Flood in Oklahoma, January 29 to 30, 2001

Name: Flood in Oklahoma, January 29 to 30, 2001
Start: 2001-01-29T09:00
End: 2001-01-30T05:00
Location: Oklahoma

January 29 to 30, 2001 · NWS TSA · 1 event in 1 county or zone

4 feet on the evening of January 29 before falling below its flood stage during the predawn hours on January 30.

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

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 1

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 TSA wrote it up.

The Pole Cat Creek near Sapulpa rose above its flood stage of 21 feet during the morning of January 29.The river crested at 22.4 feet on the evening of January 29 before falling below its flood stage during the predawn hours on January 30.

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 Jan 29, 3:35 AM CST, 5 hours 25 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jan 29, 3:35 AM CST, 5 hours 25 minutes before

EASTERN OKLAHOMA/NORTHWEST ARKANSAS FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
335 AM CST MON JAN 29 2001

UPPER LEVEL SYSTEM CENTERED OVER NE CO/SW NB EARLY THIS MORNING...
AND IS EXPECTED TO SLIDE ACROSS KS TODAY.

SFC BOUNDARY ENTERING WESTERN AR ATTM...WITH SEVERAL LIGHTNING
STRIKES NOTED IN THE WARMER AIR ACROSS FAR SE OK AND EXTREME WRN AR.
SFC LOW ALONG BOUNDARY STARTING TO LIFT NORTHEAST ALONG
BOUNDARY...AND THIS APPEARS TO HAVE MOVED IN TO FAR WRN AR AS WELL.
EXPECT LOW TO RAPIDLY LIFT NE AS UPPER SYSTEM MOVES EAST TODAY.

LOOKS LIKE MAX TEMPS TODAY WILL BE EARLY ACROSS ERN ZONES AS COLDER
GETS WRAPPED IN BEHIND DEPARTING SFC LOW. TEMPS FURTHER WEST MAY
REBOUND A FEW DEGREES SINCE THAT PART OF THE FA NEVER GOT INTO THE
WARMER AIR. WILL GO WITH CLOUDY SKIES OVER ALL ZONES TODAY AND
CONFINE POPS TO MAINLY THIS MORNING. MODELS DIFFER AS FAR AS WHERE
DRY SLOT PUNCHES IN...BUT WOULDNT BE SURPRISED IF SRN ZONES BREAK
OUT FOR A WHILE BEFORE WRAPAROUND MOISTURE ATTEMPTS TO MOVE BACK IN
LATER TODAY AND TONIGHT. WITH 500MB COLD AIR POCKET BRUSHING ACROSS
NE ZONES LATE TODAY AND TONIGHT...WILL KEEP MENTION OF FLURRIES
TONIGHT. MODELS DIFFER ON HOW FAR SOUTH WRAPAROUND MOISTURE WILL
GO...BUT WILL OPT FOR MOSTLY CLOUDY ACROSS SE OK FOR NOW.

TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY LOOK QUIET BUT THERE MAY BE MORE CLOUDS ACROSS
NRN ZONES ON WED ASSOCIATED WITH AN UPPER TROUGH THAT SLIDES NORTH
OF THE FA. SLIGHTLY COLDER 850 MB TEMPS ALSO SLIDE DOWN FOR
WEDNESDAY...SO WILL TRIM HIGHS BACK JUST A BIT FROM TUESDAY. WARMER
WX EXPECTED TOWARDS THE END OF THE WEEK. CURRENT DAY 6 AND 7 HAVE
THIS ACCOUNTED FOR SO NO CHANGES PLANNED.

FCSTID = 23

.PRELIMINARY CCF...
TUL   46  33  50  31 /  60  20  10   5
FSM   46  35  53  33 / 100  10   5   5
MLC   49  35  54  32 /  50  10   5   5
BVO   43  30  47  28 /  60  20  10   5
FYV   50  33  46  30 / 100  20  10   5
BYV   48  33  45  29 / 100  20  10   5
MIO   43  31  46  29 /  90  20  10   5
MKO   46  33  50  31 /  60  20  10   5
F10   46  33  50  31 /  50  20  10   5
HHW   51  37  55  34 /  50  10   5   5

.TUL...
AR...NONE.
OK...NONE.

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Jan 29, 5:59 AM CST, 3 hours 1 minute before

ARZ001-002-010-011-019-020-029-OKZ049-053>076-301200-

EASTERN OKLAHOMA/NORTHWEST ARKANSAS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
600 AM CST SUN JAN 28 2001

...LOCALLY HEAVY RAIN POSSIBLE EARLY THIS MORNING OVER PARTS OF EASTERN
OKLAHOMA AND NORTHWEST ARKANSAS...

.SYNOPSIS...
SURFACE LOW PRESSURE OVER WESTERN ARKANSAS WILL CONTINUE TO SHIFT
EAST TODAY.  AN UPPER LEVEL LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM OVER EASTERN
COLORADO EARLY THIS MORNING WILL MOVE INTO SOUTHERN IOWA BY TUESDAY
MORNING.

.DISCUSSION...
A LARGE AREA OF MODERATE TO OCCASIONALLY HEAVY RAIN WILL CONTINUE
OVER MOST OF NORTHWEST ARKANSAS AND FAR EASTERN OKLAHOMA EARLY THIS
MORNING.  AN ADDITIONAL INCH OF RAINFALL IS EXPECTED BEFORE THE
PRECIPITATION BEGINS TO TAPER OFF BY 10 AM.  PONDING OF WATER IN LOW
LYING AREAS WILL BE POSSIBLE ALONG WITH MODERATE RISES ON AREA
RIVERS AND STREAMS.

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Flood, Creek

When: January 29, 9:00 AM CST to January 30, 5:00 AM CST
Where: Creek forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 35.903, -96.371 (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 Oklahoma in 2001 Every state in 2001 This day in weather history Warnings in Oklahoma, January 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: 5228876.