Flooding and Hail in Washington, June 27, 2001

Name: Flooding and Hail in Washington, June 27, 2001
Start: 2001-06-27T14:25
End: 2001-06-27T17:30
Location: Washington

June 27, 2001 · NWS OTX · 6 events in 3 counties and zones

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

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: $2,000
Crop damage: $4.0 million
Events: 6

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 OTX wrote it up.

Summary of events for June 27 2001:A shortwave moved over the Inland Northwest on the afternoon and evening of June 27. Surface dewpoints in the upper 50s and lower 60s helped scattered thunderstorms to develop and move northeast. The biggest storm of the day developed over the Oregon Cascades and then moved northeast into Washington. This storm entered Grant County near Priest Rapids Dam, clipping southwest Adams County before passing over Warden. The storm continued on through the length of Adams County and ended up in southeast Lincoln County. Along the way, this storm caused marginally severe wind gusts and dumped large hail in excess of the size of quarters. Brief but intense rainfall also caused the flooding of several coulees in the eastern Columbia Basin. The storm eventually merged with other cells and weakened below severe limits before reaching the more populated Spokane area.

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 Spokane, WA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jun 27, 1:30 PM PST, 55 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jun 27, 1:30 PM PST, 55 minutes before

EASTERN WASHINGTON AND NORTH IDAHO AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SPOKANE WASHINGTON
230 PM PDT WED JUN 27 2001

.SYNOPSIS...UPPER TROF WILL LIFT INTO THE PAC NW TONIGHT CONTINUING
SHOWERY CONDITIONS AND A CHANCE OF THUNDER. RESIDUAL MOISTURE IN THE
SOUTHWEST FLOW WILL LEAD TO A CHANCE OF SHOWERS ACROSS THE NRN MTNS.
DRIER AND WARMER CONDITIONS EXPECTED ON FRIDAY.

.SHORT TERM...UPPER LEVEL FRONT SHIFTING FROM THE OKANOGAN VALLEY TO
THE BASIN TO LIFTING ACROSS ERN WA THIS AFTERNOON. RADAR SHOWS
SCATTERED SHOWERS IN THE NRN CASCADES WITH A RAIN BAND FROM THE BLUE
MTNS INTO NRN IDAHO. SATELLITE SHOWS A DRY SLOT NOSING BEHIND THE
FRONT INTO THE BASIN. THIS COUPLED WITH CLEARING LATE THIS AFTERNOON
AND EVEN HAS THE POTENTIAL TO POP ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS FROM THE
UPPER BASIN AND SPOKANE AREA TO THE NE WA AND NRN IDAHO MTNS. GOOD
DYNAMICS ALOFT WILL HELP SUPPORT THE CONVECTION WITH A STRONG
SHORTWAVE TRACKING FROM NE OR INTO N IDAHO OVERNIGHT. SUBSIDENCE
BEHIND THE FRONT WILL WORK TO THE LOW LEVELS AS WESTERLY FLOW
DEVELOPS THIS EVENING IN THE EAST SLOPES OF THE CASCADES. LINGERING
MOISTURE BELOW 600 MB AND A WEAK RIPPLE IN THE SW FLOW WILL LEAD TO
AFTERNOON AND EARLY EVE SHOWERS MAINLY IN THE NE WA AND NRN IDAHO.
THE UPPER FLOW TURNS SLIGHTLY ANTICYCLONIC THURSDAY NIGHT AND FRIDAY
WITH DRIER AIR AND SUBSIDENCE. RFOX

.EXTENDED...MODELS ALL ADD CONFIDENCE THAT SUMMER WEATHER ARRIVES IN
THE EXTENDED PERIOD AND MAY BE HERE FOR A WHILE. ONE LAST SHORTWAVE
MOVES THROUGH THE INLAND NORTHWEST ON SATURDAY LATE AFTERNOON AND
NIGHT WHICH WILL BRING A CHANCE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS TO THE
CWA. BY SUNDAY...THE PERSISTENT UPPER LEVEL LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM THAT
HAS BEEN PARKED OFF THE PAC NW COASTLINE OFF AND ON FOR ALL OF JUNE
BEGINS TO RETROGRADE OUT TO SEA AS THE FOUR CORNERS RIDGE STRENGTHENS
CONSIDERABLY. THIS WILL BRING MUCH WARMER TEMPERATURES TO THE REGION
AND DRY WEATHER AS WE HEAD TOWARDS THE FOURTH OF JULY. BY
WEDNESDAY...MODELS HAVE 850 MB TEMPERATURES CLOSE TO +27 DEGREES NEAR
SPOKANE...WHICH WOULD BRING HIGH TEMPERATURES INTO THE 90S FOR MOST
OF THE AREA. INTERESTINGLY...THE LAST TIME SPOKANE HAD A HIGH
TEMPERATURE IN THE 90S ON JULY 4TH WAS WAY BACK IN 1985 WHEN THE
TEMPERATURE REACHED 96 DEGREES!  CR

...THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRODUCT CONCERNING WARNINGS AND FORECASTS
IS VALID ONLY AT THE TIME OF ISSUANCE. THE LATEST WARNING AND
FORECAST INFORMATION WILL BE FOUND IN THE APPROPRIATE PRODUCTS...

GEG 052/071/047/075 5200
CQV 053/073/045/078 5310
SPT 054/069/046/074 6310
COE 053/069/045/074 5200
WWP 051/067/044/072 7310
LWS 058/076/052/080 5100
PUW 052/071/044/076 5200
EAT 053/075/051/079 3-00
MWH 055/077/048/080 4100

.GEG...NONE.

The radar

The Pendleton radar (KPDT), 135 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 22:26 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

2 thunderstorm wind, 2 hail, 2 flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Grant

When: June 27, 2:25 PM PST
Where: Grant County, 13 mi S of Beverly
Measured: 51 kt (59 mph)
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 46.650, -119.933

Location: Priest Rapids Dam

Hail, Grant

When: June 27, 3:40 PM PST
Where: Grant County, Warden
Measured: 1 in hail
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 46.967, -119.033

Hail, Adams

When: June 27, 3:50 PM PST to 4:40 PM PST
Where: Adams County, 30 mi WSW of Ritzville
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Crop damage: $4.0 million
Reported by: OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates: 46.967, -118.967

A severe supercell thunderstorm containing large hail and torrential rainfall moved from southwest to northeast across northern Adams County, first entering the county east of Warden and exiting the county north of Schoonover. The only observation from Adams County of hail size with this storm was a report of dime-sized hail at 500 PM PDT at the Franz Ranch Airport (23 WSW Ritzville). The hail caused a widespread swath of crop destruction that was 20 miles long and 2-3 miles wide, laying waste to about 22,000 acres of crops. The severity of crop damage in the storm's path suggests hail likely reached the size of golf balls. Hail piled up to a foot deep in some farm yards. In the center of the storm's path, nearly 100% of the wheat, barley, bean and pea crops were a loss.

Flood, Adams

When: June 27, 4:40 PM PST
Where: Adams County, 11 mi W of Ritzville
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 46.983, -118.560 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Water flowed over a county road near Bauer Coulee and Harder Road.

Thunderstorm Wind, Lincoln

When: June 27, 5:15 PM PST
Where: Lincoln County, Davenport
Property damage: $2,000
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 47.650, -118.150

Trees were blown onto power lines.

Flood, Lincoln

When: June 27, 5:30 PM PST
Where: Lincoln County, Harrington
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 47.576, -118.419 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

A culvert was washed out on Rodgers Road.

What these are

Thunderstorm Wind: Winds from a thunderstorm of 50 knots (58 mph) or more, or lower winds that caused damage or casualties. Measured gusts are marked MG, estimated EG.
Hail: Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.
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 Washington in 2001 Every state in 2001 This day in weather history Warnings in Washington, June 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: 5251206, 5251205, 5251204, 5251207, 5251203, 5251208.