Flash Flood — Whitman, Washington

2018-05-20 · near Grinnell, Whitman, Washington

$20K

Property damage

Event narrative

Heavy rainfall from a slow moving thunderstorm during the evening of May 20th caused Flash Flooding across Ladlow Butte Road near Garfield. A car was swept off the road and into a ditch. The car's occupants were rescued without injury by bystanders. Photos taken as the flood was abating showed mud and debris over a quarter mile stretch of roadway.

Wider weather episode

Slow moving thunderstorms formed during the evening of May 20th over the Palouse region of Washington and Idaho. Heavy rain in the cores of these storms produced local flash flooding and debris flows in largely uninhabited rural areas but temporarily cut some highways.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (46.9693, -117.0946)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 758571. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.