Flash Flooding and Damaging Wind in New York, July 22, 2003

Name: Flash Flooding and Damaging Wind in New York, July 22, 2003
Start: 2003-07-22T14:45
End: 2003-07-22T17:45
Location: New York

July 22, 2003 · NWS BUF · 3 events in 2 counties and zones

An upper low continued to produce thunderstorms across parts of the the western southern tier. Especially hard hit was the town of Angelica where a State of Emergency was declared.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 2 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: $5.0 million
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 happened

The episode as NWS BUF wrote it up.

An upper low continued to produce thunderstorms across parts of the the western southern tier. Especially hard hit was the town of Angelica where a State of Emergency was declared. In addition to the downed trees and power lines, roads and basements were flooded. In Cattaraugus county, a car stalled in a flooded road and the driver had to be rescued. In Allegany State Park, the heavy rains and flash flooding resulted in evacuation of some camp areas.

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 Buffalo, NY wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jul 22, 2:02 PM EST, 43 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 22, 2:02 PM EST, 43 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BUFFALO NY
302 PM EDT TUE JUL 22 2003

ANOTHER ACTIVE AFTERNOON HERE WITH SLOW MOVING THUDERSTORMS PROMPTING
FLOOD WARNINGS ACROSS THE SOUTHERN TIER. SOME OF THESE AREAS HAD 1 TO
3 INCHES OF RAIN YESTERDAY SO THE GROUND IS SATURATED IN MANY AREAS.
WE HAVE DECIDED TO CONTINUE THE FLOOD WATCH FOR THE SOUTHERN TIER
OVERNIGHT AND EXPAND IT NORTHWARD A BIT INTO SOUTHERN ERIE AND
WYOMING COUNTIES WHERE SOME DECENT RAINS OCCURRED YESTERDAY AND ARE
ONGOING THERE NOW TOO.  PCPN WILL SLOWLY END OVERNIGHT IN MOST AREAS.

H5 TROUGH WILL SHARPEN OVER THE GREAT LAKES TONIGHT THEN MOVE ACROSS
REGION WHILE FILLING BY EARLY THURSDAY. ABUNDANT LOW LEVEL MOISTURE
AND COOL AIR ALOFT SHOULD LEAD TO ANOTHER ROUND OF THUNDERSTORMS
ACROSS THE REGION ON WEDNESDAY. SPS DAY2 OUTLOOK PLACES MOST OF THE
CWA IN THE SLIGHT RISK FOR TOMORROW. WINDS ALOFT ARE LIGHTER TOMORROW
THAN THEY WERE FOR THE REGION DURING YESTERDAYS SVR WEATHER. THIS IN
MIND I WOULD EXPECT DOWNPOURS AND HAIL WOULD SEEM TO BE THE LIKELY
THREATS ON WEDNESDAY.

GFS MODEL IS MORE OPTAMISTIC IN ENDING MUCH OF THE PRECIPITATION
THURDAY AFTERNOON WITH THE CLEARING BY LATE AFTERNOOON IN THE WEST. I
HAVE DECIDED TO FOLLOW THIS FOR NOW AND LEAVE A CHC FOR EASTERN
COUNTIES ONLY. FAIR WEATHER IS ON TAP FOR MUCH OF FRIDAY AND SATURDAY
WITH TEMPERATURES JUST A FEW DEGREES BELOW NORMAL.

NEXT DISTURBED WEATHER SHOULD ARRIVE SATURDAY NIGHT IN THE FORM OF A
COLD FRONT WHICH WILL MOVE SOUTHWARD FROM ONTARIO. I DECIDED TO USE
CHC POPS SATURDAY NIGHT AND EARLY SUNDAY TO COVER THE EVENT.

.BUF...FLOOD WATCH FOR NYZ012-019>021-085 THROUGH WEDNESDAY. FLOOD
WARNINGS FOR NYZ019-020.

PO

Hazardous weather outlook, Jul 22, 3:45 AM EST, 11 hours before

NYZ001>008-010>014-019>021-085-221100-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BUFFALO NY
445 AM EDT TUE JUL 22 2003

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR WESTERN AND NORTH CENTRAL NEW
YORK.

.DAY ONE...TODAY

NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...

THERE IS A SLIGHT CHANCE OF A THUNDERSTORM REACHING SEVERE LIMITS ON
DAY TWO OR WEDNESDAY AND ON DAY THREE NORTHERN AND CENTRAL NEW YORK
EASTWARD.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...
NO SPOTERS REQUESTED AT THIS TIME UNLESS FOR SPOTTY REPORTS OF ANY
POSSIBLE LOCAL FLOODING SOUTHERN TIER.

The radar

The Buffalo radar (KBUF), 78 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 20:54 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

2 flash flood, 1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Flash Flood, Cattaraugus

When: July 22, 2:45 PM EST to 4:45 PM EST
Where: Cattaraugus County, Limestone
Property damage: $2.5 million
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 42.249, -78.679 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flash Flood, Cattaraugus

When: July 22, 3:45 PM EST to 5:45 PM EST
Where: Cattaraugus County, Allegany
Property damage: $2.5 million
Reported by: PARK/FOREST SERVICE
Coordinates: 42.249, -78.679 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Thunderstorm Wind, Allegany

When: July 22, 3:54 PM EST
Where: Allegany County, Angelica
Measured: 50 kt (58 mph) estimated gust
Property damage: $25,000
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 42.300, -78.017

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.
Thunderstorm Wind: Winds from a thunderstorm of 50 knots (58 mph) or more, or lower winds that caused damage or casualties. Measured gusts are marked MG, estimated EG.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in New York in 2003 Every state in 2003 This day in weather history Warnings in New York, July 2003

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: 5375572, 5375573, 5375574.