A slow moving area of thunderstorms across portions of southwest Wakulla county dumped 6-10 inches of rain in just a few hours during the early morning of May 21st. Some flash flooding occurred near Sopchoppy.
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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 TAE wrote it up.
A slow moving area of thunderstorms across portions of southwest Wakulla county dumped 6-10 inches of rain in just a few hours during the early morning of May 21st. Some flash flooding occurred near Sopchoppy.
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 Tallahassee, FL wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at May 21, 5:24 AM EST, 1 hour 36 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Tallahassee FL 624 AM EDT Mon May 21 2018 .AVIATION [Through 12Z Tuesday]... MVFR/IFR cigs continue across our area this morning as low clouds prevail. As clouds lift during the morning, VFR cigs should return during the next few hours. A band of showers and thunderstorms could briefly impact TLH with reduced visibility this morning. Chances of showers/storms will increase at all terminals during the afternoon with brief visibility reductions possible. Showers and thunderstorms should end this evening. && .PREV DISCUSSION [305 AM EDT]... .NEAR TERM [Through Today]... A trough of low pressure at the surface will remain present across our area into the northeastern Gulf through the remainder of the day. Currently (as of 2 AM ET) bands of showers continue to slowly propagate northwestward across our area. Most of this activity will be light to moderate with little to no instability across most inland areas. However, a heavier band is currently moving inland into Wakulla and southern Liberty counties, and some training could occur across these areas. PW values around 2" in this area supports heavy rain potential as well. Latest HRRR output has shown 3-6 inches of rain possible from this band over the next several hours. These areas have very high flash flood guidance (generally 4 to 6 inches over 3 hours); however, we will continue to monitor this situation in case particularly heavy rain totals develop. After a brief lull in showers/isolated thunderstorms later this morning, instability will increase and deep layer moisture will remain in place. Scattered showers and thunderstorms will become widespread again this afternoon, although any heavy rain is expected to be short-lived with these storms. High coverage of showers/storms along with overcast skies will keep high temperatures down again today, with highs ranging from the upper 70s to lower 80s across our area. .SHORT TERM [Tonight Through Wednesday]... In the upper levels a weak trough is over the region until Wednesday morning. At the surface a weak pressure gradient is in place but southerly flow continues to bring tropical moisture into the region. POPs will remain elevated throughout the forecast period. The best chance for showers and thunderstorms will be in the afternoon and evening hours. Skies will be mostly cloudy. Lows will be near 70. Highs will be in the lower 80s on Tuesday and mid 80s on Wednesday. .LONG TERM [Wednesday Night Through Monday]... In the upper levels a low is expected to develop over the Gulf on Thursday night. At the surface a low is expected to develop over the Gulf on Thursday night. Another influx of tropical moisture is expected this weekend. POPs will be elevated even at night. At this time the highest rain chances are Saturday and Sunday. Scattered showers and thunderstorms are expected on Thursday and Friday. Lows will be near 70. Highs will be in the mid to upper 80s. .MARINE... Moderate southeasterly winds are expected today and tomorrow. Wednesday and Thursday winds will be fairly light before becoming moderate again on Friday. Seas will be 2 to 3 feet this week. A wet pattern will be in place this week especially this weekend. .FIRE WEATHER... With ample moisture and light winds across our area, no fire weather concerns are anticipated through the next several days. .HYDROLOGY... A wet pattern will be in place this week. Three to five inches of rain is predicted for most locations over the next seven days. Most local rivers are still below action stage. Rain totals will increase this weekend and river levels will be rising. River gauges will need to be closely monitored. Flash flooding cannot be ruled out especially this weekend. Although any flooding will most likely be nuisance flooding of low-lying areas and ponding on roadways. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... Spotter activation is not requested. However, spotters are always encouraged to safely report significant weather conditions when they occur by calling the office or tweeting us @NWSTallahassee. && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... Tallahassee 82 70 84 69 86 / 70 40 40 20 50 Panama City 80 72 82 73 84 / 70 40 50 20 40 Dothan 79 69 83 70 85 / 80 50 70 40 60 Albany 81 69 84 69 86 / 70 50 70 40 60 Valdosta 82 68 84 67 86 / 70 40 60 30 60 Cross City 82 68 85 68 86 / 60 50 50 30 40 Apalachicola 80 73 82 73 82 / 70 30 30 20 30 && .TAE WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... FL...None. GA...None. AL...None. GM...None. && NEAR TERM...Lahr SHORT TERM...McD LONG TERM...McD AVIATION...Lahr MARINE...McD FIRE WEATHER...Lahr HYDROLOGY...McD
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TALLAHASSEE FL
649 AM EDT MON MAY 21 2018
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0600 AM HEAVY RAIN 2 ENE MCINTYRE 29.99N 84.50W
05/21/2018 M8.79 INCH WAKULLA FL MESONET
8.79 INCHES OF RAIN MEASURED IN 6 HOURS AT
SITE CTMF1 ENDING AT 6 AM EDT.
&&
DVDThe Tallahassee radar (KTLH), 45 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 11:59 UTC.
1 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.
The Sopchoppy post office reported that several side roads off of Highway 319 were flooded south of Sopchoppy. Between 6 and 10 inches of rain fell in just a few hours in the area.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Florida in 2018Every state in 2018This day in weather historyWarnings in Florida, May 2018
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: 752850.