Hail and Damaging Winds in Maryland, June 21, 2001

Name: Hail and Damaging Winds in Maryland, June 21, 2001
Start: 2001-06-21T15:15
End: 2001-06-21T18:00
Location: Maryland

June 21, 2001 · NWS LWX · 8 events in 3 counties and zones

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 3 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. 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: $7,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 8

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.

Thunderstorms that produced damaging winds, frequent lightning, large hail, and heavy downpours moved across central Maryland between 400 PM and 830 PM EDT on the 21st. In Frederick County, homes were damaged by lightning in Frederick, Green Valley, and New Market. High winds downed trees onto wires and roadways in the Frederick, Ballenger Creek, New Market, and Green Valley areas. In Howard County, trees were downed onto roads in West Friendship. In Prince George's County, nickel to quarter sized hail was reported in Laurel. A power pole was downed across the intersection of Cherry Lane and Van Dusen Road just north of Laurel Lake. Heavy rainfall caused Indian Creek to overflow its banks. Route 1 at Indian Creek was flooded. A culvert leading to Laurel Lake was also overwhelmed with runoff and overflowed.

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 Jun 21, 2:35 PM EST, 40 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jun 21, 2:35 PM EST, 40 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BALTIMORE/WASHINGTON
335 PM EDT THU JUN 21 2001

FEW TSRA DVLPG...MAINLY ALNG PERIPHERY OF CWFA. W/ BEST FOCUSING
MECH/FORCING N AND W...WUD XPCT THESE AREAS TO BE MOST UNDER THE GUN
LTR TDA. GOOD OMEGA MVG INTO WRN SXNS THIS EVNG...SO LIKELY POPS
THERE...CHC ELSW.

H5 L/WV TROF DRIVES CDFNT INTO AREA TMRW. HWVR...FLW BCMS
PARALLEL...SO FWD MVMT STALLS. AMS AHD OF FNT EQUALLY UNSTBL AS
TDA...IF NOT SLGTLY MORE SO...PLUS FRNT PROVIDES A FOCUS/TRIGGER. W/
CD/QSTNRY FNT IN VCNTY...WL GO LIKELY POPS 2ND-4TH PDS. NO PD WL BE
TTL WASHOUT...BUT WL EMPH AFTN AND EVE CNVTN.

XTNDD THROWS A CURVE FM PREV PKG AS MRF DVLPS H5 CUTOFF LO OVR
APPALACHIA...AND LETS IT LINGER THRU DAY 5. W/ H3 JET STRK ON E SIDE
OF SYSTM...THINK THIS IS A LTL OVRDN. UKMET SHWS LTL MORE THAN WK
TROF/SFC REFLCTN IN AREA. WENT W/ A MRF WEIGHTED COMPROMISE...CLS TO
CNDN SOLN. ADDED MIX CLDS/SUN AND SCT AFTN SHRA TO SUN-TUE FCST. W/
FRNT STL IN VCNTY...INCL TSRA TO SUNDAY FCST AS WELL.  FOR DAY 6 & 7
WENT PTCLDY...AND LATER SHIFTS CAN LEAN IN APPRO DIRECTION.

ZFP/RDF BY 1945 UTC. LATER

FCSTID = 50...HTS
DCA   70  86  70  82 /  40  60  60  60
BWI   69  85  67  80 /  40  60  60  60
MRB   66  84  65  78 /  60  60  60  60
IAD   68  84  67  79 /  40  60  60  60
CHO   66  86  66  81 /  60  60  60  60
HGR   64  83  64  77 /  60  60  60  60
NHK   70  85  70  81 /  30  60  60  60

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

In the hours before

Local storm report, Jun 21, 2:09 PM EST, 1 hour 6 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BALTIMORE/WASHINGTON
309 PM EDT THU JUN 21 2001

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

0830 PM    BALTIMORE                 MD   WIND DAMAGE
06/20/01   BALTIMORE                      NUMEROUS TREES DOWN
                                          REPORTED BY PUBLIC WORKS

1030 PM    CHARLOTTESVILLE           VA   WIND DAMAGVE
06/20/01   ALBEMARLE                      NUMEROUS TREES AND
                                          POWERLINES DOWN

JLW/MM

The radar

The Sterling radar (KLWX), 49 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 20:16 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

4 thunderstorm wind, 2 lightning, 1 heavy rain, 1 hail. Local standard time, as filed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Frederick

When: June 21, 3:15 PM EST
Where: Frederick County, Frederick
Property damage: $2,000
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates: 39.417, -77.417

Many trees were downed onto roads and wires.

Lightning, Frederick

When: June 21, 3:29 PM EST
Where: Frederick County, Frederick
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 39.472, -77.398 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

A house was damaged by a lightning strike.

Heavy Rain, Prince George'S

When: June 21, 4:30 PM EST to 6:00 PM EST
Where: Prince George'S County, Countywide
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 38.830, -76.847 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Indian Creek was swollen by heavy rains.

Lightning, Frederick

When: June 21, 5:00 PM EST
Where: Frederick County, New Market
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 39.472, -77.398 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Three homes and a garage were damaged by lightning in the New Market and Green Valley areas.

Thunderstorm Wind, Frederick

When: June 21, 5:00 PM EST
Where: Frederick County, New Market
Property damage: $2,000
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates: 39.383, -77.267

Many trees were downed onto roads and wires.

Thunderstorm Wind, Prince George'S

When: June 21, 5:10 PM EST
Where: Prince George'S County, Laurel
Property damage: $500
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 39.100, -76.850

A downed power pole blocked a road.

Hail, Prince George'S

When: June 21, 5:17 PM EST
Where: Prince George'S County, Laurel
Measured: 1 in hail
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 39.100, -76.850

Nickel to quarter sized hail fell.

Thunderstorm Wind, Howard

When: June 21, 5:20 PM EST
Where: Howard County, West Friendship
Property damage: $2,000
Reported by: DEPT OF HIGHWAYS
Coordinates: 39.300, -76.950

Trees were downed onto roads.

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.
Lightning: A lightning strike that killed, injured or caused damage.
Heavy Rain: Rainfall totals unusual for the place and season that did not produce a flood.
Hail: Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.

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, June 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: 5254292, 5254293, 5254296, 5254294, 5254295, 5254297, 5254298, 5254299.