Iowa, 2002Flash Flooding in Iowa, August 23, 2002
August 23, 2002 · NWS DVN · 2 events in 2 counties and zones
2 flash flood, as filed by the National Weather Service.
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
- 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 Quad Cities, IA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Aug 23, 12:25 AM CST, 5 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Aug 23, 12:25 AM CST, 5 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE QUAD CITIES IA IL
125 AM CDT FRI AUG 23 2002
.OVERVIEW...INTENSE FLOODING CONTINUES WITH NEXT MCS/MCC...WILL BE
BRIEF. INTENSE CONVECTION STILL INTENSIFYING ALONG FRONT FROM CENTRAL
ILLINOIS TO NEAR DES MOINES INTO A MCC IN WEST CENTRAL IOWA. SURFACE
AND UPPER AIR ANALYSIS SUPPORT WAVE MOVING ALONG BOUNDARY ACROSS
HIGHWAY 34 WITH SURFACE LOW PASSING EAST TOWARD MID DAY FRIDAY. THIS
SUPPORTS HEAVY PRECIP CHANCES ENDING FROM WEST TO EAST ON FRIDAY
MORNING INTO EARLY AFTERNOON. ALREADY NUMEROUS COUNTIES WITH 2 TO 4
INCHES AND ANOTHER 3 TO 6 INCHES POSSIBLE WITH WAVE. ALL INDICATIONS
SUGGEST LARGE AREA OF ANOTHER OF 4 TO 10 INCHES OR MORE NEXT 8-12
HOURS...WITH BEST ESTIMATE ALONG AND SOUTH OF HIGHWAY 34. THIS ON TOP
OF MAJOR FLOODING NORTH OF I-80 FROM YESTERDAY/S 6 TO 11 INCHES ALONG
HIGHWAY 20. APPEARS SEVERE CHANCES LIMITED TO MORE ISOLATED VARIETY DUE
TO VERY MOIST ATMOSPHERE AND MARGINAL FORCING/INSTABILITY WITH ACTIVITY
NEAR DSM AT 06Z BIGGEST POTENTIAL WITH SMALL BOW SEGMENT WITH WINDS.
...MAJOR FLOODING BIG CONCERN...
.DIAGNOSIS AND DAYS 1-3...MODELS INITIALIZE VERY POORLY ON QPF WITH
INTENSE CONVECTION IN WRONG PLACE (ESPECIALLY ETA/NGM WHICH HAVE HEAVY
RAINS IN MISSOURI)...AVN IS FAIR AND WILL COMBINE IT WITH UKMET AND
LATEST ANALYSIS TOOLS SUPPORTING FLOOD WATCH ALONG AND SOUTH OF I-80
TODAY AS WILL NOT GET CUTE WITH ENDING DUE TO SERIOUS NATURE OF EVENT AS
IT UNFOLDS. ALREADY NUMEROUS FLASH FLOOD WARNING NEEDED WITH PROLIFIC
RAINS AS THIS COULD BE AS BAD...IF NOT WORSE THEN LAST NIGHTS EVENT...
ESPECIALLY WITH AREA COVERAGE OF HIGH QPF AMOUNTS. PLAN TO ADJUST TEMPS
DOWN TODAY WITH CLOUDS AND PRECIPITATION. IF HAVE TIME MAY MAKE MINOR
CHANGES TO DAYS 2/3 OF TEMPS BUT HIGH PRESSURE SHOULD LIMIT ANY
ADDITIONAL QPF CHANCES.
.EXTENDED (MON-THU)...ECMWF HAS MAJOR TROUGH AND FRONT BY MID WEEK.
WILL TRY AND LOOK AT UKMET AND AVN/MRF BUT PLAN LITTLE OR NO CHANGES AT
THIS TIME.
COORDINATED WITH LSX...DSM...LOT...ILX...THANKS.
.DVN...FLOOD WATCH TODAY.
IA...ALONG/SOUTH OF I-80.
IL...ALONG/SOUTH OF I-80.
MO...EXTREME NE MISSOURI.
NICHOLS
Flash Flood, Johnson
- When
- August 23, 12:30 AM CST to 6:30 AM CST
- Where
- Johnson County, 2 mi S of Iowa City
- Reported by
- NEWSPAPER
- Coordinates
- 41.672, -91.588 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
More than 3 inches of rain fell between Midnight and 7:00 A.M. which triggered flash flooding south of Iowa City. Some of the lowest units in a mobile home park were flooded. Water caused the floor of one trailer to ripple, while the current tore the skirting. Several vehicles were also submerged in water.
Flash Flood, Des Moines
- When
- August 23, 12:30 AM CST to 6:30 AM CST
- Where
- Des Moines County, Burlington
- Reported by
- NEWSPAPER
- Coordinates
- 40.923, -91.181 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Several Corn and Bean fields were submerged in deep water. No damage estimates were available.
- 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.
- Lightning Strike in Missouri, August 23, 20024 deaths · 1 event
- Lightning Strike in Tennessee, August 23, 20022 deaths · 1 event
- Flash Flood and Hail in Oklahoma, August 23, 20021 injured · $3.8 million · 1.5 in hail · 18 events
- Tornado in Indiana, August 23, 2002$200,000 · F1 · 1 event
- Hail in Nebraska, August 23, 2002$600,000 · 1.75 in hail · 1 event
- Flash Flooding in Michigan, August 23, 2002$265,000 · 2 events
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Nebraska, August 23 to 24, 2002$177,000 · 1.75 in hail · 10 events
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Texas, August 23, 2002$115,000 · 1 in hail · 5 events
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Ohio, August 23, 2002$83,000 · 1 in hail · 8 events
- Damaging Winds and Lightning Strikes in Indiana, August 23, 20021 injured · $47,000 · 50 kt wind · 6 events
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Kansas, August 23, 2002$50,000 · 1.75 in hail · 6 events
- Damaging Wind in Missouri, August 23, 2002$50,000 · 70 kt wind · 1 event
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: 5312919, 5312920.