Flooding in Missouri, July 12 to 14, 2001

Name: Flooding in Missouri, July 12 to 14, 2001
Start: 2001-07-12T02:00
End: 2001-07-14T19:00
Location: Missouri

July 12 to 14, 2001 · NWS EAX · 4 events in 4 counties and zones

across west central Missouri. 69 feet above flood stage.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 4 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: 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 EAX wrote it up.

Minor to moderate flooding was reported on several rivers and creeks...across west central Missouri. The Little Platte River near Smithville Missouri, crested at 30.69 feet...or 6.69 feet above flood stage.

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 Kansas City, MO wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jul 12, 12:00 AM CST, 2 hours earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 12, 12:00 AM CST, 2 hours before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE KANSAS CITY/PLEASANT HILL MO
100 AM CDT THU JUL 12 2001

MAIN FCST CONCERN IS IN THE SHORT TERM. LATEST SFC ANALYSIS SHOWS
SFC LO IN SERN CO WITH STNRY FNT XTNDING EAST INTO SERN KS AND XTRM
SRN MO. PROFILERS INDICATE H8 BNDRY FURTHER NORTH IN NRN KS EAST
INTO CNTRL MO. MOIST IMAGERY AND EVE UPR AIR ALSO DEPICTS WEAK
SHRTWV IN ERN NEB WITH MOIST TROPICAL PLUME FROM CO TO NRN KS AND
NRN MO. MODELS DEPICT PRECIP WATER VALUES ACR SWRN ONE HALF OF CWA
FM 2-2.2 INCHES FROM 06Z-18Z. THUNDERSTORMS HAVE QUICKLY DEVELOP IN
NWRN MO AND NERN KS IN AREA OF INCREASING ISENT LIFT ON 310K SFC.
ALTHOUGH INSTABILITY NOT IMPRESSIVE...SHEAR PROFILER AND SHOWALTER
INDICES FM -2 TO -4 SUFFICIENT FOR A FEW STORMS TO PRODUCE HAIL. IN
ADDITION...XPCT CONVECTION TO ORGANIZE INTO AN MCS WITH DAMAGING
WINDS A THREAT AS IT TRACKS SE TOWARD SRN MO/SERN KS. SFC-3KM SHR
VECTOR OF 29040KT VERY FAVORABLE FOR STG MCS BY 12Z. ONLY QUESTION
IS HOW LONG WILL IT TAKE FOR COLD POOL DYNAMICS TO INITIATE DEVELOP
OF MCS CAPABLE OF DAMAGING WINDS.

VERY HEAVY RAINFALL ALSO A THREAT AND HAVE ISSUED FFA FOR AM HOURS
FOR ALL BUT XTRM NRN/NERN CWA. SEVERE THREAT XPCTD TO END ACR SRN
CWA BY NOON WITH LINGERING STRATIFORM RAIN INTO AFTN HOURS.

COOLER AND DRIER AIR TO MOVE INTO CWA THIS AFTN AND TNGT. GUID IN
BALLPARK EXCEPT WILL CUT GUID A CATEGORY DUE TO RAIN AND CLD CVR.

.EAX...
FFA TIL NOON...KSZ025-KSZ057-KSZ060-KSZ102>105.
            ...MOZ011>014-MOZ020>024-MOZ028>033-MOZ037>040-
            ...MOZ043>046-MOZ053-MOZ054

DB

In the hours before

Local storm report, Jul 12, 12:28 AM CST, 1 hour 32 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE KANSAS CITY/PLEASANT HILL MO
128 AM CDT THU JUL 12 2001

TIME(CDT)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

0125 AM    MIRABILE                  MO   .88 INCH HAIL
07/12/01   CALDWELL                       REPORTED BY HAM RADIO
                                          OPERATOR.

Local storm report, Jul 12, 12:36 AM CST, 1 hour 24 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE KANSAS CITY/PLEASANT HILL MO
136 AM CDT THU JUL 12 2001

TIME(CDT)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

1255 AM    ST JOSEPH                 MO   WIND DAMAGE
07/12/01   BUCHANAN                       REPORTED BY LAW
                                          ENFORCEMENT OFFICIAL.
                                          WIDESPREAD WIND DAMAGE
                                          IN NORTHERN AND EASTERN
                                          PORTIONS OF TOWN.
                                          TRACTOR TRAILER BLOWN
                                          OVER AND ROOF PARTIALLY
                                          BLOWN OFF.

0100 AM    ELWOOD                    KS   WIND DAMAGE
07/12/01   DONIPHAN                       REPORTED BY LAW
                                          ENFORCEMENT OFFICIAL.
                                          TREES UPROOTED.
                                          NUMEROUS POWER OUTAGES.

Local storm report, Jul 12, 12:43 AM CST, 1 hour 17 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE KANSAS CITY/PLEASANT HILL MO
143 AM CDT THU JUL 12 2001

TIME(CDT)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

0124 AM    POLO                      MO   65 MPH TSTM GUST
07/12/01   CALDWELL                       REPORTED BY HAM RADIO
                                          OPERATOR.

Local storm report, Jul 12, 1:09 AM CST, 51 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE KANSAS CITY/PLEASANT HILL MO
209 AM CDT THU JUL 12 2001

TIME(CDT)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY@ LOCATION....

0155 AM    KEARNEY                   MO   60-70 MPH TSTM GUST
07/12/01   CLAY                           REPORTED BY STORM
                                          SPOTTER. TREE LIMBS DOWN.

Local storm report, Jul 12, 1:30 AM CST, 30 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE KANSAS CITY/PLEASANT HILL MO
230 AM CDT THU JUL 12 2001

TIME(CDT)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

0155 AM    ORRICK                    MO   WIND DAMAGE
07/12/01   RAY                            REPORTED BY LAW
                                          ENFORCEMENT OFFICIAL.
                                          TREE DOWN'.

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

4 flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Flood, Clay

When: July 12, 2:00 AM CST to 7:00 PM CST
Where: Clay forecast zone
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates: 39.311, -94.421 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Henry

When: July 12, 5:00 AM CST to 10:00 PM CST
Where: Henry forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 38.385, -93.793 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Johnson

When: July 12, 5:00 AM CST to July 13, 10:00 AM CST
Where: Johnson forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 38.744, -93.806 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Saline

When: July 12, 6:00 AM CST to July 14, 7:00 PM CST
Where: Saline forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 39.137, -93.202 (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.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Missouri in 2001 Every state in 2001 This day in weather history Warnings in Missouri, July 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: 5258583, 5258584, 5258585, 5258586.