New York, 2002

Damaging Winds in New York, August 15, 2002

August 15, 2002 · NWS ALY · 2 events in 2 counties and zones

On August 15, for the second day in a row, scattered thunderstorms developed during the afternoon hours across eastern New York and a couple of the cells became severe. Thunderstorm winds blew a roof off a building near the Northway Motel, in the town of Colonie, Albany County.

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
$50,000
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 ALY wrote it up.

On August 15, for the second day in a row, scattered thunderstorms developed during the afternoon hours across eastern New York and a couple of the cells became severe. Thunderstorm winds blew a roof off a building near the Northway Motel, in the town of Colonie, Albany County. A thunderstorm produced a possible microburst in the city of Troy, as many wires and trees were blown down in that city.

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 Albany, NY wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Aug 15, 1:22 PM EST, 2 hours 48 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 15, 1:22 PM EST, 2 hours 48 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ALBANY NY
1050 AM EDT THU 15 2002

.DISC...AIRMASS WARMING WILL CREATE THE THREAT OF CONVECTION OVER
THE AREA AGAIN TODAY AND FRIDAY...BUT DYNAMICS ARE NOT AS STRONG AS
YESTERDAY.  SHOWERS AND A FEW THUNDERSTORMS WILL AFFECT SOME PARTS
OF THE AREA...THOUGH.

LONGER TERM...MODELS AGREE ON SLOW PROGRESSION OF 500MB LONG WAVE
TROF TOWARD THE AREA THROUGH THE WEEKEND.  THEY ALSO AGREE ON
SURFACE TROF PASSING THROUGH THE AREA LATE IN THE WEEKEND.

.ALY...NONE
WESTERGARD

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Aug 15, 10:12 AM EST, 5 hours 58 minutes before
CTZ001-MAZ001-NYZ032-033-038>043-047>054-058>061-063>066-VTZ013-014-
160000-

SEVERE WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ALBANY NY
1115 PM EDT THU AUG 15 2002

...A FEW THUNDERSTORMS MAY BE SEVERE THIS AFTERNOON AND THIS EVENING
IN EASTERN NEW YORK AND WESTERN NEW ENGLAND...

A THUNDERSTORM IS DEFINED AS SEVERE IF IT PRODUCES WIND GUSTS OF AT
LEAST 58 MILES AN HOUR.  ALSO...A THUNDERSTORM IS SAID TO BE SEVERE
IF HAIL FROM THE STORM IS AT LEAST THREE QUARTERS OF AN INCH.

THE ATMOSPHERIC POTENTIAL IS ONLY MARGINAL FOR THE FORMATION OF
SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IN EASTERN NEW YORK AND WESTERN NEW ENGLAND
THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING.  HOWEVER...ANY ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS
THAT FORM MAY BE SEVERE.  THE MOST LIKELY ELEMENT TO DEFINE THE
THUNDERSTORMS AS SEVERE WILL BE THE WIND...BUT THERE IS AN OUTSIDE
CHANCE THAT LARGE HAIL WILL OCCUR TOO.  THUNDERSTORMS ARE NOT
LIKELY TO BE WIDESPREAD TODAY...SO THE CHANCE THAT SEVERE WEATHER
WILL OCCUR AT A PARTICULAR LOCATION IS QUITE LOW.

VERY WARM AND SOMEWHAT MUGGY AIR WILL CONTINUE OVER EASTERN NEW YORK
AND WESTERN NEW ENGLAND INTO THE WEEKEND.  THIS TYPE OF AIR MASS
IS USUALLY A NECESSARY ELEMENT FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS TO FORM.

The radar

The Albany radar (KENX), 23 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 21:09 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

2 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Albany

When
August 15, 4:10 PM EST
Where
Albany County, Colonie
Property damage
$25,000
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
42.717, -73.850

Thunderstorm Wind, Rensselaer

When
August 15, 4:30 PM EST
Where
Rensselaer County, Troy
Property damage
$25,000
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
42.750, -73.683

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 New York in 2002Every state in 2002This day in weather historyWarnings in New York, August 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: 5312967, 5312966.