Flash Flood, Polk
- When
- June 14, 2:30 AM CST to 2:30 PM CST
- Where
- Polk County, 1.05 mi N of Des Moines to 0.87 mi N of Des Moines
- Cause
- Dam / Levee Break
- Property damage
- $7.0 million
- Reported by
- Law Enforcement
- Coordinates
- 41.615, -93.622
Flash Flood in Iowa, June 14, 2008
Very high water along the Des Moines River continued to put stress on the levee system in Des Moines. The crest had passed, however water levels were still within about a foot of the record crest.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it. 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
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- $7.0 million
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 1
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 DMX wrote it up.
Very high water along the Des Moines River continued to put stress on the levee system in Des Moines. The crest had passed, however water levels were still within about a foot of the record crest. A weak spot in the levee in the Birdland Park area gave way in spite of the heroic effort put forth by the citizens and the National Guard to shore the levee up. A breech of about 100 feet in width occurred around 0230 CST. This caused very rapid water rises of about 4 feet in the flooded area within an hour, and about 8 feet within several hours. A mandatory evacuation order was given by the Des Moines Police. About 271 homes were affected by the flooding. The flooding continued after this time, however the flashy nature was past by the early afternoon. Several businesses were affected as well as a High School. Damage to one fertilizer and chemical business was around $3,000,000 for example, while $1,100,000 damage was done to North High School.
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 Des Moines, IA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jun 14, 2:25 AM CST, 5 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Jun 14, 2:25 AM CST, 5 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION...UPDATED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DES MOINES IA 325 AM CDT SAT JUN 14 2008 .SHORT TERM...TODAY LOW LEVEL MOISTURE IS EXPECTED TO RETURN NORTH TODAY WITH DEWPOINTS CLIMBING BACK INTO THE 60S ACRS THE CNTRL AND SOUTH. 850 MB TEMPERATURES INCREASE INTO THE MID TO UPPER TEENS AND COMBINED WITH A WEST TO SOUTHWEST WIND AT THE SFC WILL YIELD HIGHS IN THE 80S. EXPECT A LOW LEVEL MOISTURE DISCONTINUITY OVER NORTHERN IOWA WITH DEWPOINTS LINGERING IN THE 50S WITH A BOUNDARY LOCATED IN THIS REGION. SHORT WAVE CURRENTLY OVR WYOMING IS EXPECTED TO ARRIVE OVER IOWA NEAR PEAK HEATING AND THIS SHOULD SPARK A FEW THUNDERSTORMS BY 21Z. RATHER WEAK DIRECTIONAL SHEAR THOUGH THE LAYER TODAY HOWEVER GOOD SPEED SHEAR IS INTACT AND THIS WILL BE SUPPORTIVE FOR SUPERCELLS. GOOD LOW LEVEL LAPSE RATES AND NEAR UNIDIRECTIONAL FLOW WILL BE SUPPORTIVE OF DAMAGING WIND GUSTS. GOOD UPDRAFTS SHOULD BECOME SUSTAINED WITH HIGHS IN THE 80S AND COOL MID LEVELS CREATING GOOD MID LEVEL LAPSE RATES. THIS COMBINED WITH A MELTING LAYER AT OR BELOW 12 KFT WOULD SUGGEST POTENTIAL FOR GOLF BALL SIZED HAIL WITH THE STRONGEST UPDRAFTS. TORNADIC POTENTIAL FAIRLY LOW WITH UNFAVORABLE LOW LEVEL DIRECTIONAL SHEAR WITH SFC FLOW FROM THE WEST TO SOUTHWEST AND RELATIVELY HIGH LCLS. .LONG TERM...TONIGHT THROUGH FRIDAY SHORTWAVE ROTATING AROUND BASE OF MAIN UPPER LOW OVER THE HUDSON BAY REGION TO DROP THROUGH DAKOTAS INTO THE MID MISSISSIPPI VALLEY LATE TONIGHT THROUGH SUNDAY NIGHT...WITH A FRONTAL BOUNDARY SAGGING SOUTHWARD THROUGH THE STATE. MAY HAVE SOME INITIAL CONVECTION ONGOING FROM THE AFTERNOON HOURS THIS EVENING ACROSS THE NRN/CNTRL CWA ALONG AXIS OF MOISTURE CONVERGENCE...THEN AS THE ABOVE SHORTWAVE APPROACHES THE AREA MAY GET ANOTHER ROUND OF CONVECTION LATE TONIGHT MOVING THROUGH NRN IA. AS FRONT BECOMES DRAPED ACROSS THE CWA MAINLY ALONG A WATERLOO TO ATLANTIC LINE...EXPECT ANOTHER ROUND OF CONVECTION TO DEVELOP MIDDAY SUNDAY INTO SUNDAY AFTERNOON ALONG AND SOUTH OF THE FRONT IN WARM SECTOR. FRONT QUICKLY SAGS SOUTH OF THE CWA BY SUNDAY EVENING...BUT DID GO WITH SLOWER NAM/EC TIMING AS GFS SEEMS TOO FAST. HOWEVER ALL MODELS HAVE TRENDED FASTER WITH THE TIMING OVER THE PAST FEW RUNS. OTHERWISE WITH FRONT LINGERING INTO THE NRN MO/SE IA AREA BY LATE EVENING...AND SOME INSTABILITY ALOFT STILL PRESENT MAY SEE A FEW POST-FRONTAL ISOLATED CELLS ACROSS THE SRN TIER OF COUNTIES LATE TONIGHT. OTHERWISE DRIER AIR TO PUSH INTO THE CWA...WITH SFC HIGH PRESSURE BUILDING IN FROM THE NORTHWEST. GFS ADVERTISING H85 TEMPS TO DROP TO AROUND +3C SUNDAY NIGHT...WITH THE EC/NAM REMAINING A BIT WARMER. FOLLOWED THE WARMER SOLUTION AT THIS TIME...BUT DID TREND TEMPS DOWNWARD WITH RELATIVELY COOL AIR MOVING INTO THE CWA. OTHERWISE WITH MAIN VORTEX SLIDING EASTWARD INTO EARLY NEXT WEEK...AND NORTHWEST FLOW ALOFT EXPECT DRY CONDITIONS FOR THE MOST PART THROUGH MID WEEK. MODELS HINT AT A WEAK DISTURBANCE LATE TUESDAY NIGHT AND AGAIN WEDNESDAY NIGHT...BUT MOISTURE AN ISSUE SO HAVE LEFT THE FORECAST DRY FOR NOW. WITH THE NORTHWEST FLOW IN PLACE...AND H85 TEMPS IN THE AROUND +10C INTO THE TEENS...EXPECT HIGHS MAINLY IN THE 70S TO AROUND 80 THROUGHOUT NEXT WEEK. && .AVIATION...14/06Z VFR CONDITIONS THRU AT LEAST 20Z FOR ALL SITES. FORECAST CONCERN FOR SATURDAY IS POTENTIAL FOR TSRA IN THE LATE AFTN AND EVENING ACROSS THE NRN HALF...AFFECTING MAINLY KMCW AND KALO. HAVE INTRODUCED THREAT AS A CB FOR NOW PENDING FURTHER REFINEMENT AND CONFIDENCE. && .DMX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...NONE. && SHORT TERM/AVIATION...DONAVON LONG TERM...ALBRECHT
Hazardous weather outlook, Jun 13, 5:30 PM CST, 9 hours before
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...UPDATED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DES MOINES IA 630 PM CDT FRI JUN 13 2008 IAZ004>007-015>017-142330- EMMET-KOSSUTH-WINNEBAGO-WORTH-PALO ALTO-HANCOCK-CERRO GORDO- 630 PM CDT FRI JUN 13 2008 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF CENTRAL IOWA. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT AN ISOLATED THUNDERSTORM WILL BE POSSIBLE EARLY THIS EVENING. SEVERE WEATHER IS NOT EXPECTED AT THIS TIME...HOWEVER SMALL HAIL...GUSTY WINDS...AND BRIEF HEAVY RAIN CAN BE EXPECTED WITH ANY THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY. NUMEROUS RIVER FLOOD WARNINGS ARE IN EFFECT ACROSS CENTRAL IOWA. FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION PLEASE REFER TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WEBSITE AT WEATHER.GOV/DESMOINES. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SATURDAY THROUGH THURSDAY THERE WILL BE SLIGHT CHANCES OF THUNDERSTORMS SATURDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH SUNDAY NIGHT. AT THIS TIME THERE IS A SLIGHT RISK FOR SEVERE WEATHER WITH THIS ACTIVITY SATURDAY AFTERNOON INTO SATURDAY NIGHT..WITH LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS THE MAIN SEVERE THREATS. OVERALL THE SEVERE WEATHER IS EXPECTED TO BE SCATTERED. WIDESPREAD HEAVY RAINFALL IS NOT EXPECTED WITH THIS SYSTEM...HOWEVER BRIEF PERIODS OF HEAVY RAIN CAN BE EXPECTED WITH ANY THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE NEEDED SATURDAY NIGHT AND AGAIN SUNDAY NIGHT. IAZ023>028-033>039-044>050-057>062-070>075-081>086-092>097-142330- POCAHONTAS-HUMBOLDT-WRIGHT-FRANKLIN-BUTLER-BREMER-SAC-CALHOUN- WEBSTER-HAMILTON-HARDIN-GRUNDY-BLACK HAWK-CRAWFORD-CARROLL-GREENE- BOONE-STORY-MARSHALL-TAMA-AUDUBON-GUTHRIE-DALLAS-POLK-JASPER- POWESHIEK-CASS-ADAIR-MADISON-WARREN-MARION-MAHASKA-ADAMS-UNION- CLARKE-LUCAS-MONROE-WAPELLO-TAYLOR-RINGGOLD-DECATUR-WAYNE- APPANOOSE-DAVIS- 630 PM CDT FRI JUN 13 2008 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF CENTRAL IOWA. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. NUMEROUS RIVER FLOOD WARNINGS ARE IN EFFECT ACROSS CENTRAL IOWA. FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION PLEASE REFER TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WEBSITE AT WEATHER.GOV/DESMOINES. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SATURDAY THROUGH THURSDAY THERE WILL BE CHANCES FOR THUNDERSTORMS LATE SATURDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH SUNDAY NIGHT. THERE IS A SLIGHT RISK FOR SEVERE WEATHER...WITH LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS BEING THE MAIN SEVERE THREATS. WIDESPREAD HEAVY RAINFALL IS NOT EXPECTED...HOWEVER BRIEF PERIODS OF HEAVY RAINFALL IS POSSIBLE WITH ANY THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE NEEDED SATURDAY NIGHT AND AGAIN SUNDAY NIGHT. MOYER
The radar
The Des Moines radar (KDMX), 15 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 08:29 UTC.
Event by event
1 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.
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.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Damaging Winds and Lightning Strikes in Pennsylvania, June 14, 2008
- Tornadoes and Hail in North Dakota, June 14, 2008
- Tornadoes and Hail in Minnesota, June 14, 2008
- Flash Flood in Iowa, June 14, 2008
- Rip Current in Texas, June 14, 2008
- Flash Flooding in Vermont, June 14 to 15, 2008
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Iowa, June 14, 2008
- Damaging Wind in Oklahoma, June 14, 2008
- Tornado and Hail in Iowa, June 14 to 15, 2008
- Flash Flood in Illinois, June 14, 2008
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Virginia, June 14, 2008
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Maryland, June 14, 2008
More
Every storm in Iowa in 2008Every state in 2008This day in weather historyWarnings in Iowa, June 2008
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: 93934.