Rhode Island, 1996

High Wind in Rhode Island, February 25, 1996

February 25, 1996 · NWS BOX · 7 events in 7 counties and zones

A deep low pressure system over northern Maine combined with a strong high pressure area centered over South Carolina to produce a "tight pressure gradient" and a period of very powerful and damaging west to northwest winds. In Narragansett, a 200-year-old oak tree snapped and fell, crushing a car and narrowly missed striking a police officer.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 7 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.

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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
7

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 BOX wrote it up.

A deep low pressure system over northern Maine combined with a strong high pressure area centered over South Carolina to produce a "tight pressure gradient" and a period of very powerful and damaging west to northwest winds. In Narragansett, a 200-year-old oak tree snapped and fell, crushing a car and narrowly missed striking a police officer. Four utility poles were snapped in Narragansett and up to 13,000 electric customers lost power statewide. Many tree limbs and wires were knocked down and there was scattered property damage to homes, which included shingles blown off roofs and trees and tree limbs falling and causing damage. Some peak wind gusts included: Middletown, 80 mph; Cumberland, 67 mph; T.F. Green Airport, West Warwick, 61 mph; downtown Providence, 60 mph; and Pawtucket, 59 mph. The ferry which runs from the mainland to Block Island was cancelled for the day.

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

7 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.

High Wind, Northwest Providence

When
February 25, 7:30 AM EST to 5:00 PM EST
Where
Northwest Providence forecast zone
Measured
58 kt (67 mph)
Coordinates
41.871, -71.579 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, Southeast Providence

When
February 25, 7:30 AM EST to 5:00 PM EST
Where
Southeast Providence forecast zone
Measured
52 kt (60 mph)
Coordinates
41.871, -71.579 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, Western Kent

When
February 25, 7:30 AM EST to 5:00 PM EST
Where
Western Kent forecast zone
Measured
50 kt (58 mph)
Coordinates
41.673, -71.579 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, Eastern Kent

When
February 25, 7:30 AM EST to 5:00 PM EST
Where
Eastern Kent forecast zone
Measured
53 kt (61 mph)
Coordinates
41.673, -71.579 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, Bristol

When
February 25, 7:30 AM EST to 5:00 PM EST
Where
Bristol forecast zone
Measured
50 kt (58 mph)
Coordinates
41.706, -71.286 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, Washington

When
February 25, 7:30 AM EST to 5:00 PM EST
Where
Washington forecast zone
Measured
70 kt (81 mph)
Coordinates
41.397, -71.620 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, Newport

When
February 25, 7:30 AM EST to 5:00 PM EST
Where
Newport forecast zone
Measured
50 kt (58 mph)
Coordinates
41.500, -71.281 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

High Wind
Sustained non-thunderstorm winds of 40 mph or more for an hour, or gusts of 58 mph or more.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Rhode Island in 1996Every state in 1996This day in weather historyWarnings in Rhode Island, February 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: 5552248, 5552249, 5552250, 5552251, 5552252, 5552253, 5552254.