Damaging Winds in Maryland, August 31, 2001

Name: Damaging Winds in Maryland, August 31, 2001
Start: 2001-08-31T20:45
End: 2001-08-31T21:30
Location: Maryland

August 31, 2001 · NWS LWX · 4 events in 4 counties and zones

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

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: $20,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 4

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 LWX wrote it up.

A thunderstorm with winds in excess of 55 MPH moved across Central Maryland between 9:30 and 11:00 PM EDT on the 31st. In Montgomery County, trees and power lines were downed from Gaithersburg east to the Howard County line. Some trees were downed onto roads. In Howard County, trees and power lines were downed. In Anne Arundel County, wires were downed across the northern portion of the county. In Baltimore County, thirteen trees were downed in the city of Baltimore.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Baltimore/Washington wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Aug 31, 7:30 PM EST, 1 hour 15 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 31, 7:30 PM EST, 1 hour 15 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION...CORRECTION (AFTN AFD SENT)
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BALTIMORE/WASHINGTON
830 PM EDT FRI AUG 31 2001

INITIAL BKN LN OF SHWRS/TSTMS WELL AHD OF CDFNT IS UNIMPRSV AND NOT
SHOWG MUCH ORGANIZATN OR INTNSTY...WITH BRF BLO SVR GUSTS AND PEA
HAIL (IF ANY)...AND WITH LOSS OF HTG NOT TOO CONCERNED ABT A FLARE-UP.
HWVR SEEING A SCNDY LN ALG AND JUST AHD OF CDFNT ACRS WRN PA AND SRN
OHIO SO WILL HV A CONTG THREAT UNTIL FROPA TWD 06Z OUR FAR NWRN CWA AND
09Z OR LATER RMNDR. THUS WILL KEEP LKLY OR AT LEAST CHC POPS OVRNGT.

CDFNT WILL THEN USHER IN REFRESHING CNDN AMS FOR THE HOLIDAY WKND.

.LWX...
DC...NONE.
MD...NONE.
VA...NONE.
WV...NONE.

JLW

In the hours before

Local storm report, Aug 31, 4:04 PM EST, 4 hours 41 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BALTIMORE/WASHINGTON
504 PM EDT FRI AUG 31 2001

TIME(EDT)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

0430 PM    4 N CATALPA               VA   WIND DAMAGE
08/31/01   CULPEPER                       TREES DOWN

JLW

Special weather statement, Aug 31, 7:00 PM EST, 1 hour 45 minutes before

DCZ001-MDZ002>007-009>011-013-014-VAZ021-025>031-038>042-051>054-
WVZ048>055-010230-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BALTIMORE-WASHINGTON
800 PM EDT FRI AUG 31 2001

...GUSTY SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS MOVING ACROSS THE AREA...

SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING ACROSS PARTS OF NORTHERN
MARYLAND THE EASTERN PANHANDLE OF WEST VIRGINIA AND NORTHWEST
VIRGINIA THIS EVENING. AS OF 8 PM DOPPLER RADAR SHOWED THE STRONGEST
THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS FREDERICK AND WASHINGTON COUNTIES IN NORTHERN
MARYLAND AS WELL AS BERKELEY AND JEFFERSON COUNTY IN EASTERN WEST
VIRGINIA AND INTO THE NORTHERN SHENANDOAH VALLEY OF VIRGINIA. THE
SHOWERS WERE MOVING TOWARD THE EAST AT AROUND 25 MPH.

SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ARE A LIKELIHOOD OVER MUCH OF THE REGION
THROUGH THE EVENING. THESE THUNDERSTORMS APPEAR CAPABLE OF PRODUCING
BRIEF WIND GUSTS IN THE 30 TO 40 MPH RANGE SMALL HAIL BRIEF HEAVY
RAINS AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING. IF STORMS ARE OBSERVED RESIDENTS
SHOULD SEEK INDOOR SHELTER.

THE SHOWER ACTIVITY WAS DEVELOPING IN A MOIST AND UNSTABLE AIR MASS
AHEAD OF A COLD FRONT. THE FRONT WAS STRETCHED ACROSS THE OHIO
VALLEY THIS EVENING AND WILL PUSH THROUGH THE MID ATLANTIC AREA LATE
TONIGHT AND EARLY SATURDAY. UNTIL IT MOVES THROUGH THE THREAT OF
SHOWERS WILL CONTINUE.

THE FRONT WILL THEN USHER IN A REFRESHING CANADIAN AIR MASS ON
SATURDAY AND PROVIDE COMFORTABLE TEMPERATURES WITH LOW HUMIDITY AND
PLENTY OF SUNSHINE THROUGH THE HOLIDAY WEEKEND.

JLW

The radar

The Sterling radar (KLWX), 59 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 01:44 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

4 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Howard

When: August 31, 8:45 PM EST
Where: Howard County, Countywide
Property damage: $5,000
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 39.267, -76.917

Trees and power lines were downed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Montgomery

When: August 31, 9:00 PM EST
Where: Montgomery County, East Portion
Property damage: $8,000
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 39.117, -77.050

Trees and power lines were downed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Anne Arundel

When: August 31, 9:30 PM EST
Where: Anne Arundel County, North Portion
Property damage: $2,000
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 39.133, -76.633

Power lines were downed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Baltimore City (C)

When: August 31, 9:30 PM EST
Where: Baltimore City (C) County, Baltimore
Property damage: $5,000
Reported by: DEPT OF HIGHWAYS
Coordinates: 39.300, -76.617

Thirteen trees were downed.

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

Every storm in Maryland in 2001 Every state in 2001 This day in weather history Warnings in Maryland, August 2001

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: 5265455, 5265456, 5265457, 5265458.