

000 

WGUS72 KGSP 172220

FFSGSP

NCC023-035-180015-



FLASH FLOOD STATEMENT

NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC

620 PM EDT SAT AUG 17 2002



...FLASH FLOOD WARNINGS CONTINUE UNTIL 8 PM EDT FOR CATAWBA COUNTY 

AND UNTIL 9 PM FOR BURKE COUNTY...



A VERY SERIOUS FLASH FLOOD HAS BEEN ONGOING...AND WILL GET 

WORSE...IN CATAWBA COUNTY...AROUND THE CITY OF HICKORY.  NUMEROUS 

TREES AND POWER LINES HAVE BEEN DOWNED...PEOPLE HAVE BEEN TRAPPED IN 

VEHICLES CAUGHT IN FLOOD WATER...AND THERE IS A REPORT OF STRUCTURE 

DAMAGE FROM LIGHTNING FIRES...AND FROM THE WEIGHT OF RAINWATER ON 

FLAT ROOFS.



RADAR INDICATED AS MUCH AS 5 TO 6 INCHES RAIN IN THE PAST 2 TO 3 

HOURS...AROUND HICKORY.  RADAR INDICATED 2 TO 4 INCHES IN BURKE 

COUNTY BETWEEN MORGANTON AND THE CATAWA BORDER.  RADAR SHOWED MORE 

STORMS MOVING OVER THE SAME AREAS...AND ADDITIONAL HEAVY RAINFALL 

AND SERIOUS FLOODING TO FOLLOW.  FLOODING COULD BECOME SERIOUS IN 

BURKE COUNTY AS WELL AS CATAWBA.



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.



$$

JONES

