Service Assessment
South Texas Floods
October 17-22, 1998
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
- National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
- National Weather Service
- Silver Spring, Maryland
Cover: San Antonio, Texas, fire department
rescuing a man who had been trapped on top of his car for 2 hours Saturday morning,
October 17, 1998. (Photograph by Morris Goen/San Antonio Express-News Staff
Photographer. Copyright © 1998 San Antonio Express-News.)
Table of Contents
- Preface
- Acronyms
- Service Assessment Team
- Service Assessment Summary
- Facts, Findings, and
Recommendations
- Appendix A
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE - William M. Daley, Secretary
-
- National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
- D. James Baker, Administrator
-
- National Weather Service
- John J. Kelly, Jr., Assistant Administrator
Preface
Torrential rains over south and southeast Texas during the
weekend of October 17-18, 1998, led to widespread and deadly flooding. A total of 31
people died during this event, and property damage estimates approached three quarters of
a billion dollars.
The event occurred within areas served by three National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), National Weather Service (NWS) field
forecast offices and by one NOAA/NWS River Forecast Center. Due to the magnitude of this
flood event, a Service Assessment Team was assembled to examine all aspects of the warning
services provided by NWS offices to the citizens and public officials of the areas
affected.
This Service Assessment highlights successful operational
procedures and identifies shortcomings noted during this event. Findings and
recommendations are presented which will be used in our ongoing efforts to continually
improve NWS services for the citizens of this country.
John J. Kelly, Jr.
Assistant Administrator for
Weather Services
February 1999
Acronyms
| AWIPS |
Advanced Weather Interactive Processing System |
| CDT |
Central Daylight Time |
| cfs |
cubic feet per second |
| CWA |
County Warning Area |
| DCP |
Data Collection Platform |
| EMWIN |
Emergency Managers Weather Information Network |
| FFA |
Flash Flood Watch |
| GBRA |
Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority |
| GOES |
Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite |
| HAM |
Amateur Radio Operator |
| HPC |
Hydrological Prediction Center |
| HSA |
Hydrologic Service Area |
| HWO |
Hazardous Weather Outlook |
| LAG/K |
Lag and K Hydrologic Routing Procedure |
| LCRA |
Lower Colorado River Authority |
| LMRFC |
Lower Mississippi River Forecast Center |
| MIC |
Meteorologist in Charge |
| NCEP |
National Centers for Environmental Prediction |
| NEXRAD |
Next Generation Weather Radar |
| NOAA |
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration |
| NWRSAME |
NOAA Weather Radio Specific Area Message Encoder |
| NWS |
National Weather Service |
| NWSFO |
NEXRAD Weather Service Forecast Office |
| NWSO |
NEXRAD Weather Service Office |
| NWSRFS |
National Weather Service River Forecast System |
| NWWS |
NOAA Weather Wire Service |
| QPF |
Quantitative Precipitation Forecast |
| ROML |
Regional Operations Manual Letter |
| SFD |
State Forecast Discussion |
| SHEF |
Standard Hydrometeorological Exchange Format |
| SPC |
Storm Prediction Center |
| SRH |
Southern Regional Headquarters |
| USGS |
U.S. Geological Survey |
| WGRFC |
West Gulf River Forecast Center |
Service Assessment Team
This Service Assessment Team was formally activated on October 26, 1998, with all team
members traveling to Texas on October 27. The team remained in Texas through November 1,
collecting information pertaining to the flooding from a wide variety of sources, both
within and outside the NWS. Before leaving Texas, the team completed the first draft of
the report. After completion of the field work, the team continued to gather and review
information before preparing the final version of this Service Assessment.
- The team was comprised of the following individuals:
- Stephen Harned Team Leader, Meteorologist In Charge (MIC),
Next Generation Weather Radar (NEXRAD) Weather Service Forecast Office (NWSFO) Raleigh,
North Carolina
- David Reed Hydrologist In Charge, Lower Mississippi River Forecast
Center (LMRFC), Slidell, Louisiana
- Larry Eblen Warning Coordination Meteorologist, NWSFO Austin/San
Antonio, Texas
- Treste' Huse Service Hydrologist, NEXRAD Weather Service Office (NWSO)
Rapid City, South Dakota
- Curtis Carey Southern Region Headquarters (SRH), Public Affairs
Officer, Ft. Worth, Texas
The team would like to thank those people with the following entities who took the time
to be interviewed by team members while in Texas. Valuable information was gathered during
these interviews.
- NOAA/NWS Offices
- West Gulf River Forecast Center (WGRFC)
- NWSFO Austin/San Antonio
- NWSO Houston/Galveston
- NWSO Corpus Christi
-
- State of Texas
- Assistant State Emergency Coordinator
-
- County Emergency Managers
- Bexar, Caldwell, Dewitt, Gonzales, Guadalupe, Jackson, Wilson
-
- City Emergency Managers
- Luling, New Braunfels, San Antonio
-
- River Authorities
- Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority (GBRA)
- Lavaca-Navidad River Authority
- Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA)
-
- Federal Officials
- U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) -- Austin
- USGS -- San Antonio
- Corps of Engineers -- Canyon Lake
-
- Other City/County/State Officials
- Gonzales City Manager
- Gonzales City Police Chief
- Hays County Fire Marshal
- Hays County Sheriff
- Seguin Fire Chief
- Victoria County Judge
- Victoria City Fire Chief
-
- Media
- San Antonio Express-News
- KSAT-TV -- San Antonio
- KMOL-TV -- San Antonio
- KWEX-TV (Spanish Language) -- San Antonio
- KAVU-TV -- Victoria
- KVET/KASE Radio -- Austin
-
- Other valuable contributors include:
- Larry Wenzel, Hydrometeorological Technician, NWS Headquarters, Office of Hydrology,
Silver Spring, Maryland
- Linda Kremkau, Technical Editor, NWS Headquarters, Office of Meteorology, Silver Spring,
Maryland
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