Flood — Buchanan, Virginia

2015-03-04 to 2015-03-05 · near Davenport, Buchanan, Virginia

Event narrative

Small streams started to flood by evening on the 4th. Guess Fork flooded roads around Hurley.

Around 2245E on the 4th, a 61 year old man drove his car into flood waters near the mouth of Hurricane Creek with the Russell Fork. This was along Route 80. His car was washed into the water. His body was recovered the next day. A female occupant of the car was able to escape.

Wider weather episode

A warm front lifted north through the area on the 3rd. Rain amounts were mostly around 2 to 4 tenths of an inch. Late afternoon and evening temperatures rose into the 40s and 50s. Winds and dew points also increased. This combination helped accelerate the melting of any leftover snow cover.

Rains increased again during the afternoon of the 4th. A steady rain continued into the night. Rain rates were mostly 1 to 2 tenths of an inch per hour. This initiated small stream and head water river flooding during the night.

Around 2245E on the 4th, a flood fatality occurred in Buchanan County when a man drove into high water.

Rainfall totals reached 1.75 to 2 inches as the rain was finally transitioning to wet snow before dawn on the 5th. As minor small stream flooding continued, the snow accumulated 4 to 5 inches. The snow diminished toward evening on the 5th.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (37.0855, -82.1300)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 554526. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.