Shadyside Ohio Flooding, June 14, 1990

General Overview

A deadly flash flood occurred in eastern Ohio near the town of Shadyside on the evening of June 14, 1990. Over 3 inches of rain fell along Pipe and Wegee Creeks in a short period of time (under 2 hours). There were 26 known deaths in Ohio during this event, of which 24 were along Pipe and Wegee Creeks with the remaining 2 along the Cumberland Run about 8-10 miles west/northwest of Shadyside.

With the rain falling in such a short amount of time, witnesses reported a wall of water between 10 and 30 feet rapidly moving downstream about 45 minutes after the onset of the heavy rain over the headwaters. Runoff was enhanced due to a very wet spring. Rainfall during May was 200 percent of normal. One resident described a sheet of water, ankle deep, running down the hill side near his house.

Shadyside is located in the western foothills of the Appalachians and characterized by small hills with steep slopes and narrow valleys. Most residents lived along the narrow flat land along the creek, adding to the potential danger. About 80 houses were completely destroyed, 79 sustained major damage and 172 houses sustained minor damage.

Meteorological Conditions

At lower levels, tropical air (abundant moisture) was in place over western Ohio, with a moist tropical flow of air originating from the Gulf of Mexico. Precipitable water amounts were over 1.75" and percent of normal ranged from 180 to near 200%.

On June 13, a large complex of showers and thunderstorms formed to the west of Ohio, producing a outflow boundary oriented southwest-northeast over western Ohio. A second east-west boundary moved southward into eastern Ohio and western Pennsylvania on June 14. This second boundary produced the mesoscale forcing for thunderstorm development. Thunderstorms began to form before 7 pm that evening and rapidly developed. Thunderstorms built backward (towards the southwest) allowing for multiple storms to move along the same track (training). Rainfall rates were further enhanced as two thunderstorms merged over the headwaters.

Hydrologic Conditions

No residents in either basin had rain gages. The only rainfall estimated came from the upper Wegee Creek were 4-5 inches of rain was accumulated in a child's wading pool. The county sheriff received an unofficial report of 3.5" in 30 minutes in Morristown, 15 miles northwest of Shadyside.

Peak discharge was estimated at 13,000 cubic feet per second (cfs) for Wegee Creek and 15,000 cfs for Pipe Creek. Time to crest from the beginning of the rise to the crest was estimated at 40 min for Pipe Creek and 48 min for Wegee Creek. The speed was estimated between 10 to 15 feet per second.