Flash Flood and Hail in Kentucky, May 1, 2016

Name: Flash Flood and Hail in Kentucky, May 1, 2016
Start: 2016-05-01T15:40
End: 2016-05-01T18:00
Location: Kentucky

May 1, 2016 · NWS RLX · 9 events in 3 counties and zones

After an overnight rain deposited about a half inch to an inch of rain, clearing occurred for the late morning and early afternoon. With the daytime heating came increase in instability.

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: $120,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 9

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 RLX wrote it up.

After an overnight rain deposited about a half inch to an inch of rain, clearing occurred for the late morning and early afternoon. With the daytime heating came increase in instability. Thunderstorms formed across northern Kentucky after 1500E. These storms moved east. The largest hail occurred over extreme northern Lawrence County. Localized wind damage occurred just west of Grayson in Carter County.

Besides the usual ponding of water and overflowing ditch lines, the localized downpours caused one incident of minor flash flooding.

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 Charleston, WV wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at May 1, 1:38 PM EST, 2 hours 2 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, May 1, 1:38 PM EST, 2 hours 2 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON WV
238 PM EDT SUN MAY 1 2016

.SYNOPSIS...
UNSTABLE TODAY WITH COLD FRONT SINKING SOUTHEAST TONIGHT.
UNSETTLED MONDAY INTO TUESDAY. LARGE UPPER TROUGH BRINGS COOL AND
UNSETTLED WEATHER TOWARD END OF THE WEEK.

&&

.NEAR TERM /THROUGH MONDAY/...
BREAKS IN CLOUDS OFFER A CHANCE TO DESTABILIZE ATMOSPHERE FOR A
ROUND OF AFTERNOON SHOWERS AND STORMS.

LIS < 4 AND CAPE > 1000 J/KG AND EVEN UP TO 2000 J/KG IN SOME
LOCATIONS SHOULD BE ENOUGH TO GENERATE A ROUND OF STORMS THIS
AFTERNOON.  THESE STORMS WILL BE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING MODERATE TO
HEAVY RAIN...POSING A THREAT FOR FLASH FLOODING...AND A SMALL
CHANCE FOR DAMAGING WIND AND/OR HAIL. THE MAIN CONCERN IS STORMS
TRAIPSING ACROSS AREAS ALREADY HARD HIT BY LAST NIGHTS RAIN. SO
WILL NEED TO KEEP AN EYE OUT FOR FLASH FLOODING.

A FEW LINGERING SHOWERS OVERNIGHT AS WE GET A LITTLE BREAK IN THE
WEATHER BEFORE ANOTHER SYSTEM ARRIVES MONDAY.

&&

.SHORT TERM /MONDAY NIGHT THROUGH TUESDAY NIGHT/...
COLD FRONT...WITH A SURFACE WAVE ALONG IT...EXITS TO THE EAST
MONDAY NIGHT INTO TUESDAY MORNING. HAVE LIKELY POPS MONDAY NIGHT WITH
SHOWERS LINGERING TUESDAY AS AN UPPER LEVEL SHORTWAVE TROUGH AND
LOBE OF VORTICITY CROSS. SHOULD GET A MAINLY DRY PERIOD TUESDAY
NIGHT. USED A CONSENSUS BLEND FOR TEMPERATURES WITH ONLY MINIMAL
CHANGE TO PREVIOUS FORECAST.

&&

.LONG TERM /WEDNESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY/...
UPPER LEVEL LOW SINKS INTO THE REGION WEDNESDAY INTO THURSDAY
BRINGING COOLER TEMPERATURES WITH PERIODS OF PRECIPITATION. THIS
LOW LINGERS INTO THE WEEKEND SO MAINTAIN GENERALLY CHANCE POPS
THROUGH SATURDAY. MODELS IN FAIRLY GOOD AGREEMENT MOVING IT OUT TO
SEA SUNDAY. STUCK CLOSE TO WPC FOR TEMPERATURES...BUT DID UNDERCUT
THEM A BIT WITH THE UPPER LOW OVERHEAD. MAY EVEN BE COLD ENOUGH
FOR SOME FLAKES OF SNOW MIXING IN WITH RAIN AT THE HIGHEST
ELEVATIONS OF THE NORTHERN MOUNTAINS DURING THE PRE-DAWN HOURS
FRIDAY AND AGAIN SATURDAY.

&&

.AVIATION /18Z SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY/...
VFR EXCEPT UNDER SHOWERS WHERE IFR IS POSSIBLE. A FRONT WILL BRING
SHOWERS TO THE AREA THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING. SOME OF THESE
STORMS COULD BE INTENSE. HIGH LOW LEVEL RH MAY POSE A THREAT FOR
FOG OVERNIGHT.

FORECAST CONFIDENCE AND ALTERNATE SCENARIOS THROUGH 18Z MONDAY...

FORECAST CONFIDENCE: MEDIUM.

ALTERNATE SCENARIOS: TIMING AND INTENSITY OF SHOWERS AND STORMS
COULD VARY. HEAVIER SHOWERS SHOULD PRODUCE IFR...BUT NOT CONFIDENT
ENOUGH IN THE TIMING TO PUT IN TAF.

EXPERIMENTAL TABLE OF FLIGHT CATEGORY OBJECTIVELY SHOWS CONSISTENCY
OF WFO FORECAST TO AVAILABLE MODEL INFORMATION:
H = HIGH:   TAF CONSISTENT WITH ALL MODELS OR ALL BUT ONE MODEL.
M = MEDIUM: TAF HAS VARYING LEVEL OF CONSISTENCY WITH MODELS.
L = LOW:    TAF INCONSISTENT WITH ALL MODELS OR ALL BUT ONE MODEL.

UTC 1HRLY       15   16   17   18   19   20   21   22   23   00   01   02
EDT 1HRLY       11   12   13   14   15   16   17   18   19   20   21   22
CRW CONSISTENCY  H    H    H    H    H    H    H    H    M    H    H    H
HTS CONSISTENCY  M    H    H    H    H    H    H    H    H    H    H    H
BKW CONSISTENCY  H    H    H    H    H    H    H    H    H    H    H    H
EKN CONSISTENCY  H    H    H    H    H    H    H    H    H    H    H    H
PKB CONSISTENCY  H    H    H    H    H    H    H    H    H    H    H    H
CKB CONSISTENCY  H    H    H    H    H    H    H    H    H    H    H    H

AFTER 18Z MONDAY...
IFR POSSIBLE THROUGH LATE SUNDAY NIGHT WITH ADDITIONAL ROUNDS OF
SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS..AND IN STRATUS LINGERING INTO MONDAY
MORNING.

&&

.RLX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
WV...FLASH FLOOD WATCH UNTIL 11 PM EDT THIS EVENING FOR WVZ005>011-
     013>020-024>040-046-047.
OH...FLASH FLOOD WATCH UNTIL 11 PM EDT THIS EVENING FOR OHZ066-067-
     075-076-083>087.
KY...FLASH FLOOD WATCH UNTIL 11 PM EDT THIS EVENING FOR KYZ101>103-
     105.
VA...FLASH FLOOD WATCH UNTIL 11 PM EDT THIS EVENING FOR VAZ003-004.

&&

SYNOPSIS...JW/MZ
NEAR TERM...JW
SHORT TERM...MZ
LONG TERM...MZ
AVIATION...JW

Hazardous weather outlook, May 1, 3:25 PM EST, 15 minutes before

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON WV
425 PM EDT SUN MAY 1 2016

OHZ066-067-075-076-083>085-WVZ009-022030-
PERRY-MORGAN-ATHENS-WASHINGTON-JACKSON OH-VINTON-MEIGS-WOOD-
425 PM EDT SUN MAY 1 2016

...FLASH FLOOD WATCH IN EFFECT UNTIL 11 PM EDT THIS EVENING...

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF SOUTHEAST OHIO
AND PORTIONS OF THE NORTHERN WEST VIRGINIA LOWLANDS.

.DAY ONE...TONIGHT.

PLEASE LISTEN TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO OR GO TO WEATHER.GOV ON THE
INTERNET FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE FOLLOWING HAZARDS.

   FLASH FLOOD WATCH.

STRONGER THUNDERSTORMS THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING MAY CONTAIN
LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WIND GUSTS.

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

ADDITIONAL ROUNDS OF SHOWERS OR THUNDERSTORMS MAY CAUSE LOCALIZED
FLOODING CONCERNS THROUGH TUESDAY MORNING.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER
 CONDITIONS ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES.

KYZ101>103-105-OHZ086-087-WVZ005>008-013>016-024>026-022030-
GREENUP-CARTER-BOYD-LAWRENCE KY-GALLIA-LAWRENCE OH-WAYNE-CABELL-
MASON-JACKSON WV-LINCOLN-PUTNAM-KANAWHA-ROANE-MINGO-LOGAN-BOONE-
425 PM EDT SUN MAY 1 2016

...FLASH FLOOD WATCH IN EFFECT UNTIL 11 PM EDT THIS EVENING...
...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH 134 IN EFFECT UNTIL 11 PM EDT THIS
EVENING...

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTHEAST KENTUCKY...PORTIONS
OF SOUTHEAST OHIO...AND MUCH OF THE CENTRAL WEST
VIRGINIA...SOUTHERN AND WESTERN WEST VIRGINIA LOWLANDS.

.DAY ONE...TONIGHT.

PLEASE LISTEN TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO OR GO TO WEATHER.GOV ON THE
INTERNET FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE FOLLOWING HAZARDS.

   FLASH FLOOD WATCH.
   SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH.

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

ADDITIONAL ROUNDS OF SHOWERS OR THUNDERSTORMS MAY CAUSE LOCALIZED
FLOODING CONCERNS THROUGH TUESDAY MORNING.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER
 CONDITIONS ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES.

VAZ003-004-WVZ010-011-017>020-027>040-046-047-022030-
DICKENSON-BUCHANAN-PLEASANTS-TYLER-WIRT-CALHOUN-RITCHIE-DODDRIDGE-
CLAY-BRAXTON-GILMER-LEWIS-HARRISON-TAYLOR-MCDOWELL-WYOMING-RALEIGH-
FAYETTE-NICHOLAS-WEBSTER-UPSHUR-BARBOUR-POCAHONTAS-RANDOLPH-
425 PM EDT SUN MAY 1 2016

...FLASH FLOOD WATCH IN EFFECT UNTIL 11 PM EDT THIS EVENING...

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA...PORTIONS
OF THE NORTHERN WEST VIRGINIA LOWLANDS...AND THE WEST VIRGINIA
MOUNTAINS.

.DAY ONE...TONIGHT.

PLEASE LISTEN TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO OR GO TO WEATHER.GOV ON THE
INTERNET FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE FOLLOWING HAZARDS.

   FLASH FLOOD WATCH.

ISOLATED STRONG TO SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE LATE THIS
AFTERNOON AND EVENING. HAIL AND STRONG...GUSTY WINDS ARE THE MAIN
THREAT.

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

ADDITIONAL ROUNDS OF SHOWERS OR THUNDERSTORMS MAY CAUSE LOCALIZED
FLOODING CONCERNS THROUGH TUESDAY MORNING.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER
 CONDITIONS ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES.

TRM

In the hours before

Local storm report, May 1, 1:31 PM EST, 2 hours 9 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT...SUMMARY
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON WV
231 PM EDT SUN MAY 01 2016

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0647 AM     FLASH FLOOD      3 S TURTLE CREEK        37.99N  81.87W
05/01/2016                   BOONE              WV   TRAINED SPOTTER

            6 MILE CREEK HAS JUST COME OUT OF ITS BANK AND IS NOW
            FLOWING OVER 6 MILE ROAD

0650 AM     FLASH FLOOD      LOGAN                   37.85N  81.99W
05/01/2016                   LOGAN              WV   911 CALL CENTER

            WATER OVER MOUNT GAY ROAD IN LOGAN

0820 AM     FLASH FLOOD      HARTS                   38.03N  82.13W
05/01/2016                   LINCOLN            WV   911 CALL CENTER

            WATER OVER ALFORD BRIDGE. HOUSES IN DANGER IF STREAM
            RISES. MOVING FIRE TRUCKS OUT OF FIRE DEPT.

0820 AM     FLASH FLOOD      2 E CHAPMANVILLE        37.97N  81.98W
05/01/2016                   LOGAN              WV   BROADCAST MEDIA

            GARRET FORK OUT OF ITS BANKS AND BLOCKING GARRETS FORK
            ROAD IN CHAPMANVILLE

0825 AM     FLASH FLOOD      3 E KERMIT              37.84N  82.36W
05/01/2016                   MINGO              WV   911 CALL CENTER

            WATER RESCUE ONGOING ALONG MARROWBONE CREEK

0835 AM     FLASH FLOOD      GRIFFITHSVILLE          38.24N  81.99W
05/01/2016                   LINCOLN            WV   EMERGENCY MNGR

            HIGH WATER COVERING ROUTE 3 NEAR DUVAL
            MIDDLE/ELEMENTARY SCHOOL. ROAD IS BLOCKED.

0840 AM     FLASH FLOOD      6 SW CHAPMANVILLE       37.92N  82.09W
05/01/2016                   LOGAN              WV   BROADCAST MEDIA

            WATER BLOCKING BROWNS RUN ROAD.

0855 AM     FLASH FLOOD      3 SW CHAPMANVILLE       37.95N  82.05W
05/01/2016                   LOGAN              WV   BROADCAST MEDIA

            CRAWLEY CREEK OUT OF ITS BANKS AND INTO PROPERTY ALONG
            CRAWLEY CREEK ROAD AT THE INTERSECTION OF PITT
            BRANCH-MARSH FORK ROAD.

0945 AM     FLASH FLOOD      3 N CHAPMANVILLE        38.01N  82.02W
05/01/2016                   LOGAN              WV   BROADCAST MEDIA

            STONE BRANCH OUT OF ITS BANKS AND COVERING ED STONE
            BRANCH ROAD TO THE NORTH OF CHAPMANVILLE

&&

EVENT NUMBER RLX1600917 RLX1600918 RLX1600919 RLX1600922 RLX1600920
RLX1600921 RLX1600924 RLX1600923 RLX1600925

MAC

The radar

The Jackson,KY radar (KJKL), 82 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 20:40 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

7 hail, 1 thunderstorm wind, 1 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Hail, Carter

When: May 1, 3:40 PM EST
Where: Carter County, 0.88 mi SE of Prater
Measured: 1 in hail
Reported by: Trained Spotter
Coordinates: 38.320, -83.140

Hail, Carter

When: May 1, 3:40 PM EST
Where: Carter County, 1.38 mi S of Wesleyville
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Reported by: Public
Coordinates: 38.380, -83.170

Hail, Carter

When: May 1, 3:45 PM EST
Where: Carter County, 2.34 mi SSE of Wolf
Measured: 0.88 in hail
Reported by: Trained Spotter
Coordinates: 38.350, -83.100

Thunderstorm Wind, Carter

When: May 1, 4:03 PM EST to 4:05 PM EST
Where: Carter County, 1.95 mi W of Grayson to 1.41 mi WSW of Grayson
Measured: 74 kt (85 mph) estimated gust
Property damage: $25,000
Reported by: NWS Storm Survey
Coordinates: 38.331, -82.986

A damage path started along Criswell Lane, where a few trees were snapped and uprooted. A single wide trailer was destroyed near the intersection of Satellite Road and Route 60. The strongest winds were estimated around 85 mph in this valley. The damage extended to Sunset Hill Road and ended along Green Oaks Drive. Several large trees were uprooted. Two small old barns were also damaged in this event. Luckily, no injuries occurred.

Hail, Carter

When: May 1, 4:03 PM EST
Where: Carter County, 1.4 mi WSW of Grayson
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Property damage: $25,000
Reported by: NWS Storm Survey
Coordinates: 38.326, -82.975

In addition to the wind damage, golf ball size hail fell along Green Oaks Drive.

Hail, Carter

When: May 1, 4:05 PM EST
Where: Carter County, Grayson
Measured: 1 in hail
Reported by: Public
Coordinates: 38.330, -82.950

Hail, Lawrence

When: May 1, 4:30 PM EST
Where: Lawrence County, 1.15 mi WNW of Adeline
Measured: 2.5 in hail
Property damage: $20,000
Reported by: Emergency Manager
Coordinates: 38.255, -82.670

Hail around the size of tennis balls fell near the northern county line.

Hail, Lawrence

When: May 1, 4:30 PM EST
Where: Lawrence County, 2.51 mi N of Cadmus
Measured: 2.75 in hail
Property damage: $25,000
Reported by: Social Media
Coordinates: 38.206, -82.688

The largest hail stones that fell along Route 3399 were about the size of baseballs, but with many protrusions, instead of circular.

Flash Flood, Boyd

When: May 1, 4:45 PM EST to 6:00 PM EST
Where: Boyd County, 0.82 mi SE of Rockdale to 1.6 mi WNW of Meads
Cause: Heavy Rain
Property damage: $25,000
Reported by: 911 Call Center
Coordinates: 38.413, -82.668

Streams overflowed and blocked roads. Shope Creek washed out a section of Route 538.

What these are

Hail: Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.
Thunderstorm Wind: Winds from a thunderstorm of 50 knots (58 mph) or more, or lower winds that caused damage or casualties. Measured gusts are marked MG, estimated EG.
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

Every storm in Kentucky in 2016 Every state in 2016 This day in weather history Warnings in Kentucky, May 2016

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: 622182, 622193, 622234, 622216, 622299, 622194, 622198, 622222, 622238.