Flash Flooding in Indiana, August 22 to 23, 2002

Name: Flash Flooding in Indiana, August 22 to 23, 2002
Start: 2002-08-22T22:00
End: 2002-08-23T05:00
Location: Indiana

August 22 to 23, 2002 · NWS IND · 6 events in 6 counties and zones

Many county roads were underwater, with depths up to 2 feet in some locations. High water was also across State Road 28 and US Highway 231.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 6 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: 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 IND wrote it up.

Many county roads were underwater, with depths up to 2 feet in some locations. High water was also across State Road 28 and US Highway 231.

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 Indianapolis, IN wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Aug 22, 2:20 PM EST, 7 hours 40 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 22, 2:20 PM EST, 7 hours 40 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE INDIANAPOLIS IN
220 PM EST THU AUG 22 2002

PROBLEMS IN FORECAST CONTINUE TO BE TIMING AND COVERAGE OF PCPN AND
THREAT FOR HEAVY RAIN.

CDFRONT CURRENTLY FROM SRN WI THRU SRN LWR MI AND SAGGING SOUTH.
LATESR RADAR SHOWS STRONGEST CONVECTION...THOUGH WEAK THUS
FAR...ALONG CDFNT. OUTFLOW BNDRYS REMAIN INACTIVE SO FAR AND LIMITED
SUNSHINE IN THEIR VICINITY HAS ALSO LIMITED CAPES THOUGH FAVORABLE
AIR IS UPSTREAM.

MODELS COMING CLOSER TOGETHER THIS RUN THRU FHR48 BUT DIFFERENCES
REMAIN. WL LEAN TOWARD ETA FOR ITS CONSISTENCY BUT ALSO LIKE SOME
ELEMENTS OF AVN REGARDING PCPN. APPEARS CONVECTION SHOULD BECOME
MORE ORGANIZED THIS EVE ALONG AND SOUTH OF CDFNT AND CONTINUE A SLOW
ESE TREK OVRNGT. GIVEN AVAILABLE MOISTURE...HVY RAINS PSBL FOR NRN
CWA BUT LOW CONFIDENCE IN AREAL COVERAGE AND AMOUNTS PRECLUDES
MENTION OF ANY WATER WATCH. AS CDFNT BNDRY CONTINUES SLOW SAG SWRD
FRI AND WEAK UPPER IMPULSE MOVES ACRS...XPCT TSHRA TO GRADUALLY
OVRSPREAD ALL CWA DURING DAY AND SRN HALF DURG FRI EVE AND OVRNGT.
BIT OF PCPN LEFTOVER IN SE COUNTIES SAT MORN OTHERWISE DRY REMAINDER
OF FCST OUTSIDE OF SHWR CHC ON TUE.

EXPECT ONE MORE MUGGY NIGHT WITH TEMPS NEAR GUIDANCE. SOME SUNSHINE
ACRS SRN CWA SAT TO HELP THAT AREA APPROACH 90 AGAIN WHILE REMAINDER
OF CWA UNDER CLDS AND SOME PCPN WL REMAIN BACK IN LOW AND MID 80S.
CLEARING AND DRYING INTO WEEKEND AND EARLY NEXT WEEK SHOULD KEEP
TEMPS NEAR GUIDANCE AND NEAR SEASONAL VALUES.

.IND...NONE.
DRT

The radar

The Indianapolis radar (KIND), 92 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 02:59 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

6 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Flash Flood, Tippecanoe

When: August 22, 10:00 PM EST to August 23, 5:00 AM EST
Where: Tippecanoe County, South Portion
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 40.389, -86.894 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flash Flood, Vermillion

When: August 22, 10:00 PM EST to August 23, 5:00 AM EST
Where: Vermillion County, 2 mi N of Cayuga
Reported by: DEPT OF HIGHWAYS
Coordinates: 39.854, -87.464 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flash Flood, Warren

When: August 22, 10:00 PM EST to August 23, 5:00 AM EST
Where: Warren County, Foster
Reported by: DEPT OF HIGHWAYS
Coordinates: 40.347, -87.353 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flash Flood, Fountain

When: August 22, 10:30 PM EST to August 23, 5:00 AM EST
Where: Fountain County, Covington
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 40.121, -87.242 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flash Flood, Montgomery

When: August 22, 10:30 PM EST to August 23, 5:00 AM EST
Where: Montgomery County, 2 mi S of Linden
Reported by: DEPT OF HIGHWAYS
Coordinates: 40.040, -86.893 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flash Flood, Clinton

When: August 23, 12:00 AM EST to 2:00 AM EST
Where: Clinton County, Colfax
Reported by: DEPT OF HIGHWAYS
Coordinates: 40.302, -86.475 (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 Indiana in 2002 Every state in 2002 This day in weather history Warnings in Indiana, August 2002

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: 5309902, 5309903, 5309904, 5309905, 5309983, 5309984.