Delaware, 2002

Damaging Wind in Delaware, May 18, 2002

May 18, 2002 · NWS PHI · 1 event in 1 county or zone

A damaging microburst from a severe thunderstorm produced wind damage in a mile long by a quarter of a mile wide area between Camden and Woodside in Kent County. Peak wind gusts were estimated at around 70 mph.

Where it happened

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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
1

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 PHI wrote it up.

A damaging microburst from a severe thunderstorm produced wind damage in a mile long by a quarter of a mile wide area between Camden and Woodside in Kent County. Peak wind gusts were estimated at around 70 mph. The worst damage occurred in the Meadowbrook Acres mobile home development. A family of seven was made homeless after winds ripped the roof off of their mobile home. Downed trees damaged three surrounding mobile homes. Some vehicles were also damaged by the downed trees in the development. Other trees were knocked down in a northwest to southeast direction along the path of the storm. No serious injuries were reported.

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 Philadelphia/Mount Holly wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at May 18, 2:53 AM EST, 4 hours 20 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, May 18, 2:53 AM EST, 4 hours 20 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MOUNT HOLLY NJ
353 AM EDT SAT MAY 18 2002

FNTL ZN WAVERING ABT DLMARVA AS SFC LO IN WRN VA HEADS TWD NJ CST
ERLY THIS MRNG. THIS LOW SHUD CONT TO MOV NE AND BE IN NEW ENGLAND
LT TDA. PRECIP OVERNGT APPRS TO BE QUITE PLENTIFUL ACRS PTNS NE PA
AND NW NJ DOWN INTO PTNS OF SE PA AND CNTRL NJ. SOME THUNDER EVEN
DEVELOPED ARND PHL AND IN PTNS OF GLOUCESTER AND CAMDEN CTYS OF NJ
ARND MDNGT. FURTHER S AND E SOME RN HAS FELL...BUT NOT CONTINUOUS.
NE WNDS BRIEFLY PUSHED INTO SUSSEX CTY DE BUT SW WNDS NOW RULE AS
FNTL ZN APPRS TO STAY N OF THIS AREA. WL HAVE TO WAIT UNTIL CD FNT
MOVS ACRS AREA LT MRNG OR ERLY AFTN. AFTER THAT...HI PRES FRM MDWEST
WL TRY TO BLD INTO AREA...HOWEVER H5 LO WL PIVOT SW ACRS ERN CANADA
AND BRING S/W TROF ACRS AREA MON AFTN AND MON NGT. THIS SHUD HAVE
SOME REALLY COOL AIR WITH THIS FEATURE WHEN IT GOES THROUGH.

ON MARINE...SML CRFT ADVSRY CONTD FOR CST AND BAY.

FCSTID = 14
MPO   50  35  54  38 /  60   0   0   0
ABE   54  38  58  40 /  60   0   0   0
RDG   54  38  58  40 /  60   0   0   0
PHL   62  45  61  45 /  60   0   0   0
12N   50  35  54  38 /  60   0   0   0
SMQ   57  40  60  42 /  60   0   0   0
TTN   57  40  60  42 /  60   0   0   0
MIV   62  43  61  45 /  60   0   0   0
ACY   64  46  61  48 /  60   0   0   0
ILG   61  42  61  43 /  60   0   0   0
DOV   62  44  61  44 /  60   0   0   0
GED   66  46  61  47 /  60   0   0   0
ESN   62  44  61  44 /  60   0   0   0

.PHI...
DE...NONE.
MD...NONE.
NJ...NONE.
PA...NONE.
MARINE...SML CRFT ADVSRY CST AND BAY ANZ430-431-450>455.

JWH

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Kent

When
May 18, 7:13 AM EST
Where
Kent County, 2 mi N of Woodside
Measured
61 kt (70 mph)
Reported by
EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates
39.100, -75.583

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 Delaware in 2002Every state in 2002This day in weather historyWarnings in Delaware, May 2002

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: 5299971.