5 flash flood, as filed by the National Weather Service.
Every event with a place to put it; 5 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
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 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 Charleston, WV wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at May 17, 8:50 PM EST, 9 hours 40 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON WV 950 PM EDT THU MAY 17 2001 WILL NOT BE CANCELLING FLASH FLOOD WATCH AFTER ALL. NEW DEVELOPMENT ACROSS WESTERN CWA HAS PUT THE KABOSH ON THE CANCELLATION. WILL GET ZFP OUT ASAP. .RLX... WV...FLASH FLOOD WATCH TIL 12Z FRI FOR ZONES WVZ005>009...WVZ013>018...WVZ024>027...WVZ033>037. VA...FLASH FLOOD WATCH TIL 12Z FRI FOR VAZ003>004. KY...FLASH FLOOD WATCH TIL 12Z FRI FOR ZONES KYZ101>103...KYZ105. OH...FLASH FLOOD WATCH TIL 12Z FRI FOR FOR ZONES OHZ066>067...OHZ075>076...OHZ083>087. .END/CL
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
5 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.
Small streams overflowed after 2 to 3 inches of rain fell. The headwaters of Tygarts Creek flooded. William Creek flooded in the Kilgore vicinity. Schools were canceled around Carter.
Numerous roads and fields were flooded from the Warnock vicinity to Naples. A few homes were evacuated.
Streams in the western and southern portion of the county were affected more than in the northeast. The East Fork of the Little Sandy flooded roads. People were forced out of their homes along Hoods Creek in Westwood. Around 40 homes in the county had minor damage.
Another round of flooded roads occurred. County officials reported road damage. Two bridges were also damaged.
The sheriff reported roads in the community of Greenup flooded and many rural roads closed due to high water. No evacuations were known. Two homes in Russell had structural damage from land slippage. Overall, about 30 homes had minor damage in the county.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Kentucky in 2001Every state in 2001This day in weather historyWarnings in Kentucky, May 2001
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: 5245456, 5245457, 5245458, 5245459, 5245460.