Flooding in West Virginia, January 24, 2002

Name: Flooding in West Virginia, January 24, 2002
Start: 2002-01-24T03:00
End: 2002-01-24T12:00
Location: West Virginia

January 24, 2002 · NWS RLX · 8 events in 8 counties and zones

5 inches fell in 6 to 8 hours, along a narrow west to east corridor, across central West Virginia. Small streams overflowed.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 7 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: $18,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 8

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 RLX wrote it up.

Rains of 1.5 to 2.5 inches fell in 6 to 8 hours, along a narrow west to east corridor, across central West Virginia. Small streams overflowed. Homes in the flood prone community of Reedy, in northern Roane County, were flooded. Spring Creek flooded outbuildings and a few basements in Spencer. Leading Creek in northern Randolph County surrounded some mobile homes.

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 Charleston, WV wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jan 23, 10:05 PM EST, 4 hours 55 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jan 23, 10:05 PM EST, 4 hours 55 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON WV
1005 PM EST WED JAN 23 2002

HAVE DECIDED TO GO AHEAD AND BLANKET AREA WITH FLOOD WATCH FOR LATE
TONIGHT THROUGH THURSDAY AFTERNOON.  NOT EXPECTING MAJOR FLOODING OR
EXPECTING FLOOD WARNINGS BUT COULD SEE SOME MINOR FLOODING WITH ANY
TRAINING OF HEAVY PRECIPITATION.  MODEL QPF SHOWING BETWEEN 1 AND 2
INCHES OF PRECIP THROUGH THURS AND WITH MOIST GROUND DUE TO PREVIOUS
SNOW MELT FELT FLOOD WATCH WAS NEEDED TO ALERT TO POSSIBLE
FLOODING.  MAIN PRECIP RAPIDLY MOVING INTO WESTERN KENTUCKY WITH WAA
PRECIP DEVELOPING IN CENTRAL AND EASTERN KENTUCKY ATTM.

.RLX...
WV...FLOOD WATCH FOR WEDNESDAY NIGHT AND THURSDAY FOR ZONES
WVZ005>011...WVZ013>020...WVZ024>040...WVZ046>047.

VA...FLOOD WATCH FOR WEDNESDAY NIGHT AND THURSDAY FOR ZONES
VAZ003>004.

KY...FLOOD WATCH FOR WEDNESDAY NIGHT AND THURSDAY FOR ZONES
KYZ101>103...KYZ105.

OH...FLOOD WATCH FOR WEDNESDAY NIGHT AND THURSDAY FOR ZONES
OHZ075>076...OHZ083>087.

.END/ HC

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

8 flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Flood, Upshur

When: January 24, 3:00 AM EST to 12:00 PM EST
Where: Upshur forecast zone
Reported by: BROADCAST MEDIA
Coordinates: 38.898, -80.233 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Gilmer

When: January 24, 3:00 AM EST to 12:00 PM EST
Where: Gilmer forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 38.924, -80.857 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Calhoun

When: January 24, 3:00 AM EST to 12:00 PM EST
Where: Calhoun forecast zone
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 38.845, -81.118 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Jackson

When: January 24, 3:00 AM EST to 12:00 PM EST
Where: Jackson forecast zone
Reported by: NWS EMPLOYEE(OFF DUTY)
Coordinates: 38.835, -81.675 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Lewis

When: January 24, 3:00 AM EST to 12:00 PM EST
Where: Lewis forecast zone
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 38.996, -80.502 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Mason

When: January 24, 3:00 AM EST to 12:00 PM EST
Where: Mason forecast zone
Reported by: BROADCAST MEDIA
Coordinates: 38.770, -82.026 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Randolph

When: January 24, 3:00 AM EST to 12:00 PM EST
Where: Randolph forecast zone
Property damage: $3,000
Reported by: BROADCAST MEDIA

Flood, Roane

When: January 24, 3:00 AM EST to 12:00 PM EST
Where: Roane forecast zone
Property damage: $15,000
Reported by: BROADCAST MEDIA
Coordinates: 38.714, -81.348 (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 West Virginia in 2002 Every state in 2002 This day in weather history Warnings in West Virginia, 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: 5276518, 5278415, 5278416, 5278417, 5278418, 5278419, 5278420, 5278421.