Damaging Winds in Maine, July 18, 2002

Name: Damaging Winds in Maine, July 18, 2002
Start: 2002-07-18T14:45
End: 2002-07-18T14:50
Location: Maine

July 18, 2002 · NWS GYX · 2 events in 1 county or zone

Winds from a severe thunderstorm knocked down trees in the village of North Palermo and in Lake George State Park.

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: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 2

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 GYX wrote it up.

Winds from a severe thunderstorm knocked down trees in the village of North Palermo and in Lake George State Park.

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 Gray, ME wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jul 18, 1:50 PM EST, 55 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 18, 1:50 PM EST, 55 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAY ME
250 PM EDT THU JUL 18 2002

SYNOPSIS...A COLD FRONT WILL STALL SOUTH OF THE FORECAST AREA
TONIGHT.  WEAK LOW PRESSURE WILL DEVELOP ALONG THE FRONT AND MOVE
NORTHEAST FRIDAY.  HIGH PRESSURE WILL BUILD SOUTHEAST OVER THE
FORECAST AREA FRIDAY NIGHT AND SATURDAY.  THE HIGH WILL MOVE
SOUTHEAST OVER THE OFFSHORE WATERS SATURDAY NIGHT AND SUNDAY.

ZONE FORECASTS...PROBLEM OF THE DAY WILL BE THE SURFACE WAVE THAT
DEVELOPS ALONG THE FRONT AND PUSHES CLOUDS/SHOWERS BACK NORTHEAST
INTO THE FORECAST AREA TONIGHT AND FRIDAY.  MODEL SOLUTIONS IN
REASONABLE AGREEMENT IN DEVELOPING ONSHORE FLOW WITH EXTENSIVE CLOUD
COVER AND SCATTERED SHOWERS.  EXPECT THESE CONDITIONS TO PERSIST
OVER EXTREME SOUTHWEST ZONES THIS EVENING THEN BEGIN TO SPREAD
NORTHEAST LATER TONIGHT.  FRIDAY SHAPING UP TO BE COOL AND DAMP
ALONG THE COAST AND PARTLY SUNNY OVER THE MOUNTAINS.  CANNOT RULE
OUT SOME SCATTERED SHOWERS AS FAR NORTH AS THE FOOTHILLS AND EASTERN
SLOPES OF THE MOUNTAINS SO WILL INCLUDE 30 PERCENT CHANCE THERE.
HIGH PRESSURE BRINGS MUCH DRIER AIR MASS FRIDAY NIGHT INTO
SATURDAY.  SOME PATCHY FOG POSSIBLE FRIDAY NIGHT.  SATURDAY LOOKS TO
BE A BENIGN WEATHER DAY WITH MILD TEMPERATURES AND LOWER RH.
TEMPERATURES BEGIN TO REBOUND SUNDAY ON THE BACK SIDE OF THE HIGH.
PWMWRKZFP AVAILABLE FOR COORDINATION.

MARINE FORECAST...WINDS BELOW 20 KTS AND SEAS 1 TO 3 FT THROUGH
SUNDAY.  WINDS COULD APPROACH 20 KTS IN SOUTHWEST FLOW MONDAY.  NO
FLAGS.  PWMWRKCWF AVAILABLE FOR COORDINATION.

FCSTID = 7

.GYX...
ME...NONE.
NH...NONE.

WHEELER

The radar

The Portland,ME radar (KGYX), 93 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 19:44 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

2 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Waldo

When: July 18, 2:45 PM EST
Where: Waldo County, North Palermo
Measured: 50 kt (58 mph)
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 44.450, -69.383

Thunderstorm Wind, Waldo

When: July 18, 2:50 PM EST
Where: Waldo County, 3 mi W of Liberty
Measured: 50 kt (58 mph)
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 44.383, -69.367

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 Maine in 2002 Every state in 2002 This day in weather history Warnings in Maine, July 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: 5309618, 5309619.