Flash Flood in Louisiana, May 2, 1997

Name: Flash Flood in Louisiana, May 2, 1997
Start: 1997-05-02T14:30
End: 1997-05-02T16:00
Location: Louisiana

May 2, 1997 · NWS SHV · 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: $325,000
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.

The radar

The Shreveport radar (KSHV), 56 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 20:30 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Flash Flood, Webster

When: May 2, 2:30 PM CST to 4:00 PM CST
Where: Webster County, Sibley
Property damage: $325,000
Coordinates: 32.714, -93.335 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Slow moving thunderstorms led to 4 to 5 inches of rain over a short period of time. This resulted in flash flooding with numerous roads underwater and flooding of homes in the town. Sixty separate sites were reported by the Public Works Director for the area. Bridges, culverts, blacktop, driveways, and dirt roads suffered extensive damage.

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 Louisiana in 1997 Every state in 1997 This day in weather history Warnings in Louisiana, May 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: 5598006.