New York, 2002

High Wind in New York, March 9 to 10, 2002

March 9 to 10, 2002 · NWS ALY · 7 events in 7 counties and zones

The pressure gradient between deep low pressure over Ontario, and high pressure off the southeast coast, produced a strong southerly flow across eastern New York on the evening of March 9. Then, a strong cold front moved across the region shortly after midnight, early on March 10th.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 7 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

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
$224,000
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
7

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.

The pressure gradient between deep low pressure over Ontario, and high pressure off the southeast coast, produced a strong southerly flow across eastern New York on the evening of March 9. Then, a strong cold front moved across the region shortly after midnight, early on March 10th. A line of showers and embedded thunderstorms accompanied the front. Strong winds ahead of and along the front produced some damage across a few counties. Law enforement personnel reported a large number of trees and power lines down in Warren and Washington Counties. In Saratoga County, a very large tree limb was blown onto power lines disrupting power to many customers. Trees and wires were reported down in and around the city of Saratoga Springs. In Schoharie County, a wind gust was clocked to 64 mph in the town of Summit. In Columbia County, a large tree fell onto a home in Philmont, causing structural damage to the roof and attic of the house. In Lake George, Warren County, downed electrical wires may have triggered a fire that in turn, destroyed a boat repair business, nine boats and two nearby cabins. In Fulton County, a large tree fell onto a cabin, damaging the roof. The National Weather Service in Albany New York determined that all the wind damage was the result of non-convective gradient winds.

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 Mar 9, 9:55 PM EST, 1 hour 5 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Mar 9, 9:55 PM EST, 1 hour 5 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION...UPDATED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ALBANY NY
955 PM EST SAT MAR 9 2002

UPDATED WORKZONES AND NPW SENT. ZONES OUT BY 10 PM.

.DISC...HAVE UPGRADED THE HIGH WIND WATCH TO A WARNING ACROSS THE
BOARD. WE ALSO HAVE HIT THE TURNING SHARPLY COLDER HARDER. STILL
HAVE A SVR WATCH OUT FOR SOME OF OUR WESTERN AREAS UNTIL 1AM.
HOWEVER...WE THINK THIS UPCOMING EVENT WILL BE MAINLY A HIGH WIND
EVENT...WITH AN OUTSIDE POSSIBILITY OF HAIL. WIND FROM THE LINE OF
SHOWERS AND EMBEDDED STORMS COULD REACH 80 MPH...BUT STILL COVERED
BY THE HIGH WIND WARNING.

MADE SOME COSMETIC CHANGES ONLY TO SUNDAY...AND LEFT THE REST OF THE
FORECAST FLY FOR NOW.

HYDROLOGIC STATUS...NO SIGNIFICANT PROBLEMS EXPECTED. FORECAST QPF
OF BETWEEN A QUARTER AND HALF AN INCH OF RAIN...WITH ANY HEAVY RAIN
CONFINED TO ABOUT AN HOUR OR LESS. SOME SMALL STREAMS MAY
REACT...BUT LARGER RIVERS SHOULD NOT...WITH THE POSSIBLE EXCEPTION
OF THE SOME IN THE ADIRONDACKS. HOWEVER RAPIDLY FALLING TEMPERATURES
WILL FREEZE RUNOFF IN A HURRY UP THERE.

.ALY...HIGH WIND WARNING THROUGH 5 AM (THE ENTIRE COUNTY WARNING
AREA).
    SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH THROUGH 0630Z...
    NYZ032-033-038-039-040-047.

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

7 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.

High Wind, Warren

When
March 9, 11:00 PM EST to March 10, 3:00 AM EST
Where
Warren forecast zone
Property damage
$135,000
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
43.561, -73.846 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, Washington

When
March 9, 11:00 PM EST to March 10, 3:00 AM EST
Where
Washington forecast zone
Property damage
$25,000
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
43.314, -73.431 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, Western Columbia

When
March 9, 11:00 PM EST to March 10, 3:00 AM EST
Where
Western Columbia forecast zone
Property damage
$25,000
Reported by
NEWSPAPER
Coordinates
42.250, -73.632 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, Fulton

When
March 9, 11:00 PM EST to March 10, 3:00 AM EST
Where
Fulton forecast zone
Property damage
$15,000
Reported by
NEWSPAPER
Coordinates
43.114, -74.422 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, Schoharie

When
March 10, 12:50 AM EST to 3:00 AM EST
Where
Schoharie forecast zone
Measured
64 kt (74 mph)
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
42.588, -74.442 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, Southern Saratoga

When
March 10, 1:00 AM EST to 3:00 AM EST
Where
Southern Saratoga forecast zone
Property damage
$15,000
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
43.107, -73.864 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, Northern Saratoga

When
March 10, 1:00 AM EST to 3:00 AM EST
Where
Northern Saratoga forecast zone
Property damage
$9,000
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
43.107, -73.864 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

High Wind
Sustained non-thunderstorm winds of 40 mph or more for an hour, or gusts of 58 mph or more.

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, March 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: 5284878, 5284879, 5284883, 5284884, 5284881, 5284880, 5284882.