Flood — Monroe, West Virginia

2023-02-17 to 2023-02-18 · near Wolf Creek, Monroe, West Virginia

Event narrative

The Greenbrier River at Alderson, WV crested at 14.69 feet (flood stage is 14 feet). This flooding is between a 2- and a 5-year average recurrence interval for this location.

Wider weather episode

Prolonged rainfall over a 24- to 25-hour period ended around 8 AM EST on February 17th, which resulted in localized minor river flooding across portions of southeast West Virginia (SEWV). Unusual warmth during most of the river meant no frozen ground, snow cover or river ice in the area. However, MRMS CREST indicated that the ground was still 50 to 75 percent saturated from widespread rainfall during the 12th and 13th, just a few days prior. On the morning of the 16th, SEWV was located on the south side of a stationary front draped near the Ohio River. Strong southwesterly windflow carried deep moisture from the Gulf of Mexico across the area, with precipitable water values (PWATs) in excess of 1.0 inch through much of the day on the 16th. PWATs would increase to around 1.2 inches by sunrise of the 17th, just as a supporting upper level trough began to push across the Appalachian chain. Rainfall rates were generally under a quarter inch per hour on the 16th, but began to increase during the overnight hours as the trough approached, in some instances exceeding an inch per hour for brief periods of time as a few thunderstorms developed, supported by Most-Unstable Layer CAPE values increasing to over 1,000 J/Kg ahead of the approaching trough. Total rainfall amounts through the event ranged from 2.25 to locally 3.50 inches, resulting in minor river flooding along the Greenbrier, Bluestone and Meadow Rivers, as well as Anthony Creek. Other smaller tributaries experienced minor flooding as well. No flash flooding occurred. Reported impacts were limited to flooded roads with little to no damage.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (37.7296, -80.6766)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1071431. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.