Oklahoma, 2001

Flash Flooding in Oklahoma, December 16, 2001

December 16, 2001 · NWS TSA · 2 events in 2 counties and zones

2 flash flood, as filed by the National Weather Service.

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
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 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 Tulsa, OK wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Dec 15, 9:45 PM CST, 3 hours 35 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Dec 15, 9:45 PM CST, 3 hours 35 minutes before
EASTERN OKLAHOMA/NORTHWEST ARKANSAS FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
945 PM CST SAT DEC 15 2001

HVY RAIN AND POSSIBLE FLOODING EVENT IN THE OFFING FOR ERN OK/NW AR.
HAVE DECIDED TO ISSUE FFA GENERALLY ALONG AND E OF A LINE FROM
EUFAULA TO TAHLEQUAH TO SILOAM SPRINGS.

00Z MODELS STARTING TO COME INTO EXCELLENT AGREEMENT SUPPORTING A
SIGNIFICANT PCPN EVENT FOR PART OF THE CWFA. CURRENT FCST HAS THIS
WELL IN HAND AND DON/T REALLY NEED TO MAKE MANY CHANGES EXCEPT TO
ADJUST SOME HVY RAINFALL WORDING AND INCLUDE HEADLINES. ALSO WL DROP
POPS SLIGHTLY IN THE NW BUT 2ND PERIOD POPS LOOK FINE ALL ZNS.

00Z ETA SHOWING VERY STRONG ISENTROPIC LIFT ALONG THE 295-310K SFCS.
THIS IS ALSO SUPPORTED BY STRONG FRONTOGENETIC FORCING IN THE
850-500MB LAYER. FAVORABLE JET DYNAMICS ALSO COMING IN TO PLAY. LLVL
MOISTURE BEING PROVIDED BY A 40-50KT LLVL JET. ALL THIS TO SAY THAT
VERY HEAVY RAINFALL WILL OCCUR OVERNIGHT AND INTO THE DAY TOMORROW
ACROSS ROUGHLY THE SE 1/2 OF THE CWFA. 3-5 INCH RAINFALL TOTALS
SOMEWHERE NEAR THE CORRIDOR FROM HUGO TO FORT SMITH TO EUREKA
SPRINGS ARE DEFINITELY POSSIBLE.

UPDATED ZNS/FFA OUT IN A FEW...

MANNING
FCSTID = 24

.TSA...
AR...FLASH FLOOD WATCH THROUGH SUNDAY FOR ZONES
ARZ001>002...ARZ010>011...ARZ019>020...ARZ029.

OK...FLASH FLOOD WATCH THROUGH SUNDAY FOR ZONES
OKZ049...OKZ053...OKZ068>076.

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

2 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Flash Flood, Choctaw

When
December 16, 1:20 AM CST to 6:30 AM CST
Where
Choctaw County, East Portion
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
34.027, -95.552 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy thunderstorms rains caused water to flow over several county roads in the eastern part of Choctaw County. In addition, water flowed over Highway 109 between Frogville and Fort Towson.

Flash Flood, Latimer

When
December 16, 5:00 AM CST to 6:30 AM CST
Where
Latimer County, 5 mi S of Red Oak
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
34.876, -95.250 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy thunderstorm rains caused water to flow over Highway 82 five miles south of Red Oak.

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 Oklahoma in 2001Every state in 2001This day in weather historyWarnings in Oklahoma, December 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: 5275151, 5275152.