Delaware, 2001

Flash Flood and Heavy Rain in Delaware, March 29 to 30, 2001

March 29 to 30, 2001 · NWS PHI · 2 events in 1 county or zone

Heavy rain fell on the 29th and 30th across the northern half of Delaware and caused flooding along the Christina River. Light rain began falling during the afternoon of the 29th and fell heavy at times during the second half of the evening on the 29th and into the morning of the 30th.

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

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
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 PHI wrote it up.

Heavy rain fell on the 29th and 30th across the northern half of Delaware and caused flooding along the Christina River. Light rain began falling during the afternoon of the 29th and fell heavy at times during the second half of the evening on the 29th and into the morning of the 30th. The rain ended by mid morning on the 30th. There was urban and poor drainage flooding. Storm totals averaged around 2.0 inches. Storm totals farther south in the state were between 0.75 and 1.5 inches.The Christina River at Coochs Bridge was above its 9 foot flood stage from 230 a.m. EST through Noon EST on the 30th. It crested at 11.02 feet at 550 a.m. EST. No serious injuries were reported. Specific storm totals included 2.13 inches at the New Castle County Airport, 1.90 inches in Newark (New Castle County), 1.87 inches in Bear (New Castle County), 1.22 inches in Dover (Kent County) and 0.96 inches in Georgetown (Sussex County). A low pressure system developed over the Gulf of Mexico the night of the 28th. By the morning of the 29th, it moved northeast into the Florida Panhandle and by the morning of the 30th, it reached the Delmarva Peninsula. The low moved offshore that morning and by the morning of the 31st was located near Nova Scotia.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Philadelphia/Mount Holly wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Mar 29, 10:35 AM EST, 3 hours 25 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Mar 29, 10:35 AM EST, 3 hours 25 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION...UPDATED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MOUNT HOLLY NJ
1035 AM EST THU MAR 29 2001

WL ISSUE FLD WATCH AT THIS TIME FOR MUCH OF CWA FOR TNGT AND FRI...
AS ENUF OF 12Z RUN HAS COME IN TO CAUSE US SOME CONCERN RE FLDG.
ONLY AREAS LEFT OUT OF FLD WATCH ARE SRN/CNTRL DE AND MOST OF NERN
MD SHORE. WITH MODEL QPF AMTS BTWN 1 AND 2 INCHES...AND CLOSE TO 2
INCHES EVEN ON NEW ETA FOUS...RFC PROJECTIONS ARE FOR AT LEAST MINOR
FLDG IN PARTS OF PASSAIC/RARITAN BASINS. NGM SHOWS CORE OVER
CNTRL/SRN NJ BY 12Z FRI.

COORD WITH ALL SURROUNDING OFFICES.

SOME OTHER MINOR CHGS TO WIND DIR AND AFTN MAXES...OTHERWISE REST AS
FROM PREVIOUS...

*********************************************************************

LIGHT RAIN WAS UP AS FAR AS RALEIGH AND GREENSBORO AT 200 AM.  IT
LOOKS AS THOUGH THE LEADING EDGE OF THE RAIN WILL BE UP ABOUT AS FAR
AS KUTZTOWN...TRENTON AND SEASIDE HEIGHTS BY ABOUT 100 PM.  TODAY/S
RAIN WILL BE LIGHT FOR THE MOST PART...WITH PERHAPS UP TO A QUARTER
INCH BY EVENING IN SOUTHERN DELAWARE.  IN THE NORTH...IT CONTINUES
TO APPEAR AS THOUGH THE LOWEST LEVEL OF THE ATMOSPHERE WILL BE TOO
WARM TO SUPPORT ANY FROZEN PRECIP...ESPECIALLY WITH THE PRECIP RATES
BEING RELATIVELY LIGHT.

THE SHORT WAVE TROUGH PRESENTLY OVER THE WESTERN GULF OF MEXICO IS
FORECAST TO SWING TO THE NORTHEAST...PASSING OVER OUR REGION EARLY
ON FRIDAY.  THE HEAVIEST PRECIP WILL BE OUT AHEAD OF THAT FEATURE...
AFFECTING US TONIGHT INTO PERHAPS FRIDAY MORNING.  WE/LL SHAVE A
LITTLE OFF OF THE GUIDANCE PRECIP VALUES (IN GENERAL) BEING THAT
THEY SEEM TO BE RUNNING A LITTLE HIGH OF LATE (ALSO A
GENERALIZATION).  WE/LL PLAN ON PRECIP TOTALS (NOON TODAY THROUGH
NOON FRIDAY) OF 3/4 TO 1 INCH AROUND PHL...PERHAPS 1 TO 1 1/4 INCHES
IN SOUTHERN DELAWARE AND EXTREME SOUTHERN NEW JERSEY...AND MAYBE 1/2
INCH UP IN THE POCONOS.  WE WILL NOT ISSUE A FLOOD WATCH AT THIS
TIME SINCE THE HEAVIEST PRECIP SHOULD FALL OVER OUR LESS FLOOD PRONE
COUNTIES.

AFTER THE HEAVY RAIN MOVES OUT OF THE REGION ON FRIDAY MORNING...IT
LOOKS LIKE WE/LL BE LEFT WITH A CHILLY NORTHERLY FLOW ALONG WITH
CLOUDS...OCCASIONAL RAIN AND DRIZZLE FOR THE BALANCE OF FRIDAY.

THE ZONE FORECASTS WILL BE ISSUED AROUND 415.

.PHI...FLOOD WATCH TONIGHT AND FRI FOR PAZ054-055-060>062-067>071-
       NJZ001-007>010-012>026-DEZ001-MDZ008-310000-.
       SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY FROM SANDY HOOK NJ TO FENWICK ISLAND DE
       AND FOR LOWER BAY.

IOVINO /

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 heavy rain, 1 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Heavy Rain, New Castle

When
March 29, 2:00 PM EST to March 30, 9:00 AM EST
Where
New Castle County, Summit Bridge
Reported by
AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates
39.578, -75.639 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flash Flood, New Castle

When
March 30, 2:30 AM EST to 12:00 PM EST
Where
New Castle County, North Portion
Reported by
AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates
39.578, -75.639 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Heavy Rain
Rainfall totals unusual for the place and season that did not produce a flood.
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 Delaware in 2001Every state in 2001This day in weather historyWarnings in Delaware, March 2001

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: 5235315, 5235314.