North Carolina, 1996

Damaging Wind in North Carolina, August 17, 1996

August 17, 1996 · NWS ILM · 1 event in 1 county or zone

Thunderstorm gusts downed trees, and lightning caused power outages for nearly an hour. Heavy rain, around two inches in an hour caused minor street flooding.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it. Tap one for its entry below.

  • Tornadoes
  • Tropical storms and surge
  • Floods
  • Wind
  • Hail
  • Winter weather
  • Heat and drought
  • Cold
  • Fire, smoke and dust
  • Marine and coastal
  • Other

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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
1

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

What happened

The episode as NWS ILM wrote it up.

Thunderstorm gusts downed trees, and lightning caused power outages for nearly an hour. Heavy rain, around two inches in an hour caused minor street flooding.

The radar

The Wilmington radar (KLTX), 45 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 23:02 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Columbus

When
August 17, 6:05 PM EST to 6:50 PM EST
Where
Columbus County, Whiteville
Measured
60 kt (69 mph)
Coordinates
34.330, -78.700

What these are

Thunderstorm Wind
Winds from a thunderstorm of 50 knots (58 mph) or more, or lower winds that caused damage or casualties. Measured gusts are marked MG, estimated EG.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in North Carolina in 1996Every state in 1996This day in weather historyWarnings in North Carolina, August 1996

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5573502.