Kentucky, 2002

Flash Flooding in Kentucky, March 20, 2002

March 20, 2002 · NWS ILN · 3 events in 1 county or zone

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

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 3 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
3

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 Wilmington, OH wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Mar 20, 6:12 AM EST, 48 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Mar 20, 6:12 AM EST, 48 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WILMINGTON OH
612 AM EST WED MAR 20 2002

WILL SEND OUT A QUICK UPDATE TO UP THE POPS THIS AM AS RAIN HAS
FILLED IN NICELY DUE TO MSTR AND S/WV INTERACTION.

.ILN...FLOOD WATCH UNTIL NOON TODAY FOR KYZ094>100-OHZ079-081-088.

HICKMAN

In the hours before

Local storm report, Mar 20, 1:37 AM EST, 5 hours 23 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WILMINGTON, OH
137 AM EST WED MAR 20 2002

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

0100 AM    SALT LICK                 KY   FLOOD
03/20/02   LEWIS                          FLOODED ROAD OFF THE AA
                                          HIGHWAY

0100 AM    COUNTYWIDE                OH   FLOOD
03/20/02   SCIOTO                         NUMEROUS ROADS FLOODED

The radar

The Jackson,KY radar (KJKL), 105 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 11:59 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

3 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Flash Flood, Lewis

When
March 20, 7:00 AM EST to 7:30 AM EST
Where
Lewis County, 4 mi N of Head of Grassy
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
38.532, -83.378 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

The Laurel elementary school was evacuated due to rapid rises on area creeks.

Flash Flood, Lewis

When
March 20, 10:30 AM EST to 10:45 AM EST
Where
Lewis County, Countywide
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
38.532, -83.378 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Numerous roads were flooded due to rapid rises in area creeks.

Flash Flood, Lewis

When
March 20, 11:00 AM EST to 11:20 AM EST
Where
Lewis County, Countywide
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
38.532, -83.378 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Numerous roads were flooded due to rapid rises in area creeks.

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

More

Every storm in Kentucky in 2002Every state in 2002This day in weather historyWarnings in Kentucky, March 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: 5286980, 5286981, 5286982.