Alert archive / Tennessee / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2025

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 149, NWS Morristown, TN

May 20, 2025McMinn County, Meigs County, Monroe County, Tennessee

NWS Morristown, TN issued this severe thunderstorm warning at May 20, 2025, 7:11 PM EDT for McMinn County, Meigs County, Monroe County, Tennessee. It was in force for 49 min. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued: May 20, 2025, 7:11 PM EDT (23:11 UTC)
Expired: May 20, 2025, 8:00 PM EDT
In force: 49 min
Issued by: NWS Morristown, TN
Area: Storm-based polygon
Tornado: Possible
Hail: 0.75 in
Wind: 60.0 mph

Counties McMinn County, TN, Meigs County, TN, Monroe County, TN

The radar

The Knoxville radar (KMRX), 131 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 23:11 UTC, the scan nearest the moment this went out.

Open the radar archive at this moment

The archived warnings, watches and discussions in force at that minute are drawn over the scan, this one among them.

The nearest sounding before it

Nashville Metro, TN (KBNA), launched 12:00Z, 11.2 hours before the alert went out and 198 km from the middle of its area. This is the routine balloon launch nearest before it, the air the forecaster had in hand, not a measurement taken for the alert.

Skew-T log-p

Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.

Hodograph

The wind turning with height, colored by layer: ground to 1 km, 1 to 3 km, 3 to 6 km, 6 to 10 km.

Mixed-layer CAPE: 1162 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -41 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 904 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 58 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 114 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 137 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.9
Supercell composite: 3.9

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before this severe thunderstorm warning went out, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Morristown, TN wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at May 20, 3:41 PM EDT, 3 hours 30 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, May 20, 3:41 PM EDT, 3 hours 30 minutes before

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Hazardous weather outlook, May 20, 3:43 PM EDT, 3 hours 28 minutes before

Hazardous Weather Outlook
National Weather Service Morristown TN
343 PM EDT Tue May 20 2025

NCZ060-061-TNZ012>018-035>047-067>074-081>087-098>102-VAZ001-002-
005-006-008-211945-
Cherokee-Clay-Scott TN-Campbell-Claiborne-Hancock-Hawkins-
Sullivan-Johnson-Morgan-Anderson-Union-Grainger-Hamblen-
Northwest Cocke-Cocke Smoky Mountains-Northwest Greene-
Southeast Greene-Washington TN-Unicoi-Northwest Carter-
Southeast Carter-Roane-Loudon-Knox-Jefferson-Northwest Blount-
Blount Smoky Mountains-North Sevier-Sevier Smoky Mountains-
Sequatchie-Bledsoe-Rhea-Meigs-McMinn-Northwest Monroe-
Southeast Monroe-Marion-Hamilton-Bradley-West Polk-East Polk-Lee-
Wise-Scott VA-Russell-Washington VA-
343 PM EDT Tue May 20 2025 /243 PM CDT Tue May 20 2025/

This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for portions of southwest North
Carolina...east Tennessee and southwest Virginia.

.DAY ONE...This Afternoon and Tonight

Severe thunderstorms are expected to continue this afternoon and
into the overnight hours ahead of a cold front. Damaging winds
will be the primary risk, but there will be a chance of large hail
and tornadoes with the strongest storms.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Wednesday through Monday

The probability of widespread hazardous weather is low.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

Spotter activation is not needed at this time.

In the hours before

Special weather statement, May 20, 6:14 PM EDT, 57 minutes before

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Local storm report, May 20, 6:35 PM EDT, 36 minutes before

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Local storm report, May 20, 6:59 PM EDT, 12 minutes before

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Local storm report, May 20, 7:02 PM EDT, 9 minutes before

Preliminary Local Storm Report
National Weather Service Morristown TN
702 PM EDT Tue May 20 2025

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0620 PM     Tstm Wnd Dmg     2 SSW Dunlap            35.35N 85.40W
05/20/2025                   Sequatchie         TN   Public

            Trees down.

&&

dh

Local storm report, May 20, 7:03 PM EDT, 8 minutes before

Preliminary Local Storm Report
National Weather Service Morristown TN
703 PM EDT Tue May 20 2025

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0600 PM     Tstm Wnd Dmg     2 WNW Abingdon          36.72N 82.01W
05/20/2025                   Washington         VA   Public

            Trees down and reports of hail. Hail size
            unknown.

&&

dh

Local storm report, May 20, 7:08 PM EDT, 3 minutes before

Preliminary Local Storm Report
National Weather Service Morristown TN
708 PM EDT Tue May 20 2025

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0650 PM     Tstm Wnd Dmg     3 SSW Sale Creek        35.34N 85.13W
05/20/2025                   Hamilton           TN   Public

            Several trees down.

&&

dh

The office that day

Everything else NWS Morristown, TN issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
May 20, 2:22 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	MRX	Anderson	38 min
May 20, 2:27 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	MRX	Campbell, Morgan, Scott	48 min
May 20, 2:37 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MRX	Anderson, Knox, Morgan, Roane	53 min
May 20, 3:00 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	MRX	Anderson, Knox, Morgan, Roane	45 min
May 20, 3:25 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	MRX	Claiborne, Union	50 min
May 20, 3:35 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	MRX	Union	40 min
May 20, 4:20 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	MRX	Hamblen	40 min
May 20, 4:30 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MRX	Cocke, Grainger, Greene, Hamblen, Hawkins, Jefferson	45 min
May 20, 4:56 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	MRX	Hawkins	49 min
May 20, 4:59 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MRX	Marion, Sequatchie	61 min
May 20, 5:09 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning Considerable damage threat	MRX	Greene, Unicoi, Washington	51 min
May 20, 5:39 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	MRX	Sullivan	51 min
May 20, 5:48 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	MRX	Carter, Unicoi	57 min
May 20, 5:56 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MRX	Bledsoe, Hamilton, Marion, Sequatchie	49 min
May 20, 6:00 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	MRX	Carter	45 min
May 20, 6:14 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	MRX	Johnson	46 min
May 20, 6:42 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MRX	Bradley, Hamilton, Meigs, Rhea	48 min
May 20, 7:54 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	MRX	Monroe	66 min
May 20, 4:54 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	MRX	Russell, Scott, Wise, City of Norton	51 min
May 20, 5:33 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MRX	Russell, Washington	42 min
May 20, 6:09 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	MRX	Washington	36 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Tennessee, 2025 Every severe thunderstorm warning in 2025

Sources

The product and its follow-ups from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service and Storm Prediction Center text; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.