Flash Flood in Texas, August 31, 2001

Name: Flash Flood in Texas, August 31, 2001
Start: 2001-08-31T07:30
End: 2001-08-31T08:30
Location: Texas

August 31, 2001 · NWS LCH · 1 event in 1 county or zone

Three inches of rain in less than one hour resulted in widespread flooding around Orange, including the service road along I-10 and two homes which had to be sandbagged.

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.

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Tropical storms and surge
Floods
Wind
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Winter weather
Heat and drought
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Fire, smoke and dust
Marine and coastal
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The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: $20,000
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 LCH wrote it up.

Three inches of rain in less than one hour resulted in widespread flooding around Orange, including the service road along I-10 and two homes which had to be sandbagged.

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 Lake Charles, LA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Aug 31, 2:00 AM CST, 5 hours 30 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 31, 2:00 AM CST, 5 hours 30 minutes before

SOUTHWEST LOUISIANA AND SOUTHEAST TEXAS FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
300 AM CDT FRI AUG 31 2001

EARLY THIS MORNING...CONVECTION ONGOING ALONG TEXAS COAST INTO
SOUTHWEST LOUISIANA. THUNDERSTORMS FIRING ALONG AND JUST EAST OF 7H
TROF AXIS WHERE DEEP LAYER MOISTURE REMAINS IN PLACE...AND IN AREA
OF STRONG LOW LEVEL CONVERGENCE ALONG COAST AS INDICATED BY MSAS.

MODELS TODAY IN FAIRLY GOOD AGREEMENT IN PLACING HEAVIER RAINS ALONG
AXIS EXTENDING ALONG COASTAL TEXAS INTO NORTH LOUISIANA. THIS
OCCURRING AS DEEP MOISTURE AXIS IS SHUNTED WEST AND NORTH AS MID
LEVEL TROF BECOMING ORIENTED MORE SOUTHWEST TO NORTHEAST AND
SUBTROPICAL RIDGE NOSES IN FROM GULF.

MOISTURE HOWEVER WILL REMAIN AMPLE ACROSS FCST AREA WITH
PRECIPITABLE WATER RUNNING FROM 2 TO 2.2 INCHES. THIS COMBINED WITH
WEAK IMPULSES CONTINUING TO ROTATE ABOUT RIDGE AND ACROSS REGION
WARRANTS HIGH POPS ONCE AGAIN...WITH SIMILAR SCENARIO ON TAP FOR
SATURDAY. FLASH FLOOD GUIDANCE RUNNING VERY LOW OVER SOUTHERN
PORTIONS OF FORECAST AREA...SOMEWHAT HIGHER NORTH. WILL MAINTAIN FFA
ONCE AGAIN TODAY ACROSS REGION HOWEVER AS VERY TROPICAL AIRMASS
REMAINS IN PLACE. WILL DROP TODAYS HIGHS A CATEGORY BELOW NGM/MAV
MOS FROM MID TO LOW 80S.

FOR THE EXTENDED...UNSETTLED PATTERN CONTINUES.

.LCH...FFA TODAY FOR SOUTHEAST TEXAS...SOUTHERN AND CENTRAL
LOUISIANA.

.PRELIM NUMBERS...
AEX 82/74/85/74 8474
BPT 82/75/85/75 +574
LCH 82/75/85/75 +574
LFT 83/75/85/75 8574

MARCOTTE

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Flash Flood, Orange

When: August 31, 7:30 AM CST to 8:30 AM CST
Where: Orange County, Orange
Property damage: $20,000
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 30.121, -93.894 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

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

Every storm in Texas in 2001 Every state in 2001 This day in weather history Warnings in Texas, August 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: 5264096.