Flood, Jo Daviess
- When
- August 20, 6:52 PM CST to 10:30 PM CST
- Where
- Jo Daviess County, Central Portion
- Reported by
- LAW ENFORCEMENT
- Coordinates
- 42.366, -90.212 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Flash Flood and Flood in Illinois, August 20, 1998
Strong thunderstorms dumping 3 to nearly 5 inches of heavy rain over East Central Iowa and Northwest Illinois caused minor urban flooding in and around the city of Galena. The same storm also drenched the Small Pox Creek basin setting off a flash flood and causing damage in The Galena Territory.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 2 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
- $2,000
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 2
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 DVN wrote it up.
Strong thunderstorms dumping 3 to nearly 5 inches of heavy rain over East Central Iowa and Northwest Illinois caused minor urban flooding in and around the city of Galena. The same storm also drenched the Small Pox Creek basin setting off a flash flood and causing damage in The Galena Territory. As the flood waters poured into the Lake Galena marina the surge of water broke pilings and tie-downs, and broke docks apart. Only minor damage was noted to eleven boats which were broken loose and set adrift in the lake. Two boats were found adjacent to the Eagle Ridge docks, one small fishing boat was found beneath a pontoon boat, and two boats sank. On a hillside above the lake a cornfield was also flattened by the storm. An observer for the Jo Daviess County Extension Service recorded 4.45 inches of rain near Lake Galena.
The radar
The Quad Cities radar (KDVN), 89 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 00:51 UTC.
Event by event
1 flood, 1 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.
Flash Flood, Jo Daviess
- When
- August 20, 7:30 PM CST to 8:30 PM CST
- Where
- Jo Daviess County, West Central Portion
- Property damage
- $2,000
- Reported by
- NEWSPAPER
- Coordinates
- 42.366, -90.212 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
What these are
- Flood
- Flooding that develops more slowly than a flash flood: rivers leaving their banks, or water standing over land for an extended time.
- 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
- Tornado in Utah, August 20, 1998
- Damaging Winds in Nebraska, August 20, 1998
- Flash Flood and Flooding in Iowa, August 20, 1998
- Damaging Winds in Texas, August 20, 1998
- Lightning Strike in Oregon, August 20, 1998
- Damaging Winds in Texas, August 20, 1998
- Damaging Wind in Florida, August 20, 1998
- Damaging Wind in Florida, August 20, 1998
- Flash Flooding in South Carolina, August 20, 1998
- Hail in Montana, August 20, 1998
- Flash Flooding in Montana, August 20, 1998
- Hail in Kansas, August 20, 1998
More
Every storm in Illinois in 1998Every state in 1998This day in weather historyWarnings in Illinois, August 1998
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: 5664637, 5664638.