Flooding in Missouri, May 8 to 31, 2002

Name: Flooding in Missouri, May 8 to 31, 2002
Start: 2002-05-08T16:00
End: 2002-05-31T23:59
Location: Missouri

May 8 to 31, 2002 · NWS PAH · 5 events in 5 counties and zones

Major flooding of the Mississippi River occurred. 7 feet, was the 4th highest on record and almost 14 feet above flood stage.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 5 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: $195,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 5

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 PAH wrote it up.

Major flooding of the Mississippi River occurred. The crest at Cape Girardeau, which was 45.7 feet, was the 4th highest on record and almost 14 feet above flood stage. The record crest of 48.5 feet occurred in August of 1993. At New Madrid, the crest was 42.6 feet, well above the flood stage of 34 feet. In areas with no levy protection, a small number of homes and other buildings were flooded. Only eight houses in Cape Girardeau were flooded, mainly in the Red Star neighborhood. Some other houses in the Scott County community of Commerce were flooded. Property damage was minimized by recent flood mitigation projects, such as buyouts to reduce the number of people living in flood plains. As was the case in 1993 and 1995, a makeshift levy was constructed on state highways near Dutchtown. This protected the community of Dutchtown from water backing up a diversion channel that goes to the Mississippi River. Diversion Channel flooding isolated the community of Allenville. Highways 25 and 74 were a couple of the major roads closed. Dozens of smaller roads near the river were closed from Perry County to New Madrid County. Extensive flooding of farmland occurred, with around 100,000 acres flooded. Spring planting season was delayed indefinitely.

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 Paducah, KY wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at May 8, 11:58 AM CST, 4 hours 2 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, May 8, 11:58 AM CST, 4 hours 2 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PADUCAH KY
1258 PM CDT WED MAY 8 2002

THE MAIN FORECAST CONCERN WILL BE THE FLOODING POTENTIAL TONIGHT
INTO THURSDAY MORNING

WV PIX AND 5H 08/12Z RAOB DATA DEPICT A MOIST SOUTHWEST FLOW ALOFT
ORIGINATING OFF THE WESTCENTRAL COAST OF MEXICO STREAMING ACROSS THE
FORECAST AREA. GENEROUS MOISTURE WAS ALSO LOCATED AT THE 85H LEVEL
OVER EASTERN TEXAS. SURFACE DEW POINTS AT 08/15Z ACROSS THE AREA
WERE IN THE UPPER 60S TO AROUND 70 F.

AN UPPER LOW POSITIONED OVER CENTRAL MONTANA IS PROGGED TO PROGRESS
EASTWARD OVERNIGHT...BRINGING ITS ASSOCIATED COLD FRONT TOWARD THE
AREA. IN ADVANCE OF THIS COLD FROPA...THE POOL OF LOW LEVEL MOISTURE
OVER EASTERN TEXAS SHOULD ADVECT NORTHEAST TOWARDS THE REGION. TWO
DISTINCT PERIODS OF PRECIPITATION LOOK POSSIBLE TONIGHT. THE FIRST
BEING DURING THE EVENING HOURS WHEN A SHORTWAVE THROUGH IS PROGGED
TO PROGRESS NORTHEAST ACROSS THE AREA WHILE WE ARE STILL IN THE
MOIST WARM SECTOR OF THE APPROACHING SYSTEM. THE SECOND CHANCE WOULD
APPEAR TO BE DURING THE PRE-DAWN HOURS OF TONIGHT INTO THE FORENOON
HOURS OF THURSDAY WHEN THE COLD FRONT IS PROGGED TO PASS ACROSS THE
AREA. VERY HEAVY RAINS /2 TO 4 INCHES/ FELL TUESDAY NIGHT ACROSS
MUCH OF SOUTHEAST MISSOURI...SOUTHERN ILLINOIS AND SOUTHWEST
INDIANA. THIS RESULTED IN FLOODING ACROSS PARTS OF THIS REGION. WITH
SIMILAR RAINFALL AMOUNTS POSSIBLE AGAIN TONIGHT...A FLOOD WATCH WILL
BE ISSUED FOR AT LEAST THIS AREA TONIGHT INTO THURSDAY NOONTIME. THE
QUESTION BECOMES HOW MUCH IF ANY OF WESTERN KENTUCKY TO INCLUDE IN
THE WATCH. LOOKING AT THE VARIOUS FLASH FLOOD GUIDANCE VALUES...AND
THE PROGGED QPF BULL/S EYES FOR TONIGHT INTO THURSDAY...THE AREA OF
KENTUCKY SOUTHEAST OF A MURRAY TO GREENVILLE LINE LOOKS TO BE THE
LEAST AT RISK FOR FLOODING...AND WILL LEAVE THIS AREA OUT OF THE
WATCH.

AFTER WHAT APPEARS TO BE A BRIEF BREAK IN THE STORMY WEATHER ON
FRIDAY...SOUTHWEST FLOW ALOFT WITH PERIODIC SHORTWAVE TROUGHS
PASSING OVER THE AREA WITH GOOD MOISTURE IN PLACE...LOOKS TO BE THE
GENERAL WEATHER PATTERN AGAIN ON SATURDAY LASTING THROUGH AT LEAST
MONDAY. THE CURRENT FORECAST REFLECTS THIS THINKING...AND WILL LEAVE
WORDED WEATHER SIMILAR TO CURRENT. CAN SEE A SIMILAR PATTERN SETTING
UP AS WHAT IS BEING EXPERIENCED TODAY WITH TEMPERATURES AROUND THE
80 DEGREE MARK THE DAY PRIOR TO THE FROPA. WILL CONTINUE WITH HIGHER
THAN FMR/MEX HIGH TEMPS THESE DAYS.

TUESDAY INTO WEDNESDAY THE AREA IS PROGGED TO HAVE NORTHWEST FLOW
ALOFT WITH SURFACE HIGH PRESSURE BUILDING OVER THE AREA. WILL
CONTINUE WITH A PRECIP FREE FORECAST AND TEMPERATURES AVERAGING
BELOW NORMAL.

.PAH...FFA FOR ALL OF MY SOUTHEAST MISSOURI COUNTIES ALL OF MY
SOUTHERN ILLINOIS COUNTIES ALL OF MY SOUTHWEST INDIANA COUNTIES AND
THE KENTUCKY COUNTIES NORTHWEST OF A MURRAY TO GREENVILLE LINE.

DFS

In the hours before

Local storm report, May 8, 11:42 AM CST, 4 hours 18 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT...CORRECTION TO QUARTER INCH VS QUARTER SIZE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PADUCAH KY
1242 PM CDT WED MAY 08 2002

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

0309 PM    YELVINGTON                KY   0.25 INCH HAIL
05/06/02   DAVIESS                        REPORTED BY FIRE
                                          DEPARTMENT.

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

5 flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Flood, Cape Girardeau

When: May 8, 4:00 PM CST to May 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Cape Girardeau forecast zone
Property damage: $100,000
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates: 37.384, -89.684 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Mississippi

When: May 8, 4:00 PM CST to May 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Mississippi forecast zone
Property damage: $10,000
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 36.828, -89.291 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, New Madrid

When: May 8, 4:00 PM CST to May 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: New Madrid forecast zone
Property damage: $5,000
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 36.595, -89.652 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Perry

When: May 8, 4:00 PM CST to May 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Perry forecast zone
Property damage: $5,000
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 37.707, -89.824 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Scott

When: May 8, 4:00 PM CST to May 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Scott forecast zone
Property damage: $75,000
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 37.053, -89.568 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

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 Missouri in 2002 Every state in 2002 This day in weather history Warnings in Missouri, May 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: 5295678, 5295679, 5295680, 5295681, 5295682.