Alert archive / Virginia / Flash Flood Watches in 2020

Flash Flood Watch 2, NWS Wakefield, VA

August 2, 202044 counties in Virginia; 4 counties in North Carolina; Dorchester County, Somerset County, Wicomico County, Maryland

NWS Wakefield, VA issued this flash flood watch at Aug 2, 2020, 3:26 PM EDT for 44 counties in Virginia; 4 counties in North Carolina; Dorchester County, Somerset County, Wicomico County, Maryland. It took effect at Aug 3, 2020, 10:00 PM EDT. It was in force for 12 hr.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued: Aug 2, 2020, 3:26 PM EDT (19:26 UTC)
In effect from: Aug 3, 2020, 10:00 PM EDT
Expired: Aug 4, 2020, 10:02 AM EDT
In force: 12 hr
Issued by: NWS Wakefield, VA
Flood severity: None

All 51 counties

Dorchester County, MD, Somerset County, MD, Wicomico County, MD, Bertie County, NC, Gates County, NC, Hertford County, NC, Northampton County, NC, Amelia County, VA, Brunswick County, VA, Caroline County, VA, Charles City County, VA, Chesterfield County, VA, City of Colonial Heights, VA, City of Emporia, VA, City of Franklin, VA, City of Hopewell, VA, City of Newport News, VA, City of Petersburg, VA, City of Poquoson, VA, City of Richmond, VA, City of Williamsburg, VA, Cumberland County, VA, Dinwiddie County, VA, Essex County, VA, Fluvanna County, VA, Gloucester County, VA, Goochland County, VA, Greensville County, VA, Hanover County, VA, Henrico County, VA, James City County, VA, King and Queen County, VA, King William County, VA, Lancaster County, VA, Louisa County, VA, Lunenburg County, VA, Mathews County, VA, Mecklenburg County, VA, Middlesex County, VA, New Kent County, VA, Northumberland County, VA, Nottoway County, VA, Powhatan County, VA, Prince Edward County, VA, Prince George County, VA, Richmond County, VA, Southampton County, VA, Surry County, VA, Sussex County, VA, Westmoreland County, VA, York County, VA

The radar

The Norfolk radar (KAKQ), 42 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 19:27 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

Washington/Dulle, VA (KIAD), launched 12:00Z, 7.4 hours before the alert went out and 181 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: 444 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -92 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 730 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 37 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 22 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 134 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 0.9

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before this flash flood watch went out, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Wakefield, VA wrote its last area forecast discussion before this flash flood watch went out at Aug 2, 2:00 PM EDT, 1 hour 26 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 2, 2:00 PM EDT, 1 hour 26 minutes before

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Hazardous weather outlook, Aug 2, 3:43 AM EDT, 11 hours 43 minutes before

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In the hours before

Special weather statement, Aug 2, 2:41 PM EDT, 45 minutes before

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Special weather statement, Aug 2, 3:26 PM EDT, 0 minutes before

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The office that day

Everything else NWS Wakefield, VA issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Aug 1, 8:33 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	AKQ	Prince Edward	42 min
Aug 2, 3:46 AM EDT	Small Craft Advisory	AKQ		14 hr
Aug 2, 2:41 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	AKQ	Fluvanna	34 min
Aug 2, 3:26 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	AKQ	Louisa	34 min
Aug 2, 3:33 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	AKQ	Nottoway	27 min
Aug 2, 3:41 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	AKQ	City of Richmond	34 min
Aug 2, 4:00 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	AKQ	Amelia, Nottoway, Powhatan	30 min
Aug 2, 4:05 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	AKQ	Hanover	25 min
Aug 2, 4:41 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	AKQ	Hanover, Powhatan, City of Richmond	34 min
Aug 2, 5:44 PM EDT	Tropical Storm Watch	AKQ	Accomack, Brunswick, Caroline, Charles City, Chesterfield, Dinwiddie and 33 more	5 hr
Aug 2, 6:24 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	AKQ	Prince Edward	36 min
Aug 2, 6:41 PM EDT	Coastal Flood Watch	AKQ	Accomack, Northumberland, Westmoreland, City of Virginia Beach	23 hr
Aug 2, 7:46 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	AKQ	Nottoway	29 min

Nearby

Flash Flood Watches in Virginia, 2020 Flash Flood Watches in North Carolina, 2020 Flash Flood Watches in Maryland, 2020 Every flash flood watch in 2020

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.