Virginia, 2001

Damaging Winds and Heavy Rain in Virginia, June 6, 2001

June 6, 2001 · NWS LWX · 4 events in 4 counties and zones

Scattered thunderstorms moved across the central Shenandoah Valley between 300 and 530 PM EDT on the 6th. One storm that moved across Rockingham and extreme southern Page County produced winds in excess of 55 MPH.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 1 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

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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
$24,000
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.

Scattered thunderstorms moved across the central Shenandoah Valley between 300 and 530 PM EDT on the 6th. One storm that moved across Rockingham and extreme southern Page County produced winds in excess of 55 MPH. In Rockingham County, power lines were downed in Harrisonburg and Port Republic. In Page County, a microburst of wind estimated between 60 and 70 MPH damaged several buildings in Jollett Hollow about 5 miles east of Shenandoah. The wind damage began at a small clearing adjacent to Jollett Road (Route 759) just south of Naked Creek Baptist Church. The damage path continued northeast onto private property where part of a roof was blown off a home and a car port was removed from its foundation. Pieces of the structure were thrown east about 100 yards onto the roof of a home. Several trees were uprooted and several outbuildings were destroyed nearby. In Greene County, heavy downpours caused low water crossings on Route 616 and 607 to flood in the southeast portion of the county.

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 6, 9:15 AM EST, 3 hours 45 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jun 6, 9:15 AM EST, 3 hours 45 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BALTIMORE/WASHINGTON
1015 AM EDT WED JUN 6 2001

MRNG DATA SFC AND ALOFT INDICATE SFC BNDRY XTNDS FM ACRS SRN MD W TO NR
W99 TO WEAK SFC LOW OVR SW PA THEN W INTO CNTRL OH. MESOS INDICATE
STBLTY N OF THE BNDRY AND SLTLY UNSTBL ALONG AND S OF THE BNDRY. MOD
SNDG SUGGESTED CWA WL HAVE A MARGINAL CAP TDA ALONG WITH LOW LVL
INSTBLTY. HOWEVER UPR FLOW WL RMN NEARLY UNIDIRECTIONAL WITH LTL
VERTICAL SHEAR.

AREA OF SCT SHRA/TSRA MVG ALONG AT GOOD CLIP ACRS CNTRL PORTION ATTM
INTO AREA OF LESS FAVORABLE ENVIRONMENT PER MESOS AND CONSISTING OF
MAINLY LOW TOP HVY RAIN TYPE CELLS WHICH GOES WITH MRNG PW OF ARND 1.5
INCHES.

OTW SEE NO POINT IN ADJUSTING BASIC FCST OF ERLR PKG OTHER THAN SOME
WORDING.

THAT'S IT FOR NOW...LATER.

FCSTID = 13...PAP

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

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Jun 6, 11:45 AM EST, 1 hour 15 minutes before
DCZ001-MDZ002>007-009>011-013-014-016>018-VAZ021-025>031-036>042-
050>057-WVZ048>055-070000-

SEVERE WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BALTIMORE-WASHINGTON
1245 PM EDT WED JUN 6 2001

THERE IS NO LONGER A SLIGHT RISK OR THREAT OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS
ACROSS THE AREA TODAY AND TONIGHT. THE CONDITIONS WHICH ARE
NECESSARY TO GENERATE SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS OR THE POTENTIAL FOR SUCH
ARE NOT EXPECTED TO DEVELOP ACROSS THE AREA THROUGH THIS EVENING AND
TONIGHT.

HOWEVER A CHANCE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL REMAIN THROUGH
TONIGHT. THE ACTIVITY THAT DOES DEVELOP WILL LIKELY GENERATE HEAVY
RAINS AND POSSIBLE STRONG WINDS BELOW SEVERE CRITERIA.

FOR ADDITIONAL WEATHER INFORMATION, CHECK OUR WEB SITE AT
HTTP://WWW.NWS.NOAA.GOV/ER/LWX

PAP

The radar

The Sterling radar (KLWX), 114 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 19:14 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

3 thunderstorm wind, 1 heavy rain. Local standard time, as filed.

Heavy Rain, Greene

When
June 6, 1:00 PM EST to 2:30 PM EST
Where
Greene County, Southeast Portion
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
38.298, -78.467 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Thunderstorm Wind, Harrisonburg (C)

When
June 6, 2:13 PM EST
Where
Harrisonburg (C) County, Harrisonburg
Property damage
$2,000
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
38.450, -78.867

Power lines were downed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Rockingham

When
June 6, 2:15 PM EST
Where
Rockingham County, Port Republic
Property damage
$2,000
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
38.300, -78.817

Power lines were downed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Page

When
June 6, 2:30 PM EST
Where
Page County, 5 mi E of Shenandoah
Property damage
$20,000
Reported by
EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates
38.480, -78.533

A microburst estimated at 60-70 MPH damaged a home, carport, shed, car, and trees.

What these are

Heavy Rain
Rainfall totals unusual for the place and season that did not produce a flood.
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 Virginia in 2001Every state in 2001This day in weather historyWarnings in Virginia, 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: 5254141, 5254139, 5254140, 5254138.