A slow-moving and complex storm system brought wave after wave of heavy rain during the first week of December. This system along with a handful of other rain events pushed precipitation totals 1 to 3 inches above normal for the month.
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 PAH wrote it up.
A slow-moving and complex storm system brought wave after wave of heavy rain during the first week of December. This system along with a handful of other rain events pushed precipitation totals 1 to 3 inches above normal for the month. While no monthly records were broken, the additional rainfall pushed many locations over their annual record rainfall. Paducah, KY ended 2011 with 74.85 inches of rain. This was 7.74 inches above the old record. The Ohio and Green Rivers rose above flood stage in December. The flooding was mostly minor.
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 Paducah, KY wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Nov 30, 11:13 PM CST, 47 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION...UPDATED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PADUCAH KY 1113 PM CST WED NOV 30 2011 .UPDATE... DISCUSSION FOR 06Z THURSDAY ROUTINE TAF ISSUANCE. && .DISCUSSION... SHORT TERM /TONIGHT THROUGH FRIDAY/... MUCH QUIETER DAY TODAY AS CLOUDS FINALLY EXITED THE AREA AND HIGH PRESSURE MOVED INTO THE REGION. MUCH DRIER AIR FILTERED INTO THE REGION AND MADE FOR A CLOUDLESS DAY. SOME HIGH CLOUDS WILL MOVE INTO THE AREA LATER ON TODAY AND TONIGHT...AS THE SFC HIGH MIGRATES FROM ARKANSAS TO THE APPALACHIANS OVER THE NEXT 24 HOURS. WINDS SHOULD BECOME CALM TONIGHT AND THIS WILL MEAN TEMPERATURES WILL PLUMMET AFTER SUNSET AND LOWS TONIGHT WILL LIKELY BE A BIT LOWER THAN THEY WERE LAST NIGHT/THIS MORNING. SOUTHERLY/SOUTHWESTERLY FLOW BECOMES ESTABLISHED LATER TONIGHT AND INTO THURSDAY AS THE SFC HIGH MOVES EAST. SOME LOW LEVEL WARMING WILL OCCUR IN RESPONSE TO THIS AND SHOULD HELP BOOST TEMPERATURES UP ON THURSDAY FROM WHAT THEY WERE TODAY. WHILE A FEW LOCALES MAY REACH THE LOWER 50S...MOST AREAS WILL PROBABLY STAY AROUND 50. A WEAK FRONTAL BOUNDARY WILL APPROACH THE AREA LATE ON THURSDAY AND INTO EARLY FRIDAY...BUT DOES NOT COME THROUGH WITH MUCH FANFARE OTHER THAN TO SHIFT WINDS AROUND TO THE NORTHWEST BRIEFLY. HOWEVER...THE FRONT APPEARS TO WASH OUT AS IT MOVES THROUGH THE AREA...SO THE COLD AIR BEHIND IT DOES NOT REALLY MAKE IT HERE BEFORE SOUTHERLY FLOW TAKES OVER YET AGAIN. THEREFORE...IT IS POSSIBLE FOR HIGHS TO BE WARMER IN PARTS OF THE AREA (MAINLY WEST KENTUCKY) ON FRIDAY...DEPENDING ON HOW QUICKLY THE SOUTHERLY FLOW CAN BECOME RE-ESTABLISHED IN THE AFTERNOON. .CW.. LONG TERM /SATURDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY/... LATEST 12Z MODEL RUNS HAVE COME MORE IN LINE WITH EACH OTHER AND IN FACT...TEND TO MIRROR THE GFS OPS AND ENSEMBLE RUNS. THE MODELS ARE NOW PHASING THE SW U.S. LOW FEATURE WITH THE EVOLVING NORTHERN STREAM TROF...WHICH LEADS TO A SLOWER OVERALL EASTWARD SHIFT OF THE MEAN TROF AXIS MONDAY INTO TUESDAY. THIS IS A SIGNIFICANT CHANGE FROM THE 00Z CONSENSUS OF THE ECMWF/UKMET AND GEM...WHICH CUT ENERGY OFF INTO A CLOSED LOW OVER THE SW U.S. AND ALLOWED THE NORTHERN STREAM TROF TO SWEEP ON THROUGH THE GREAT LAKES AND UPPER MIDWEST...DRYING US OUT BY MONDAY NIGHT INTO TUESDAY. GIVEN THE MODEL FLIP FLOPPING...AND THE UNCERTAINTY REGARDING THE EVOLUTION OF THE H5 LOW OVER THE SW U.S. ...WILL NOT MAKE TOO MANY CHANGES TO POPS AND TIMING...ESPECIALLY ON THE TAIL END OF THE FORECAST...MONDAY THROUGH TUESDAY. IN THE SATURDAY THROUGH SUNDAY TIME FRAME...PARAMETERS STILL ON TRACK. SMALL CHANCE POPS INTO SE MISSOURI BY SATURDAY AFTERNOON WITH INCREASING POPS SATURDAY NIGHT. THE FRONT SHOULD BE INTO THE AREA SUNDAY WITH HIGH POPS FOR RAIN CONTINUING. FROM SUNDAY NIGHT ON...IS WHEN THE CHALLENGES ARRIVE. WE FEEL BEST CHANCE POPS WILL BE OVER THE SE 1/2 SUNDAY NIGHT AND BEYOND (HOWEVER LONG POPS WILL LINGER). THE LONGER PRECIP HANGS AROUND...THE MORE LIKELY WINTRY PRECIP WILL BE ON THE BACK EDGE OF THE MOISTURE...AS COLDER AIR INFILTRATES THE REGION FROM THE NORTH. THIS COULD END UP BEING A RATHER CHALLENGING PRECIP TYPE FORECAST IN TIME AS WELL. .CN.. && AVIATION... LITTLE DIFFERENCE FROM 00Z THURSDAY TAF PACKAGE ISSUANCE...WITH CONTINUED VFR CONDITIONS AT ALL TAF SITES. MAIN SEPARATION FOR FORECAST SEGMENT WAS TO ACCOUNT FOR WIND SPEED AND DIRECTION...OTHERWISE NO MEASURABLE DIFFERENCE IN VFR CLOUD DECK/CEILINGS. .SMITH.. && .PAH WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... KY...NONE. MO...NONE. IL...NONE. IN...NONE. &&
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PADUCAH KY 1205 PM CST WED NOV 30 2011 ILZ075>078-080>094-INZ081-082-085>088-KYZ001>022-MOZ076-086-087- 100-107>112-114-011100- JEFFERSON-WAYNE IL-EDWARDS-WABASH-PERRY IL-FRANKLIN-HAMILTON- WHITE-JACKSON-WILLIAMSON-SALINE-GALLATIN-UNION IL-JOHNSON-POPE- HARDIN-ALEXANDER-PULASKI-MASSAC-GIBSON-PIKE-POSEY-VANDERBURGH- WARRICK-SPENCER-FULTON-HICKMAN-CARLISLE-BALLARD-MCCRACKEN-GRAVES- LIVINGSTON-MARSHALL-CALLOWAY-CRITTENDEN-LYON-TRIGG-CALDWELL- UNION KY-WEBSTER-HOPKINS-CHRISTIAN-HENDERSON-DAVIESS-MCLEAN- MUHLENBERG-TODD-PERRY MO-BOLLINGER-CAPE GIRARDEAU-WAYNE MO-CARTER- RIPLEY-BUTLER-STODDARD-SCOTT-MISSISSIPPI-NEW MADRID- 1205 PM CST WED NOV 30 2011 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF SOUTHERN ILLINOIS...SOUTHWEST INDIANA...WESTERN KENTUCKY AND SOUTHEAST MISSOURI. .DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. MINOR FLOODING WILL CONTINUE ON SOME AREA RIVERS. REFER TO THE LATEST RIVER FLOOD WARNINGS AND STATEMENTS FOR DETAILS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. MINOR FLOODING WILL CONTINUE ON SOME AREA RIVERS. REFER TO THE LATEST RIVER FLOOD WARNINGS AND STATEMENTS FOR DETAILS. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED.
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
4 flood. Local standard time, as filed.
Minor flooding of low-lying fields occurred along the Ohio River. The road to several farms was flooded.
Moderate flooding of low-lying fields occurred along the Green River. Some river access roads were flooded.
Minor flooding of low-lying fields occurred along the Green River. Some river access roads were flooded.
Minor flooding of low-lying fields occurred along the Ohio River. Some park land, river access roads, and boat ramps were flooded in and near Paducah.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Kentucky in 2011Every state in 2011This day in weather historyWarnings in Kentucky, December 2011
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: 355615, 355619, 355621, 355616.