Flood in Nebraska, August 1 to 31, 2011

Name: Flood in Nebraska, August 1 to 31, 2011
Start: 2011-08-01T00:00
End: 2011-08-31T23:59
Location: Nebraska

August 1 to 31, 2011 · NWS LBF · 1 event in 1 county or zone

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

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
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 LBF wrote it up.

Elevated releases from Kingsley Dam at Lake McConaughy (Keith County) caused the North Platte River at North Platte to stay above flood stage for the entire month of August. These high releases were needed to lower the elevation of the lake going into winter. The lake had problems with high water due to deep snow pack in the Rocky Mountains from the 2010-2011 winter season combined with wet conditions during the spring and early summer months. The river maintained a fairly steady flow at the North Platte site between 6.6 feet and 6.8 feet throughout August, which is above major flood stage.

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 North Platte, NE wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jul 31, 2:07 PM CST, 9 hours 53 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 31, 2:07 PM CST, 9 hours 53 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NORTH PLATTE NE
307 PM CDT SUN JUL 31 2011

.SYNOPSIS...

HIGH PRESSURE ALOFT HAS DRIFTED INTO CENTRAL KANSAS THIS MORNING
WITH 5960 HTS NOTED AT KLBF AND KOMA...ALONG WITH 5970 HTS AT KDDC
AND KTOP. PATCHY FOG ALONG THE HIGHWAY 83 CORRIDOR HAD BURNED OFF BY
11 AM CDT...AND AS OF 2 PM CDT...MOSTLY CLEAR SKIES WERE IN PLACE
ACROSS THE REGION WITH TEMPERATURES IN THE 90S AND LOW 100S OFF TO
THE SOUTH IN KANSAS. SRLY AND SERLY WINDS HAVE INCREASED THIS
AFTERNOON...THANKS TO LEE SIDE TROUGHING ACROSS EASTERN WYOMING AND
THE FRONT RANGE OF COLORADO.

.DISCUSSION...

SHORT TERM...TONIGHT THROUGH WEDNESDAY NIGHT...

WARM AND MUGGY CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED TONIGHT WITH LOWS MAINLY IN
THE 70S...WITH A FEW UPPER 60S WEST OF HIGHWAY 61. WILL KEEP IN
MENTION OF PRECIPITATION THROUGH SUNDOWN FOR LOCATIONS IN THE
SOUTHWEST AS CONVECTION OVER NWRN KS FAR SWRN NEBRASKA CONTINUES TO
DRIFT NORTH INTO THE AREA. FOR MONDAY...THE MAIN FORECASTING
CHALLENGE WAS WHERE AND HOW FAR WEST TO PLACE A HEAT ADVISORY WITH
APPARENT T'S REACHING 100 TO 110 DEGREES. RIGHT NOW...THAT FAVORS A
LINE EAST OF HIGHWAY 83 AND SOUTH OF INTERSTATE 80 FROM OGALLALA TO
NORTH PLATTE. LOCATIONS NORTH AND WEST OF THIS LINE...FCST DEW
POINTS IN THE 50S AND LWR 60S WILL HOLD DOWN HEAT INDEXES UNDER 100
DEGREES.

LATE MONDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING...PRECIPITATION CHANCES WILL
INCREASE IN THE NORTHWEST AND WESTERN CWA AS A FRONTAL BOUNDARY
APPROACHES FROM THE WEST. STEEP LAPSE RATES AND A WELL MIXED LAYER
SHOULD FACILITATE SOME HIGH BASED THUNDERSTORMS DURING THE PERIOD.
ACTIVITY IN ADVANCE OF THE FRONT WILL TRACK EAST OVERNIGHT AND IS
EXPECTED TO BECOME MORE ISOLATED IN NATURE AS LOW LEVEL SRLY FLOW IN
ADVANCE OF THE FRONT WEAKENS OVERNIGHT. WITH THIS IN MIND...OPTED
FOR HIGHER POPS IN THE WEST INITIALLY...THEN ISOLATED POPS FURTHER
EAST OVERNIGHT.

BETTER CHANCES FOR PRECIPITATION WILL ARRIVE TUESDAY NIGHT AND
WEDNESDAY AS BETTER UPPER LEVEL SUPPORT BEGINS TO FILTER INTO THE
REGION. RIDGING ALOFT WILL BECOME SUPPRESSED ACROSS THE CENTRAL
CONUS...WITH FLAT ZONAL FLOW DEVELOPING ACROSS WESTERN AND NORTH
CENTRAL NEBRASKA. DISTURBANCES WILL TRACK FROM NERN COLORADO INTO
SRN NEBRASKA TUESDAY NIGHT AND WEDNESDAY. THUNDERSTORMS SHOULD
INITIATE ACROSS NERN COLORADO INVOF A STALLED OUT FRONTAL BOUNDARY.
THIS BOUNDARY IS EXPECTED TO RESIDE OVER NRN KS/SRN NEBRASKA
MIDWEEK...WHICH WILL FAVOR SRN PORTIONS OF THE CWA FOR THE HIGHEST
POPS. DECIDED TO INCREASE POPS IN THE NORTH AND WEST DUE TO
INCREASED CONFIDENCE IN THE MODEL SOLNS TDY. IN ADDITION TO
INCREASED PRECIPITATION CHANCES...MUCH COOLER TEMPERATURES ARE
EXPECTED THANKS TO NERLY WINDS NORTH OF THE FRONTAL BOUNDARY. EVEN
WITH COOLER TEMPS...MUGGY CONDS WILL CONTINUE AS ABUNDANT LOW LEVEL
MOISTURE IS PUSHED WEST THANKS TO NERLY SURFACE WINDS.

LONG TERM...THURSDAY THROUGH SUNDAY...

A TRICKY FCST CONTINUES IN THE LONG TERM AS PRECIPITATION TIMING
CONTINUES TO BE PROBLEMATIC. NUMEROUS UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCES WILL
TRACK ACROSS THE REGION DURING THE PERIOD POSING A PRECIPITATION
THREAT EVERY 24 TO 36 HOURS. SINCE TIMING AND TRACK OF DISTURBANCES
REMAINS DIFFICULT...DECIDED TO LIMIT POPS TO SLIGHT CHANCES ONLY.
TEMPERATURES DURING THE PERIOD SHOULD AVERAGE IN THE UPPER 80S TO
LOWER 90S...WHICH IS NEAR NORMAL FOR AUGUST 3-5.

&&

AVIATION...

GENERAL VFR FLIGHT CONDITIONS EXPECTED FOR BOTH THE LBF AND VTN
TERMINALS OVER THE NEXT 24 HOURS.  HOWEVER...CANNOT ENTIRELY RULE
OUT A STRAY TSTORM THIS AFTERNOON AND/OR TONIGHT ACROSS THE WESTERN
SANDHILLS AND OVER SOUTHWEST NEBRASKA.  WITH A LACK OF A FOCUS FOR
THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT...STORMS WOULD BE ISOLATED AT BEST...SO
WILL NOT INCLUDE THE MENTION IN THE TAFS.  BUT IF A STORM WERE TO
FORM...SEVERE WINDS GUSTS WOULD BE THE PRIMARY THREAT WITH POSSIBLY
A LARGE HAIL REPORT OR TWO.  OTHERWISE...GUIDANCE HINTS TO THE
POTENTIAL OF VISIBILITIES LOWERING TO MVFR BY DAYBREAK AT LBF.  WITH
A MOIST BL IN PLACE AND FAVORABLE SOUTHEAST SURFACE WIND...CANT
ARGUE WITH THE ASSESSMENT.  BUT CONFIDENCE IS LOW...ESPECIALLY SINCE
VERY FEW OF THE SREF MEMBERS SUGGEST THE LOWER VSBYS AND MIXING
SHOULD BE MUCH GREATER TONIGHT.  GIVEN THE FOG DEVELOPMENT OVER LAST
FEW DAYS...FELT THAT A MENTION IN THIS DISCUSSION WAS
WORTHWHILE...BUT WILL NOT INCLUDE ANY RESTRICTIONS IN THE OFFICIAL
TAF FORECAST AT THIS TIME.

&&

.LBF WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...HEAT ADVISORY FOR ZONES
NEZ004>010-094 THROUGH 8 PM CDT (7 PM MDT) THIS EVENING.

HEAT ADVISORY FOR ZONES NEZ005>010-025>029-036>038-057>059-069>071.
FROM NOON CDT (11 AM MDT) MONDAY MORNING THROUGH 8 PM CDT (7 PM MDT)
MONDAY EVENING.

AVIATION...JACOBS
SYNOPSIS...SHORT AND LONG TERM...BUTTLER

Hazardous weather outlook, Jul 31, 9:50 PM CST, 2 hours 10 minutes before

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...UPDATED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NORTH PLATTE NE
1050 PM CDT SUN JUL 31 2011

NEZ004>010-022>029-035>038-056>059-069>071-094-020400-
SHERIDAN-EASTERN CHERRY-KEYA PAHA-BOYD-BROWN-ROCK-HOLT-GARDEN-
GRANT-HOOKER-THOMAS-BLAINE-LOUP-GARFIELD-WHEELER-ARTHUR-MCPHERSON-
LOGAN-CUSTER-DEUEL-KEITH-PERKINS-LINCOLN-CHASE-HAYES-FRONTIER-
WESTERN CHERRY-
1050 PM CDT SUN JUL 31 2011 /950 PM MDT SUN JUL 31 2011/

...HEAT ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM NOON CDT /11 AM MDT/ TO 8 PM CDT
/7 PM MDT/ MONDAY...

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF WESTERN AND
NORTH CENTRAL NEBRASKA.

.DAY ONE...TONIGHT.

NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY.

DANGEROUS HEAT INDICES ARE EXPECTED ONCE AGAIN TOMORROW. A HEAT
ADVISORY HAS BEEN ISSUED FOR LOCATIONS EAST OF A OGALLALA TO
VALENTINE LINE...AS HEAT INDEX VALUES ARE EXPECTED TO CLIMB ABOVE
100 DEGREES FAHRENHEIT...WITH POSSIBLY READINGS EXCEEDING 105
DEGREES OVER FAR EASTERN PORTIONS OF THE FORECAST AREA.

A RETURN TO AN ACTIVE PATTERN BEGINS LATE TUESDAY AND WILL
CONTINUE THROUGH THE REST OF THE WEEK. STRONG THUNDERSTORMS WILL
BE POSSIBLE...HOWEVER NO WIDESPREAD SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS ARE
ANTICIPATED AT THIS TIME.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT EXPECTED TODAY OR TONIGHT.

&&

THIS PRODUCT IS NOW AVAILABLE...ALONG WITH OTHER WEATHER...
HYDROLOGICAL AND CLIMATOLOGICAL INFORMATION...AT
HTTP://WWW.WEATHER.GOV/NORTHPLATTE

CDC

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Flood, Lincoln

When: August 1, 12:00 AM CST to August 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Lincoln County, 1.35 mi NE of North Platte to 1.33 mi WNW of (Lbf)bird Fld North
Cause: Planned Dam Release
Reported by: River/Stream Gage
Coordinates: 41.161, -100.759

Planned releases from Kingsley Dam at Lake McConaughy (Keith County) were required to keep the elevation of the lake below a certain level going into the winter months. These high releases kept the North Platte River at North Platte above major flood stage throughout the month. The river stage stayed fairly steady through the entire month, varying from 6.7 feet to 6.9 feet. The maximum stage height was 6.9 feet which occurred on the 11th and the 12th.

What these are

Flood: Flooding that develops more slowly than a flash flood: rivers leaving their banks, or water standing over land for an extended time.

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

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Nebraska in 2011 Every state in 2011 This day in weather history Warnings in Nebraska, August 2011

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: 336440.