Heavy rains fell over portions of central Indiana in the early morning hours. Rainfall in excess of 2 inches fell during a time period of a few hours.
Every event with a place to put it. 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 episode as NWS IND wrote it up.
Heavy rains fell over portions of central Indiana in the early morning hours. Rainfall in excess of 2 inches fell during a time period of a few hours.
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 Indianapolis, IN wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at May 1, 12:20 AM EST, 43 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE INDIANAPOLIS IN 120 AM EDT FRI MAY 1 2009 .AVIATION...DISCUSSION FOR 06Z TAFS. SFC ANALYSIS EARLY THIS EVENING SHOWS LOW PRES OVR THE GRT LAKES WITH TWO TROUGHS AFFECTING THE AREA. THE FIRST TROUGH HAS EXITED INDIANA AND IS OVER OHIO...WHILE THE SECOND FOUND FROM EASTERN WI TO CENTRAL IL. MAINLY MVFR CONDITIONS ARE IN PLACE ACRS THE AREA AS WE START THIS SET OF TAFS...BUT RAPID AND HIGHLY VARIABLE CONDITIONS WILL BE POSSIBLE AT THE TAF SITES IN THE CYCLONIC FLOW WITH THE PASSING TROUGH. TIME HEIGHT SECTIONS SHOW VERY MOIST LOWER LVLS WITH LIMITED FORCING UNTIL AFT 00Z FRI. MEANWHILE A SFC CD FRONT WL CONTINUE TO APPROACH FROM THE NW WITH LITTLE SUPPORT ALOFT. WITH WEAK INSTABILITY...WL NEED TO KEEP MENTION OF VCSH AT THE TAF SITES ALONG WITH MVFR CONDITIONS. BRIEF IFR CONDITIONS WL BE POSSIBLE WITH ANY SHRA OR TSRA THAT DEVELOP...BUT CONFIDENCE ON PRECISE TIMING AND LOCATION IS VERY LOW. HAVE KEPT VCSH MENTION MAINLY TO THE LATE AFTERNOON AND EVENING HOURS ON FRI AS HEATING AND FROPAS ARE OPTIMAL IN THIS WINDOW. && .DISCUSSION... MAIN CONCERN FOR THE SHORT TERM WILL BE THE CHANCES OF RAIN. THIS AFTERNOON LOW PRESSURE WAS OVER NORTHERN IL WITH A COLD FRONT EXTENDING TO THE SOUTHWEST. MODELS ARE CONSISTENT WITH THE MOVEMENT OF THE LOW TO NORTH OF THE GREAT LAKES BY 12Z. DURING THE DAY ALL THE INGREDIENTS DID NOT COME TOGETHER AT THE SAME TIME FOR CONTINUED SUPPORT FOR A LARGE OUTBREAK OF WEATHER. THE BEST WIND SHEAR MOVED OUT DURING THE MORNING. THE RAIN DURING THE MORNING SLOWED THE INSTABILITY. TONIGHT MODELS HAVE AN AREA OF PVA MOVING THROUGH. THE GFS HAS IT THE STRONGEST BUT MAINLY IN SOUTHERN INDIANA. NONE OF THE MODELS HAVE MUCH FRONTOGENESIS. THE PROJECTED SOUNDINGS ON ALL MODELS DO HAVE MID LEVEL DRYING THIS EVENING BUT BECOMING A LITTLE MORE MOIST LATER TONIGHT. PRECIP WATER REMAINS AROUND 1.3 INCH. LIFTED INDEXES DROP TO AROUND -2. WITH THE MOISTURE AND SOME INSTABILITY WILL KEEP LIKELY POPS BUT DOWN PLAYED THE HEAVY RAIN. AS FAR AS TEMPS TONIGHT ALL MODELS ARE VERY CONSISTENT BETWEEN THEM ALSO WITH PREVIOUS RUN. THE RAIN AND CLOUDS HELD TEMPS DOWN THIS AFTERNOON. WITH THE CONSISTENCY OF THE MODELS WILL GO NEAR THEIR TEMPS. ON FRIDAY THE COLD FRONT MOVES THROUGH INDIANA. THE GFS DOES HAVE SOME FRONTOGENESIS DURING THE MORNING. WILL KEEP LIKELY POPS WITH THE FRONTAL PASSAGE THEN DECREASE TO SCT SHOWERS DUE TO CONTINUED UNSTABLE AIR. MODELS HAVE AN AREA OF PVA MOVING THROUGH FRIDAY NIGHT MAINLY IN THE SOUTHERN SECTIONS. THE GFS IS THE STRONGEST BUT A LITTLE FURTHER TO THE EAST. DUE TO THIS WILL GO LIKELY POPS IN THE SOUTH WITH A CHANCE IN THE CENTRAL AND NORTH. THE COLD FRONT BECOMES STATIONARY IN KENTUCKY FRIDAY NIGHT. THE GFS MOVES IT A LITTLE FURTHER TO THE SOUTH ON SATURDAY BUT THE NAM HOLDS IT IN KY. THE ECM PUSHES THE FRONT EVEN FURTHER TO THE SOUTH. THE NAM IS VERY MOIST IN MOST LEVELS WITH THE OTHER TWO HAVING PRECIPITABLE WATER DROPPING TO AROUND .80 INCH. WILL KEEP CHANCE POPS ON SATURDAY DUE TO THE FRONT IN SOUTHERN SECTIONS BUT A LITTLE LOWER THEN GUIDANCE VALUES. MODELS ARE CONSISTENT WITH GOOD CAA. WITH CLOUDY SKIES TEMPS SHOULD ONLY INCREASE A FEW DEGREES ABOVE LOWS. ON SUNDAY THE FRONT REMAINS IN KY. WILL KEEP POPS IN SOUTHERN SECTIONS DUE TO THIS. FOR THE EXTENDED SYSTEMS MOVE VERY LITTLE. THE FRONT IN KY MOVES N AS A WARM FRONT ON TUE BUT A COLD FRONT THEN MOVES THROUGH THE AREA. WITH THIS CONTINUED UNSTABLE SYSTEMS IN THE AREA WILL KEEP A CHANCE GOING THROUGH THE REST OF THE FORECAST. && .IND WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...NONE. && AVIATION...JP PUBLIC...SH
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE INDIANAPOLIS IN 444 PM EDT THU APR 30 2009 INZ021-030-031-036>038-041-042-045-046-048-049-052-055>057- 062>065-069-072-011000- CARROLL-CLINTON-HOWARD-MONTGOMERY-BOONE-TIPTON-DELAWARE-RANDOLPH- PUTNAM-HENDRICKS-HANCOCK-HENRY-CLAY-JOHNSON-SHELBY-RUSH-MONROE- BROWN-BARTHOLOMEW-DECATUR-MARTIN-JENNINGS- 444 PM EDT THU APR 30 2009 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR CENTRAL INDIANA. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT. SCATTERED THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY IS EXPECTED TONIGHT. A FEW STORMS MAY PRODUCE SMALL HAIL AND GUSTY WINDS...HOWEVER THE THUNDERSTORMS WILL REMAIN BELOW SEVERE LEVELS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY. THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY IS POSSIBLE ON FRIDAY...AND THEN AGAIN AROUND NEXT TUESDAY. AT THIS TIME...SEVERE STORMS ARE NOT EXPECTED. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT ANTICIPATED. && MORE INFORMATION...ALONG WITH OTHER WEATHER...HYDROLOGICAL AND CLIMATE INFORMATION CAN BE FOUND...AT HTTP://WEATHER.GOV/IND (ALL LOWERCASE) INZ028-029-035-039-040-043-044-047-051-053-054-060-061-067-068- 070-071-011000- WARREN-TIPPECANOE-FOUNTAIN-HAMILTON-MADISON-VERMILLION-PARKE- MARION-VIGO-OWEN-MORGAN-SULLIVAN-GREENE-KNOX-DAVIESS-LAWRENCE- JACKSON- 444 PM EDT THU APR 30 2009 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR CENTRAL INDIANA. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT. SCATTERED THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY IS EXPECTED TONIGHT. A FEW STORMS MAY PRODUCE SMALL HAIL AND GUSTY WINDS...HOWEVER THE THUNDERSTORMS WILL REMAIN BELOW SEVERE LEVELS. LOWLAND FLOODING IS EXPECTED ALONG PORTIONS OF THE WHITE...EAST FORK OF THE WHITE...AND WABASH RIVERS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY. THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY IS POSSIBLE ON FRIDAY...AND THEN AGAIN AROUND NEXT TUESDAY. AT THIS TIME...SEVERE STORMS ARE NOT EXPECTED. LOWLAND FLOODING IS EXPECTED TO CONTINUE ALONG PORTIONS OF THE WHITE...EAST FORK OF THE WHITE...AND WABASH RIVERS INTO NEXT WEEK. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT ANTICIPATED. && MORE INFORMATION...ALONG WITH OTHER WEATHER...HYDROLOGICAL AND CLIMATE INFORMATION CAN BE FOUND...AT HTTP://WEATHER.GOV/IND (ALL LOWERCASE) JAS
The Indianapolis radar (KIND), 83 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 06:02 UTC.
1 flash flood, 1 flood. Local standard time, as filed.
Frankfort Police reported serious flooding in the Frankfort area. They reported a few people had to be rescued from their vehicles and up to 3 feet of water was occurring on some city streets.
Frankfort Police reported extensive street flooding was occurring over parts of the Frankfort area. Some local roads were closed by high water.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Indiana in 2009Every state in 2009This day in weather historyWarnings in Indiana, May 2009
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: 176140, 176149.