Flash flood warning, flood warning, flood advisory and flood watch. These alerts tend to pop up whenever severe weather hits, but what do they actually mean?

Flash flood emergency warnings are dire alerts issued by the National Weather Service in high-impact situations that warn potentially destructive and life-threatening flooding is imminent or ongoing.

BACKGROUND | "NWS Charleston to introduce changes to flash flood program starting Aug. 1." Under the new system, even less-severe flooding will trigger a more formal warning, officials said.

NPR speaks with Jennifer Horney of the Disaster Research Center at the University of Delaware about what to do if you get a flash flood warning in your area and how to stay safe during a flood.

A flood warning or a flash flood warning is more urgent than a watch, so drivers and pedestrians should avoid flooded streets and move to higher ground in areas where warnings are issued.

This year there have been a record number of flash flood warnings when comparing the same time period, according to data from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet. The 3,722 flash flood warnings that ...

Why Flash Flood Warnings Are Never Enough Even the most comprehensive alerts are only as helpful as people’s responses.

The 3,722 flash flood warnings that occurred between Jan. 1 and July 30 are a record high for the time period going back to 1986.