Flash Flood in Botetourt County, Virginia

Extensive road damage occurred on Grove Hill Road between White Church Road and the border between Craig and Botetourt Counties due to considerable flash flooding of North Fork Catawba Creek, which was observed well out of its banks. Multiple vehicles were stranded due to the flash flooding, with the occupants requiring swift water rescue from emergency services personnel. Two minor injuries were reported of those rescued occupants. At least 6 homes were cutoff from access along Grove Hill Road between White Church Road and Lees Gap Road.

A line of thunderstorms developed over eastern Craig County at around 4:00 PM EDT and quickly spread eastward over the Catawba Creek basin in neighboring Botetourt County. Multiple cells trained over this area through around 6:45 PM EDT before exiting to the south. These storms formed along a stationary front situated across central Virginia. Convergence along the front provided focus for initiation of the storms, which were supported with surface-based CAPEs exceeding 2,000 J/Kg, and precipitable water values in the 1.7 to 1.8 inch range, which are nearly 2 standard deviations above normal for mid-June. By 5:00 PM EDT, roughly 2 inches of rain had fallen across eastern Craig County, with no impressive response in MRMS FLASH data. An additional 2 to 2.5 inches fell by 6:00 PM EDT however, with FLASH 3-hour ARI indicating at 200+-year event across eastern Craig County. Surprisingly, there did not appear to be any flash flooding warning issued for this event. By 7:00 PM EDT, the 3-hour QPE/FFG ratio indicated that rainfall totals were slightly over 3 times the 3-hour flash flood guidance for the area.