Vermont, 2001

Damaging Winds in Vermont, July 9, 2001

July 9, 2001 · NWS BTV · 3 events in 1 county or zone

A moist unstable air mass was inplace across Vermont, as an area of weak low pressure moved across southern New England and triggered late afternoon and evening thunderstorms. Trees and power lines were blown down in the towns of Castleton and West Rutland.

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
$10,000
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
3

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 BTV wrote it up.

A moist unstable air mass was inplace across Vermont, as an area of weak low pressure moved across southern New England and triggered late afternoon and evening thunderstorms. Trees and power lines were blown down in the towns of Castleton and West Rutland. The AWOS instrument at Rutland Airport (North Clarendon) reported a thunderstorm wind gust to 58 mph (50 KTS).

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 Burlington, VT wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jul 9, 2:01 PM EST, 49 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 9, 2:01 PM EST, 49 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BURLINGTON VT
301 PM EDT MON JUL 9 2001

THUNDERSTORM FIRED EARLIER THIS AFTERNOON NEAR PLATTSBURGH...WHERE
WEAK LAKE BREEZE AND TERRAIN EFFECTS COMBINED...AND SFC TROF LIKELY
HELPED WTH LOW LEVEL CONVERGENCE. STMS DRIFTING SLOWLY SE IN WESTERN
VT...SO FAR PRODUCING LIGHTNING AND HVY RAIN IN BTV'S CWA.  OTHER
SHWRS/TSTMS IN NE KINGDOM OF VT DOWN TO ORANGE COUNTY.  EXPECT
CONVECTION TO CONTINUE THROUGH THIS EVENING UNTIL SFC HEATING
DIMINISHES.

SFC TROF TO PASS TO E...BUT SOUTH WNDS RECOVER TONIGHT. ANOTHER TROF
MOVES THROUGH ON TUESDAY...BRINGING CHCS FOR SHOWERS AND TSTMS AGAIN.

UPR LOW DIGS INTO NE US OVER NEXT COUPLE DAYS...LOWERING HEIGHTS
AND TEMPERATURES.  AFTER SFC TROF ON TUESDAY...NO REAL COLDFRONT TO
LATCH ONTO...BUT TEMPS JUST SLOWLY DROP AS COOLER AIR FILTERS IN ON
NW FLOW.

AS 5H COLD POOL ASSOCIATED WTH UPPER LOW REMAINS OVER FCST AREA
WEDNESDAY AND THURSDAY...EXPECT COOL TEMPS...PLENTY OF CLOUDS...AND
CHCS FOR LIGHT SHOWERS THROUGH END OF THE WEEK.  STRONGEST UPPER
LEVEL FLOW PASSES WELL TO SOUTH WITH BEST JET DYNAMICS OVER SOUTHERN
NY AND PA. ALTHOUGH MDLS AGREE WELL ON OVERALL PATTERN...RESOLUTION
OF INDIVIDUAL FEATURES SOMEWHAT LACKING IN CONSENSUS.  AS A RESULT
JUST WENT WTH CHC FOR SHWRS THRU FRIDAY MAINLY BASED ON PROXIMITY OF
UPR LOW.

FOR REST OF WEEKEND UPR CLOSED LOW PULLS AWAY...LEAVING OPEN
TROF BEHIND WTH RISING HEIGHTS. RETREATING CLSD LOW AND PERSISTENT
NLY FLOW WL DRY OUT LOW LVLS AND REDUCE RAIN CHCS FOR THE WEEKEND.

WORK ZONES ALREADY GONE.

.BTV...NONE.

HANSON

The radar

The Burlington radar (KCXX), 99 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 19:47 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

3 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Rutland

When
July 9, 2:50 PM EST
Where
Rutland County, Castleton
Property damage
$5,000
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
43.617, -73.183

Thunderstorm Wind, Rutland

When
July 9, 3:15 PM EST
Where
Rutland County, West Rutland
Property damage
$5,000
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
43.600, -73.050

Thunderstorm Wind, Rutland

When
July 9, 3:35 PM EST
Where
Rutland County, (Rut)rutland Arpt
Measured
50 kt (58 mph)
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
43.533, -72.950

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 Vermont in 2001Every state in 2001This day in weather historyWarnings in Vermont, July 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: 5261941, 5261942, 5261943.