Flash Flood, Erie
- When
- August 24, 4:45 PM EST to 6:45 PM EST
- Where
- Erie County, Buffalo
- Property damage
- $75,000
- Reported by
- NWS EMPLOYEE(OFF DUTY)
- Coordinates
- 42.758, -78.780 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Flash Flood and Damaging Winds in New York, August 24, 1999
Severe thunderstorms crossed the area during the evening hours producing damaging winds and torrential rains. The thunderstorm winds downed trees and power lines in North Tonawanda and Lewiston.
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
- $151,000
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 4
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.
Severe thunderstorms crossed the area during the evening hours producing damaging winds and torrential rains. The thunderstorm winds downed trees and power lines in North Tonawanda and Lewiston. Power outages were scattered throughout Niagara and northern Erie Counties. The thunderstorms winds overturned a travel trailer in the KOA Campground on Grand Island. The torrential rains produced flash flooding in areas of Tonawanda and north Buffalo.
The radar
The Buffalo radar (KBUF), 21 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 22:13 UTC.
Event by event
3 thunderstorm wind, 1 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.
Thunderstorm Wind, Niagara
- When
- August 24, 5:15 PM EST
- Where
- Niagara County, North Tonawanda
- Property damage
- $9,000
- Reported by
- AMATEUR RADIO
- Coordinates
- 43.030, -78.880
Thunderstorm Wind, Erie
- When
- August 24, 5:20 PM EST
- Where
- Erie County, Tonawanda
- Property damage
- $12,000
- Reported by
- NEWSPAPER
- Coordinates
- 43.020, -78.870
Thunderstorm Wind, Niagara
- When
- August 24, 5:37 PM EST
- Where
- Niagara County, Lewiston
- Property damage
- $55,000
- Reported by
- LAW ENFORCEMENT
- Coordinates
- 43.180, -79.030
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.
- Thunderstorm Wind
- Winds from a thunderstorm of 50 knots (58 mph) or more, or lower winds that caused damage or casualties. Measured gusts are marked MG, estimated EG.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Flash Flooding in Texas, August 24, 1999
- Tornadoes and Flash Flood in Ohio, August 24, 1999
- Flash Flooding and Hail in Tennessee, August 24, 1999
- Hail in Mississippi, August 24, 1999
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Kentucky, August 24, 1999
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Georgia, August 24, 1999
- Damaging Winds in Ohio, August 24, 1999
- Tornado in Florida, August 24, 1999
- Flood in California, August 24, 1999
- Damaging Wind in Louisiana, August 24, 1999
- Lightning Strike in Alabama, August 24, 1999
- Hail in Texas, August 24, 1999
More
Every storm in New York in 1999Every state in 1999This day in weather historyWarnings in New York, August 1999
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: 5713869, 5713866, 5713867, 5713868.