1 flood, as filed by the National Weather Service.
Every event with a place to put it; 1 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 Charleston, WV wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Aug 21, 1:45 AM EST, 15 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION...UPDATED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON WV 245 AM EDT SAT AUG 21 2004 .LONG TERM (SUNDAY NIGHT THROUGH FRIDAY)... FEW CHANGES MADE TO THIS PERIOD. HIGH PRESSURE DOMINATES THE FIRST HALF OF THE PERIOD. LINGERING FRONTS RESIDE OF THE CENTRAL APPALACHIANS AND MIDDLE OHIO VALLEY FROM MIDWEEK ON...LEAVING THE POSSIBILITY OF MAINLY AFTERNOON AND EVENING SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS IN THE FORECAST THROUGH FRIDAY. KEEPING POSSIBILITIES AROUND 20 PERCENT...WHICH WILL NOT BE EVIDENT IN THE TEXT ZFP. .PREVIOUS DISCUSSION... THE FOLLOWING WAS ORIGINALLY ISSUED AT 142 AM EDT SAT AUG 21 2004 AVIATION (06Z TO 06Z)... RADAR AND LIGHTNING DATA CONTINUE SHOWING SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS FROM HTS...NORTHEAST THROUGH PKB AND CKB. EXPECT THIS RAINFALL ACTIVITY TO SPREAD EAST ACROSS CRW...EKN THIS MORNING...AND LATER ON TO BKW. HAVE MAINLY VFR CONDITIONS WITH TEMPOS OF MVFR/IFR AT MOST SITES THROUGH 12Z. IFR/LIFR CONDITIONS POSSIBLE WITH THUNDERSTORMS. EARLY MORNING VERY LOW CEILING SHOULD LIFT BY MID MORNING...BUT MID LEVEL CEILING WILL PREVAIL WHILE NEARLY STATIONARY FRONTAL BOUNDARY REMAINS OVER THE AREA. FRONT IS EXPECTED TO MOVE OVER THE EASTERN MOUNTAINS THIS EVENING AND MOVE AWAY OF THE AREA OVERNIGHT. NOT WILL BE UNTIL THEN THAT CLEAR TO MOSTLY CLEAR SKIES WILL BE SEEN. PREVIOUS DISCUSSION... THE FOLLOWING WAS ORIGINALLY ISSUED AT 338 PM EDT FRI AUG 20 2004 SHORT TERM (TONIGHT THROUGH SUNDAY)... STORMS HAVE FIRED AHEAD OF MAIN BATCH OF RAINFALL THIS AFTERNOON...AS MID/HI CLOUDS WERE NOT THICK ENOUGH TO HINDER HEATING. DO NOT FORESEE MUCH SEVERE WEATHER THIS EVENING AS FREEZING LEVEL IS TOO HIGH FOR LARGE HAIL...AND UPPER WIND FLOW IS JUST WEAK ENOUGH TO PREVENT DAMAGING WINDS. MODELS IN GOOD AGREEMENT ON SPEED OF FRONT...BRINGING IT TO CRW BY AROUND 12Z...AND ACROSS THE MOUNTAINS BY 18Z. MAIN SHORTWAVE REMAINS OFF TO THE NORTHWEST. RRQ OF H250 JET GIVES GOOD UPPER DIVERGENCE...ALTHOUGH BEST GOES ACROSS EASTERN OHIO/WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA. EXPECT AXIS OF HEAVIER PRECIP TO REMAIN IN THIS AREA. OUT AHEAD STORMS WILL PRODUCE DOWNPOURS BUT MOTION IS QUICK ENOUGH TO PREVENT FLOODING PROBLEMS. ROLLING WITH CATEGORICAL POPS TONIGHT...MAINLY EARLY...FOR PRECIP SHIELD. AS SHORTWAVE/UPPER JET RIDE OFF TO THE NORTHEAST AFTER 06Z...EXPECT A DECREASE IN COVERAGE. STILL WILL RIDE WITH LIKELY POPS AHEAD OF THE FRONT. MODELS CONTINUE TO SHOW POST-FRONTAL SHRA...AND GIVEN H850 CAA/LINGERING MOISTURE THIS LOOKS REASONABLE. SO MAINTAINING CHANCE POPS BEHIND THE FRONT ON SATURDAY. AFTER A FEW STRAGGLING SHRA IN THE MOUNTAINS SATURDAY EVENING...HIGH PRESSURE BUILDS IN WITH SLOWLY CLEARING SKIES. HOLDING OFF ON FOG MENTION FOR NOW BUT IT COULD BE AN ISSUE IF WINDS DECOUPLE. SUNDAY LOOKS LIKE A WINNER WITH RECOVERING TEMPERATURES. GENERALLY RAN CLOSE TO MAV TEMPERATURES THROUGH THE PERIOD...EXCEPT ON SUNDAY. FORECAST H850 TEMPS WOULD BARELY SUPPORT HIGHS IN THE MID 80S AT CRW/HTS...THINK THE MORE CONSERVATIVE MET NUMBERS LOOK A LITTLE BETTER. PREVIOUS DISCUSSION... THE FOLLOWING WAS ORIGINALLY ISSUED AT 205 PM EDT FRI AUG 20 2004 LONG TERM (SUNDAY NIGHT THROUGH FRIDAY)... THE MAIN THEME THIS PERIOD WILL BE THE SLOW BUILDING OF HEIGHTS OVER THE EASTERN THIRD OF THE NATION...WHICH BY THE END OF THE PERIOD LOOKS MUCH LIKE SUMMER SHOULD REALLY BE. FIRST...CANADIAN HIGH PRESSURE QUICKLY SLIDES EAST OF THE REGION BY MONDAY. SOUTHERLY WINDS WILL BRING BACK SUMMER LIKE TEMPERATURES AND ESPECIALLY HUMIDITIES BY WEDNESDAY. DESPITE THE BUILDING HEIGHTS... THERE MAY BE ENOUGH INSTABILITY WITH HEATING TO GENERATE THE TYPICAL WIDELY SCATTERED AFTERNOON THUNDERSTORMS WEDNESDAY INTO FRIDAY. THE ONLY POSSIBLE FLY IN THE OINTMENT IS THAT THE MODELS... ESPECIALLY THE GFS...ARE HINTING THAT A SOUTHERN STREAM SHORT WAVE MAY TRY TO LIFT UP OVER THE AREA WEDNESDAY BEFORE THE UPPER RIDGE SQUASHES THINGS. IF THIS HAPPENS THE REMNANTS OF THE FRONTAL BOUNDARY THAT DROPS SOUTH OF US THIS WEEKEND MAY LIFT NORTH BEFORE DISSIPATING AND PROVIDE A BETTER CHANCE FOR CONVECTION WEDNESDAY. WILL NOT JUMP ON THIS SCENARIO AS THE OVERALL TREND IS THE BUILDING UPPER RIDGE. MAV GUIDANCE FOR MAX TEMPERATURES THIS PERIOD LOOK A LITTLE COOLER THAN ONE WOULD EXPECT GIVEN THE DEVELOPING PATTERN...BUT RECENT HISTORY HAS PROVEN THE MAV TO BE QUITE GOOD...AND WITH ALL THE GREEN VEGETATION WILL ESSENTIALLY GO WITH IT. && .RLX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... WV...NONE. VA...NONE. KY...NONE. OH...NONE. && LONG TERM...KF
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...UPDATED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON WV 910 AM EDT FRI AUG 20 2004 KYZ101>103-105-OHZ066-067-075-076-083>087-VAZ003-004-WVZ005>011- 013>020-024>040-046-047-210900- ATHENS OH-BARBOUR WV-BOONE WV-BOYD KY-BRAXTON WV-BUCHANAN VA- CABELL WV-CALHOUN WV-CARTER KY-CLAY WV-DICKENSON VA-DODDRIDGE WV- FAYETTE WV-GALLIA OH-GILMER WV-GREENUP KY-HARRISON WV-JACKSON WV- JACKSON OH-KANAWHA WV-LAWRENCE OH-LAWRENCE KY-LEWIS WV-LINCOLN WV- LOGAN WV-MASON WV-MCDOWELL WV-MEIGS OH-MINGO WV-MORGAN OH- NICHOLAS WV-PERRY OH-PLEASANTS WV-POCAHONTAS WV-PUTNAM WV-RALEIGH WV- RANDOLPH WV-RITCHIE WV-ROANE WV-TAYLOR WV-TYLER WV-UPSHUR WV- VINTON OH-WASHINGTON OH-WAYNE WV-WEBSTER WV-WIRT WV-WOOD WV- WYOMING WV- INCLUDING THE CITIES OF...ASHLAND...ATHENS...BECKLEY...BUCKHANNON... CHARLESTON...CLARKSBURG...CLAY...CLINTWOOD...DURBIN...ELIZABETH... ELKINS...FAYETTEVILLE...GALLIPOLIS...GLENVILLE...GRAFTON... GRANTSVILLE...GRAYSON...GREENUP...GRUNDY...HAMLIN...HARRISVILLE... HUNTINGTON...IRONTON...JACKSON...LOGAN...LOUISA...MADISON... MARIETTA...MARLINTON...MCARTHUR...MIDDLEBOURNE...NEW LEXINGTON... PARKERSBURG...PHILIPPI...PINEVILLE...POINT PLEASANT...POMEROY... RIPLEY...ROCK CAVE...SNOWSHOE...SPENCER...STONEWALL JACKSON LAKE... SUMMERSVILLE...SUTTON...WAYNE...WEBSTER SPRINGS...WELCH... WEST UNION...WESTON...WILLIAMSON AND WINFIELD 910 AM EDT FRI AUG 20 2004 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR SOUTHEASTERN OHIO... NORTHEASTERN KENTUCKY...SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA...AND MOST OF WEST VIRGINIA. .DAY ONE... THUNDERSTORMS WILL INCREASE IN AREAL COVERAGE OVER EASTERN OHIO...EASTERN KENTUCKY...AND WESTERN WEST VIRGINIA DURING THIS AFTERNOON. THE THUNDERSTORMS WILL RACE NORTHEAST...FURTHER INTO WEST VIRGINIA THIS FRIDAY EVENING. THERE IS A CHANCE OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS. THAT CHANCE IS HIGHER ACROSS EASTERN OHIO...EASTERN KENTUCKY...AND WESTERN AND NORTHERN WEST VIRGINIA...COMPARED TO COUNTIES IN EASTERN AND SOUTHERN WEST VIRGINIA AND SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA. DAMAGING WIND GUSTS SEEM MORE LIKELY THAN LARGE HAIL...WITH ANY SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CELLS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN... NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE REQUIRED THIS AFTERNOON OR THIS EVENING.
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 flood. Local standard time, as filed.
Rains of 2.5 to 3.75 inches fell from repetitive thunderstorms in 12 hours. The 24 hour rain total measured by the cooperative observer near Grayson was 3.6 inches. Minor flooding occurred along Routes 986, southeast of Olive Hill, and along Route 1 near Hitchens.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Kentucky in 2004Every state in 2004This day in weather historyWarnings in Kentucky, August 2004
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: 5415661.