Flash Flood in California, August 20, 1997

Name: Flash Flood in California, August 20, 1997
Start: 1997-08-20T06:00
End: 1997-08-20T22:00
Location: California

August 20, 1997 · NWS MFR · 1 event in 1 county or zone

1 flash flood, as filed by the National Weather Service.

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

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The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
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.

The radar

The Medford radar (KMAX), 56 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 13:58 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Flash Flood, Siskiyou

When: August 20, 6:00 AM PST to 10:00 PM PST
Where: Siskiyou County, 8 mi NE of Weed
Coordinates: 41.593, -122.540 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

FLASH FLOODING AND DEBRIS FLOW DOWN WHITNEY CREEK ON NORTH SIDE OF MT. SHASTA AND ACROSS HWY 97 AFTER REMNANTS OF A TROPICAL SYSTEM PRODUCED HEAVY RAIN OVERNIGHT. DEBRIS FLOW ACROSS HWY 97 WAS 1/2 MILE WIDE AND UP TO 7 FT. DEEP. WATER AND DEBRIS DAMMED UP BEHIND ROAD ENBANKMENT AND WHITNEY CREEK CUT A NEW CHANNLE THREATENING HOMES DOWN STREAM.

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

Every storm in California in 1997 Every state in 1997 This day in weather history Warnings in California, August 1997

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: 5623308.