13 flash flood, as filed by the National Weather Service.
Every event with a place to put it; 13 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
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.
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 Nashville, TN wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Mar 18, 2:45 AM CST, 3 hours 15 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NASHVILLE TN 245 AM CST MON MAR 18 2002 LITTLE CHANGE AS LATEST SURFACE ANALYSIS CONTINUES TO SHOW SERIES OF WELL DEFINED BOUNDARY ACROSS THE MID-SOUTH REGION...WITH WEAK WAVE TO THE WEST. WIDESPREAD SHWR/SCATTERED TSTM ACTIVITY CONTINUES ACROSS THE CWA...WITH SEVERAL COUNTIES EXPERIENCING MINOR FLOODING PROBLEMS. MODELS CONTINUING TO SHOW QUASI-STATIONARY BOUNDARIES REMAINING IN THE REGION TODAY...WITH BOUNDARY NEAR SHV-BHM-ATL LINE BY 00Z BECOMING DOMINANT. SURFACE/LOW-LEVEL HIGH PRESSURE SQUEEZING SOUTHWARD EXPECTED TO KEEP MEAN DEEP MOISTURE SOURCE ACROSS THE CWA THROUGHOUT THE DAY...THUS LEAVING AREA AGAIN WITH VERY GOOD PROBABILITY OF WIDESPREAD HEAVY RAIN. FFGUIDANCE VERY LOW WITH 3 TO 5 INCHES ALREADY RECEIVED. ADDITIONAL RAINFALL ONLY TO AGGRAVATE SITUATION SO WILL LEAVE WATCH UP AS IS. STRONG SURFACE LOW DEVELOPING ACROSS TX TODAY WILL LIFT BOUNDARY NORTHWARD TONIGHT. WHILE SHWRS/TSTM EXPECTED TO CONTINUE INTO THE EVENING...CWA MAY SEE BREAK IN THE ACTION OVERNIGHT AS DEEP MOISTURE AND FAVORABLE VERTICAL MOTION SHIFT WESTWARD INTO THE MS RIVER VALLEY. LIFTING BOUNDARY WILL KEEP FAVORABLE FEATURES FOR WIDESPREAD HEAVY RAIN WEST AND NORTH OF THE AREA TUES...BUT FOCUS WILL SHIFT BACK OVER THE CWA TUES NIGHT...AS UPPER LEVELS FINALLY GET WITH THE PROGRAM. WILL KEEP CATEGORICAL POPS/WITH FLOOD WATCH UP TODAY...PLAN TO LOWER POPS SLIGHTLY TONIGHT AND INTO THE SCATTERED RANGE TUES. WILL RETURN HIGHER POPS TUES NIGHT AS SYSTEM BEGINS TO PULL E. BNA 62/52/71/52 8757 CSV 61/50/69/49 8757 07 .BNA...FLOOD WATCH ALL ZONES TODAY.
TNZ005>011-022>034-056>066-075>080-093>097-191130- HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NASHVILLE TN 530 AM CST MON MAR 18 2002 A FRONTAL BOUNDARY WILL REMAIN IN THE VICINITY OF MIDDLE TENNESSEE TODAY AND TONIGHT...RESULTING AGAIN IN SCATTERED TO NUMEROUS SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS. WHILE THE THREAT OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS LOOKS VERY MINIMAL...FLOODING REMAINS THE MAJOR CONCERN. THREE TO FIVE INCHES OF RAIN OVER THE LAST 24 HOURS HAS PUSH SEVERAL RIVERS INTO FLOOD AND HAS MADE SOME ROADS IMPASSABLE. ADDITIONAL RAINFALL AMOUNTS OF ONE INCH OR MORE THROUGH EARLY TUESDAY MORNING ARE POSSIBLE...AND WILL ONLY AGGRAVATE AN ALREADY GROWING PROBLEM. ACTIVATION OF SPOTTERS AND EMERGENCY MANAGERS IS NOT LIKELY THROUGH EARLY TUESDAY MORNING. 07
TNZ005>011-022>034-056>066-075>080-093>097-191130- HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NASHVILLE TN 530 AM CST MON MAR 18 2002 A FRONTAL BOUNDARY WILL REMAIN IN THE VICINITY OF MIDDLE TENNESSEE TODAY AND TONIGHT...RESULTING AGAIN IN SCATTERED TO NUMEROUS SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS. WHILE THE THREAT OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS LOOKS VERY MINIMAL...FLOODING REMAINS THE MAJOR CONCERN. THREE TO FIVE INCHES OF RAIN OVER THE LAST 24 HOURS HAS PUSH SEVERAL RIVERS INTO FLOOD AND HAS MADE SOME ROADS IMPASSABLE. ADDITIONAL RAINFALL AMOUNTS OF ONE INCH OR MORE THROUGH EARLY TUESDAY MORNING ARE POSSIBLE...AND WILL ONLY AGGRAVATE AN ALREADY GROWING PROBLEM. ACTIVATION OF SPOTTERS AND EMERGENCY MANAGERS IS NOT LIKELY THROUGH EARLY TUESDAY MORNING. 07
The Northeast Alabama radar (KHTX), 73 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 11:59 UTC.
13 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.
Sheriff's office reported streams and creeks out of their banks. 10 roads were closed, mainly near Bell Buckle. Schools were closed.
Sheriff's office reported high water on many roads, and as a result, some roads were closed. Streams and creeks were out of their banks.
Sheriff's office reported streams and creeks out of their banks.
Sheriff's office reported streams and creeks out of their banks.
Sheriff's office reported many streams and creeks out of their banks. Several roads were closed.
Sheriff's office reported many streams and creeks out of their banks.
EMA reported roads closed due to high water.
Sheriff's department reported low spots on roads had high water.
911 center reported several roads closed due to high water. EMA director estimated damage to roads at $201K.
TDOT reported water on many roads.
911 center reported a road was partially closed in Spencer.
EMA reported high water on roads. Streams and creeks were out of their banks.
Sheriff's office roads and schools were closed. Streams and creeks were out of its banks. A woman had to be rescued from her car that was stuck in 4 feet of water at Pall Mall.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Tennessee in 2002Every state in 2002This day in weather historyWarnings in Tennessee, March 2002
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: 5285734, 5285735, 5285736, 5285737, 5285738, 5285739, 5285740, 5285741, 5285742, 5285743, 5285744, 5285745, 5285746.