A River Flood Warning is issued by the National Weather Service of the United States when forecast points with formal river gaging sites and established flood stages along rivers, where flooding has been already been forecasted, is imminent or occurring. The National weather service defines river flooding as "the inundation of normally dry areas as a result of increased water levels in an established water course."
A typical warning will state the forecast point covered by the warning, the current flood stage, the established flood stage, and the expected crest, which is issued by the River Forecast Center. The crest will usually occur at least 6 hours after the start of the event and the flooding can be caused by heavy rain in the vicinity of the river, melting snow, and/or ice jams.[1]
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The following is an example of a River Flood Warning issued by the National Weather Service office in Peachtree City, Georgia.[2]
WGUS42 KFFC 240703
FLWFFC
GAC135-250658-
BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PEACHTREE CITY GA
158 AM EST TUE JAN 24 2006
...RIVER FLOOD WARNING FOR PARTS OF THE SUWANEE CREEK...
FOR THE SUWANEE CREEK NEAR SUWANEE...
THE LATEST STAGE WAS 7.9 FEET AT 2 AM TUESDAY.
FLOOD STAGE IS 8.0 FEET.
THE FORECAST FOR THE SUWANEE CREEK NEAR SUWANEE...
THE RIVER WILL RISE ABOVE FLOOD STAGE AROUND 4 AM TUESDAY.
THE RIVER WILL CREST NEAR 8.2 FEET AROUND 7 AM TUESDAY.
THE RIVER WILL FALL BELOW FLOOD STAGE AROUND 12 PM TUESDAY.
AT 8.0 FEET...FLOOD STAGE IS REACHED. MINOR FLOODING BEGINS. SUWANEE
CREEK PARK BEGINS TO FLOOD. THIS CREST COMPARES TO A PREVIOUS CREST
OF 8.2 FEET ON SEP 25 1997.
&&
ALL PERSONS WITH INTERESTS ALONG THE RIVER SHOULD MONITOR THE
LATEST FORECASTS...AND BE PREPARED TO TAKE NECESSARY PRECAUTIONS TO
PROTECT LIFE AND PROPERTY. DO NOT DRIVE CARS THROUGH FLOODED AREAS.
IF YOU SEE FLOOD WATERS...REMEMBER TO TURN AROUND AND DO NOT DROWN.
STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO...WEATHER.GOV...LOCAL TV AND RADIO
STATIONS...OR YOUR CABLE TV OUTLETS...FOR THE LATEST INFORMATION ON
THIS EVENT.
FOR GRAPHICAL HYDROLOGICAL INFORMATION...PLEASE GO TO WEATHER.GOV AND
CLICK ON GEORGIA. SELECT RIVERS AND LAKES AHPS UNDER CURRENT
CONDITIONS. THE ADVANCED HYDROLOGIC PREDICTION SERVICE PAGE PROVIDES
CURRENT AND FORECAST RIVER INFORMATION...GAGE LOCATIONS...IMPACTS...
AND HISTORICAL CREST INFORMATION FOR ALL FORECAST POINTS BY CLICKING
ON EACH POINT.
$$
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