High Wind in North Carolina, December 25 to 26, 2002

Name: High Wind in North Carolina, December 25 to 26, 2002
Start: 2002-12-25T20:00
End: 2002-12-26T00:00
Location: North Carolina

December 25 to 26, 2002 · NWS GSP · 2 events in 2 counties and zones

Strong winds developed during the evening just east of the mountains, resulting in numerous trees and power lines being blown down.

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

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 GSP wrote it up.

Strong winds developed during the evening just east of the mountains, resulting in numerous trees and power lines being blown down.

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 Greenville-Spartanburg, SC wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Dec 25, 3:20 PM EST, 4 hours 40 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Dec 25, 3:20 PM EST, 4 hours 40 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
320 PM EST WED DEC 25 2002

PLENTY OF REPORTS OF TREES AND POWER LINES DOWN IN THE MOUNTAINS
TODAY. IN FACT...SCATTERED TREES AND POWER LINES DOWN HAVE REPORTED
ACROSS THE ENTIRE AREA THIS AFTERNOON. PLAN ON KEEPING CURRENT
WATCHES AND WARNINGS AS IS. THE ONLY CHANGE WL BE TO REMOVE
HENDERSON COUNTY FROM AND THE WARNING...AND GO BACK TO AN
ADVISORY...AS THE LOWER FRENCH BROAD VALLEY HAS NOT HAD MANY REPORTS
OF DAMAGE OR STRONG WIND. THE WIND PRODUCTS WILL EXPIRE AT MIDNIGHT
AS GRADIENT BEGINS TO RELAX AROUND 6 UTC.

WL KEEP SNOW ADVISORY UP ALL NGHT FOR THE NRN MTN COUNTIES (MADISON
AND POINTS NORTH). 1 TO 2 INCHES OF SNOW AND SLICK ROADS REPORTED
THERE. FARTHER SOUTH...SNOW HAS BEEN SPOTTY AT BEST AND WL CANCEL
THE ADVISORY EARLY.

NOT MUCH CHANGE TO THE REST OF THE FORECAST. A FAIRLY STRONG
SHORTWAVE WILL CROSS THE REGION FRI NGHT...BUT W/LIMITED
MOISTURE...DON/T SEE ANYTHING OTHER THAN HIGH CLOUDS AND WIND SHIFT
WITH THIS FEATURE.

BY EARLY NEXT WEEK...ANOTHER STRONG SRN STREAM SYSTEM WL BEGIN TO
AFFECT THE REGION. CUT BACK POPS TO JUST THE MTNS ON MON...BUT KEPT
THEM EVERYWHERE MON NGHT. THIS IS A BIT FASTER THAN SURROUNDING
OFFICES.

FCSTID =   14
GSP   28  47  25  46 /   0   0   0   0
AND   26  48  25  47 /   0   0   0   0
CLT   26  48  24  46 /   0   0   0   0
HKY   26  45  24  44 /  10   0   0   0
AVL   22  41  20  43 /  10   0   0   0

.GSP...
GA...WIND ADVISORY UNTIL MIDNIGHT FOR ZONES GAZ010...GAZ017.

NC...HIGH WIND WARNING UNTIL MIDNIGHT FOR ZONES
NCZ033...NCZ048>050...NCZ053.

WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR TONIGHT FOR ZONES NCZ033...NCZ048>050.

WIND ADVISORY UNTIL MIDNIGHT FOR ZONES
NCZ034...NCZ051>052...NCZ054>055...NCZ058>059...NCZ062>067.

SC...WIND ADVISORY UNTIL MIDNIGHT FOR ZONES SCZ001>003.

MCAVOY

Hazardous weather outlook, Dec 25, 6:07 AM EST, 13 hours 53 minutes before

GAZ010-017-018-026-028-029-NCZ033>037-048>059-062>072-082-SCZ001>014-
019-251300-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
607 AM EST WED DEC 25 2002

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA...
UPSTATE SOUTH CAROLINA...AND EXTREME NORTHEAST GEORGIA.

.DAY ONE...

STRONG WIND GUSTS AND NORTH CAROLINA MOUNTAIN SNOW SHOWERS WILL
BE SEE ACROSS THE REGION INTO TONIGHT. FOR FURTHER DETAILS...
PLEASE REFER TO THE FOLLOWING STATEMENTS AND ADVISORIES ISSUED
BY THIS OFFICE...NPWGSP...WSWGSP...SPSGSP.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...

NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT ANY DAMAGE CAUSED BY THE
STRONG WINDS OR ANY SNOW ACCUMULATION.

55

In the hours before

Local storm report, Dec 25, 7:45 PM EST, 15 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE SPARTANBURG SC
745 PM EST WED DEC 25 2002

TIME(EST)  .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE  ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

630 PM     6 SW NEWLAND              NC   NON TSTM WINDS
12/25/02   AVERY                          911 CENTER REPORTS TREES
                                          AND POWER LINES DOWN ON
                                          LICKLOG ROAD.

500 PM     SPRUCE PINE               NC   NON TSTM WINDS
12/25/02   MITCHELL                       2 BLOWN TRANSFORMERS AND
                                          SOME DOWNED TREES
                                          RESULTED IN POWER
                                          OUTAGES. ONE ON HIGHWAY
                                          226 AND THE OTHER ON DULA
                                          ROAD. REPORT FROM
                                          MITCHELL COUNTY 911.

1230 PM    HIGHLANDS                 NC   NON TSTM WINDS
12/25/02   MACON                          911 CENTER REPORTED TREES
                                          DOWN IN HIGHLANDS SHORTLY
                                          AFTER MIDDAY.

700 PM     15 NE HENDERSONVILLE      NC   NON TSTM WINDS
12/25/02   HENDERSON                      911 CENTER REPORTED A
                                          DOWNED TREE ON BAT CAVE
                                          DRIVE.

630 PM     15 NW MORGANTON           NC   NON TSTM WINDS
12/25/02   BURKE                          DEPARTMENT OF
                                          TRANSPORTATION REPORTED
                                          TREES AND POWER LINES
                                          DOWN IN THE JONAS RIDGE
                                          AREA.

700 PM     7 N LENOIR                NC   NON TSTM WINDS
12/25/02   CALDWELL                       911 CENTER REPORTED TREES
                                          DOWN ON HIGHWAY
                                          321...NORTH OF LENOIR
                                          VERY CLOSE TO BLOWING
                                          ROCK.

BURRUS

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

2 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.

High Wind, Rutherford

When: December 25, 8:00 PM EST to December 26, 12:00 AM EST
Where: Rutherford forecast zone
Measured: 50 kt (58 mph) estimated gust
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT

High Wind, Cleveland

When: December 25, 8:00 PM EST to December 26, 12:00 AM EST
Where: Cleveland forecast zone
Measured: 50 kt (58 mph) estimated gust
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 35.334, -81.556 (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

Every storm in North Carolina in 2002 Every state in 2002 This day in weather history Warnings in North Carolina, December 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: 5326649, 5326650.