Flash Flood, Fauquier
- When
- September 4, 7:00 PM EST to 8:30 PM EST
- Where
- Fauquier County, N Portion
- Property damage
- $30,000
- Coordinates
- 38.739, -77.809 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Flash Flood in Virginia, September 4, 1996
A line of stationary thunderstorms, containing copious amounts of rainfall, caused several streams and creeks to come out of their banks, closing several roads and a few highways during the late evening of the 4th. A daily rain total of over 7 inches was reported by a spotter in the town of Madison.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 1 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
- Tornadoes
- Tropical storms and surge
- Floods
- Wind
- Hail
- Winter weather
- Heat and drought
- Cold
- Fire, smoke and dust
- Marine and coastal
- Other
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- $30,000
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 1
Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
What happened
The episode as NWS LWX wrote it up.
A line of stationary thunderstorms, containing copious amounts of rainfall, caused several streams and creeks to come out of their banks, closing several roads and a few highways during the late evening of the 4th. A daily rain total of over 7 inches was reported by a spotter in the town of Madison. An estimated 5 inches fell in portions of Rappahannock and northern Fauquier Counties during the evening, causing the majority of problems. Fauquier County was particularly hard hit; several major roads were closed, including state route 28 between Blue Ridge Christian Home road and federal highway 17.Farther east, in Fairfax Co, the Difficult Run overflowed its banks along state route 7; minor flash flooding was reported a few miles to the east in McLean.
The radar
The Sterling radar (KLWX), 38 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 00:04 UTC.
Event by event
1 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.
What these are
- Flash Flood
- Flooding that begins within six hours of the rain that causes it, or of a dam or levee failure or ice jam release, often with deadly speed.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Hurricane in North Carolina, September 4 to 6, 1996
- Flash Flood in North Carolina, September 4, 1996
- Flash Flood in North Carolina, September 4, 1996
- Hail in North Dakota, September 4, 1996
- Flash Flood in North Carolina, September 4, 1996
- Flooding in Virginia, September 4 to 11, 1996
- Damaging Wind in Texas, September 4, 1996
- Hail in North Dakota, September 4, 1996
- Flash Flood in California, September 4, 1996
- Hail in North Dakota, September 4, 1996
- Damaging Wind in Texas, September 4, 1996
- Damaging Wind in Texas, September 4, 1996
More
Every storm in Virginia in 1996Every state in 1996This day in weather historyWarnings in Virginia, September 1996
Sources
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5571985.