Flash Flood in Kentucky, January 24, 2002

Name: Flash Flood in Kentucky, January 24, 2002
Start: 2002-01-24T18:50
End: 2002-01-24T22:00
Location: Kentucky

January 24, 2002 · NWS JKL · 1 event in 1 county or zone

1 flash flood, as filed by the National Weather Service.

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 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 Jackson, KY wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jan 24, 2:32 PM EST, 4 hours 18 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jan 24, 2:32 PM EST, 4 hours 18 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSON KY
232 PM EST THU JAN 24 2002

18Z SFC CHART HAS SFC FRONT THRU ALL BUT OUR ERN MOST COUNTIES. RAIN
STILL FALLING OVER MOST OF THE CWFA WITH THE HEAVIEST FALLING ALONG
THE TN BORDER. 88D MOSAIC INDICATES MORE PCPN ACROSS TN AND THE NRN
GULF STATES WITH A WAVE ON THE FNT NEAR JACKSON MS. MOISTURE OVER
RUNNING THE FNT MOVING N THRU WRN TN. THIS WAVE ALSO EVIDENT ON THE
85H UA CHART WITH A STRONG (30-40 KT) JET FROM THE SW PUSHING
COPIOUS GULF MOISTURE OVER THE FNT. ALTHOUGH THE FNT APPEARS TO
CONTINUE MOVING TO THE SE THE LLVL JET WILL CONTINUE TO LIFT
MOISTURE ACROSS THE FNT AND THEREFORE ALSO RAIN...ESPECIALLY IN THE
VCNTY OF THE LOW THAT IS TRACKING NE ALONG THE BAROCLINIC ZONE.

MODELS IN FAIR AGREEMENT WITH FNTL POSITIONING...HOWEVER MESO-ETA
HAS THE BEST DEPICTION OF CURRENT AND PAST PCPN PATTERNS. THIS MODEL
KEEPS CHC OF PCPN ACROSS OUR SRN AND ERN COUNTIES UNTIL SHORTLY
BEFORE DAWN. QPF APPEARS TO BE DOWN AND ESTIMATING .25 TO .50 INCHES
OF ADDITIONAL RAIN OVER THE NEXT 15 TO 18 HRS. OUR ERN COUNTIES
NORTH OF THE MTN PARKWAY WERE NOT INUNDATED LAST NIGHT AND SHOULD BE
ABLE TO HOLD THE PCPN...AT LEAST ACCORDING TO THE LATEST FFG.

NEXT CHC OF PCPN ENTERS THE PICTURE MON NIGHT THRU WED MORNING. SEE
NO MAJOR CHACGES TO TEMP FCST AND WILL ONLY PROVIDE MINOR TWEAKS.

IFPS/NDFD GRIDS:  USED M-ETA FOR POP IN NEAR-TERM AND ADJUSTED WX TO
MATCH POPS BETWEEN MON NITE AND WED MORN. LEFT REST CLOSE TO
PREVIOUS FCST.

WE WILL GO AHEAD AND CONTINUE THE FLOOD WATCH FOR SRN CWA AS MOST OF
THE CREEKS...STREAMS AND RIVERS IN THE AREA ARE AT OR NEAR BANKFULL.

PRELIMINARY CCF FOR COORDINATION PURPOSES. CALLS WELCOME. WORK ZONES
/SDFOZFJKL/ OUT SHORTLY.

CCF
LOZ EB 048/027 058/038 062 22611
JKL EB 047/031 058/035 062 22511

.JKL...FLOOD WATCH FOR KYZ079-080-083>088-115>118 UNTIL 4 AM FRIDAY.

DUSTY

In the hours before

Local storm report, Jan 24, 3:51 PM EST, 2 hours 59 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSON, KY
351 PM EST THU JAN 24 2002

TIME(EST)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

0930 PM    COXTON                    KY   FLASH FLOODING
01/23/02   HARLAN                         KY 38 FLOODED. LAW
                                          ENFORCEMENT REPORTED.

0630 AM    WILLIAMSBURG              KY   FLASH FLOODING
01/24/02   WHITLEY                        WATER FLOWING ONTO US 25W
                                          NEAR HWY 727. REPORTED BY
                                          SPOTTER.

0640 AM    1 E MONTICELLO            KY   FLASH FLOODING
01/24/02   WAYNE                          WATER COVERED HWY 92.
                                          REPORTED BY 24 HOUR POINT.

0645 AM    LONDON                    KY   FLASH FLOODING
01/24/02   LAUREL                         ROADS COVERED BY WATER IN
                                          SOUTHERN AND EASTERN LAUREL
                                          COUNTY. REPORTED BY
                                          SPOTTER.

0653 AM    MONTICELLO                KY   FLASH FLOODING
01/24/02   WAYNE                          CREEK OVER FLOWED WITH
                                          WATER RUNNING OVER BEACH
                                          VALLEY ROAD. BOULDER IN
                                          ROAD. REPORTED BY LAW
                                          ENFORCEMENT.

0715 AM    5 N BARBOURVILLE          KY   FLASH FLOODING
01/24/02   KNOX                           MUDSLIDE BROUGHT 25 TREES
                                          WITH IT ONTO HWY 229 AT MM7.
                                          REPORTED BY LAW
                                          ENFORCEMENT.

0720 AM    VARILLA                   KY   FLASH FLOODING
01/24/02   BELL                           MUDSLIDE COVERING US 119.
                                          REPORTED BY LAW
                                          ENFORCEMENT.

0750 AM    5 NW BARBOURVILLE        KY   FLASH FLOODING
01/24/02   KNOX                           WATER FLOWING OVER
                                          HWY 1527. REPORTED BY HWY
                                          DEPT.

0750 AM    DEWITT                    KY   FLASH FLOODING
01/24/02   KNOX                           WATER FLOWING OVER HWY 223
                                          IN STINKING CREEK AREA.
                                          REPORTED BY HWY DEPT.

0930 AM    HYDEN                     KY   FLASH FLOODING
01/24/02   LESLIE                         HWY 1850 AND HWY 758
                                          IMPASSABLE. ROCK AND
                                          MUDSLIDES ON NAPIER FORK,
                                          PIGEON FORK, AND OSBOURNE
                                          FORK. REPORTED BY 24 HOUR
                                          POINT.

KO

Local storm report, Jan 24, 4:55 PM EST, 1 hour 55 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSON, KY
455 PM EST THU JAN 24 2002

TIME(EST)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

0750 AM    ELCOMB                    KY   FLASH FLOODING
01/24/02   HARLAN                         CATRONS CREEK OUT OF ITS
                                          BANKS. WATER IN 4 HOMES
                                          ALONG KY 72. WATER OVER KY
                                          72. REPORTED BY LAW
                                          ENFORCEMENT.

0750 AM    NOETOWN                   KY   FLASH FLOODING
01/24/02   BELL                           KY 66 COVERED WITH WATER.
                                          HOMES THREATENED. REPORTED
                                          BY LAW ENFORCEMENT.

1200PM     2 NW  WOOTON              KY   FLASH FLOODING
01/24/02   LESLIE                         A COUPLE FEET OF WATER OVER
                                          OVER MEETING HOUSE BRANCH.
                                          REPORTED BY 24 HOUR POINT.

0300 PM    5 S HYDEN                 KY   FLASH FLOODING
01/24/02   LESLIE                         WENDOVER ROAD IMPASSABLE.
                                          LAW ENFORCEMENT REPORTED.

The radar

The Knoxville radar (KMRX), 93 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 23:47 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Flash Flood, Whitley

When: January 24, 6:50 PM EST to 10:00 PM EST
Where: Whitley County, Williamsburg
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates: 36.758, -84.145 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Water was over roads in Briar Creek Park.

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 Kentucky in 2002 Every state in 2002 This day in weather history Warnings in Kentucky, January 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: 5279633.