

000 

WGUS72 KGSP 172134

FFSGSP

NCC035-180030-



FLASH FLOOD STATEMENT

NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC

534 PM EDT SAT AUG 17 2002



...A FLASH FLOOD WARNING CONTINUES UNTIL 800 PM EDT FOR NORTHERN 

CATAWBA COUNTY IN NORTH CAROLINA...



EXTREMELY HEAVY RAINFALL CONTINUES IN AND AROUND HICKORY.  THE 

COUNTY COMMUNICATIONS CENTER HAS REPORTED SOME FLOODING...WITH 

PEOPLE REQUIRING RESCUE FROM VEHICLES.  RADAR ESTIMATED THAT AS MUCH 

AS 4 TO 5 INCHES OF RAIN HAS FALLEN IN THE PAST 2 HOURS IN AND 

AROUND THE CITY.



RADAR SHOWED EXTREMELY HEAVY RAIN DEVELOPING ON THE WESTERN SIDE OF 

THE COMPLEX...INTO BURKE COUNTY...AND MOVING EAST ACROSS HICKORY.



THIS IS LIKELY TO BECOME AN EXTREMELY SERIOUS FLASH FLOOD IN URBAN 

AREAS AROUND HICKORY.



DURING HEAVY RAIN EVENTS...SEVERE URBAN FLOODING CAN OCCUR IN AREAS

SUCH AS UNDERPASSES...AND LOW AREAS WHERE WATER TENDS TO COLLECT.

CHILDREN SHOULD BE KEPT AWAY FROM SMALL STREAMS AND STORM DRAINS.



DO NOT BECOME A FATALITY DO NOT CROSS FLOODED ROADS...THE ROAD COULD

BE WASHED OUT FROM THE FLOW OF THE WATER...AND YOUR CAR COULD BE 

SWEPT AWAY BY THE SWIFTLY MOVING WATER. MOST FATALITIES IN FLOODS 

ARE WHEN VEHICLES ARE CAUGHT IN FLOOD WATER.  EVEN MODERN SPORTS 

UTILITY VEHICLES CANNOT BE DRIVEN SAFELY IN HIGH WATER.



$$

JONES

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