTOWN CHARLESTON FROM THE OVERNIGHT HEAVY
  RAINS AND HIGH TIDES. NUMEROUS ROADS REMAIN CLOSED EARLY THIS 
  MORNING NEAR THE TIME OF LOW TIDE. ADDITIONAL RAINS WILL BE
  BE LIGHT. 

* FLASH FLOODING IS EXPECTED IN AND AROUND...
  CHARLESTON...DOWNTOWN CHARLESTON...

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

AVOID DRIVING INTO WATER ON THE ROAD. THE WATER IS USUALLY DEEPER
THAN IT APPEARS AND THE ROAD MAY BE WASHED OUT. ONLY ONE FOOT OF
WATER WILL STALL A VEHICLE AND LESS THAN TWO FEET OF WATER CAN FLOAT
AND CARRY AWAY A VEHICLE. FLOODING IS THE NUMBER ONE WEATHER-RELATED
CAUSE OF DEATH IN THE UNITED STATES. WHEN ENCOUNTERING FLOODED ROADS
MAKE THE SMART CHOICE...TURN AROUND...DONT DROWN.

TO REPORT FLOODING...CONTACT THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN
CHARLESTON TOLL FREE AT 1-888-383-2024.

&&

LAT...LON 3276 7993 3278 7997 3284 7998 3285 7993
      3281 7993 3282 7992 3281 7992 3280 7992
      3278 7992 3278 7991

$$
1 follow-up statement
114 
WGUS72 KCHS 191246
FFSCHS

FLASH FLOOD STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON SC
846 AM EDT SAT APR 19 2014

SCC019-191254-
/O.EXP.KCHS.FF.W.0004.000000T0000Z-140419T1245Z/
/00000.0.ER.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.OO/
CHARLESTON SC-
846 AM EDT SAT APR 19 2014

...THE FLASH FLOOD WARNING WILL EXPIRE AT 845 AM EDT FOR FOR CENTRAL
CHARLESTON COUNTY...

CHARLESTON POLICE HAVE CONFIRMED THAT NUMEROUS ROADS ARE NOW OPEN IN 
DOWNTOWN CHARLESTON AS OF 830 AM. HOWEVER STANDING WATER WILL LIKELY 
PERSIST IN SOME LOCATIONS...SO MOTORISTS SHOULD BE ALERT FOR MINOR 
FLOODING AND BE PREPARED TO FIND AN ALTERNATE ROUTE UNTIL THE 
REMAINING WATER CAN DRAIN.

LAT...LON 3276 7993 3278 7997 3284 7998 3285 7993
      3281 7993 3282 7992 3281 7992 3280 7992
      3278 7992 3278 7991

$$

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Apr 18, 8:41 PM EDTSpecial Marine WarningCHS2 hr
Apr 18, 9:38 PM EDTAreal Flood AdvisoryCHSBerkeley, Colleton, Dorchester3 hr
Apr 18, 9:50 PM EDTSpecial Marine WarningCHS115 min
Apr 18, 10:42 PM EDTSpecial Marine WarningCHS2 hr
Apr 18, 11:27 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningCHSBerkeley, Charleston3 hr
Apr 18, 11:47 PM EDTSpecial Marine WarningCHS118 min
Apr 19, 2:05 AM EDTFlash Flood WarningCHSBerkeley, Charleston4 hr
Apr 19, 3:57 AM EDTGale WatchCHS23 hr
Apr 19, 3:01 PM EDTLake Wind AdvisoryCHSBerkeley20 hr
Apr 19, 3:03 PM EDTGale WarningCHS23 hr
Apr 19, 3:09 PM EDTCoastal Flood AdvisoryCHS11 hr
Apr 19, 3:09 PM EDTRip Current StatementCHS20 hr
Apr 19, 5:50 PM EDTSpecial Marine WarningCHS115 min

Nearby

Flash Flood Warnings in South Carolina, 2014Every 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; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.