New York, 1998

Flash Flooding in New York, August 25, 1998

August 25, 1998 · NWS BUF · 2 events in 1 county or zone

Slow moving thunderstorms moved across the Rochester metro area producing two to four inches of rain in just a few hours. Widespread urban flooding occurred.

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

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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
$57,000
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 BUF wrote it up.

Slow moving thunderstorms moved across the Rochester metro area producing two to four inches of rain in just a few hours. Widespread urban flooding occurred. The Monroe County Sheriff reported numerous roads closed across the south and southeast suburbs of Rochester.

The radar

The Buffalo radar (KBUF), 93 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 01:32 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

2 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Flash Flood, Monroe

When
August 25, 8:30 PM EST to 9:00 PM EST
Where
Monroe County, Rochester
Property damage
$22,000
Reported by
BROADCAST MEDIA
Coordinates
43.165, -77.636 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flash Flood, Monroe

When
August 25, 9:00 PM EST to 11:30 PM EST
Where
Monroe County, Rochester
Property damage
$35,000
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
43.165, -77.636 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

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

More

Every storm in New York in 1998Every state in 1998This day in weather historyWarnings in New York, 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: 5664148, 5664149.