Thunderstorm Wind, Columbus
- When
- July 31, 2:15 PM EST
- Where
- Columbus County, 5 mi N of Lake Waccamaw
- Measured
- 60 kt (69 mph)
- Reported by
- GENERAL PUBLIC
- Coordinates
- 34.383, -78.517
Large trees down on power lines.
Damaging Wind in North Carolina, July 31, 2002
1 thunderstorm wind, as filed by the National Weather Service.
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
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 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 Wilmington, NC wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jul 31, 1:50 PM EST, 25 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Jul 31, 1:50 PM EST, 25 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WILMINGTON NC 250 PM EDT WED JUL 31 2002 SHORT TERM: ILL DEFINED TROF HAD APPARENTLY PASSED THRU THE AREA AS N/NE WINDS EXTENDED DEEP INTO S CAROLINA THIS MORNING. NOW SFC LOW APPEARS TO BE LOCATED NEAR PENDER COUNTY. BEST CONVERGENCE AND CHANCES FOR PRECIP ARE WITH THIS FEATURE. OVERNIGHT POPS PAST 00Z WILL PROBABLY BE IN THE 30ISH RANGE...BUT POPS FOR THE REST OF THE AFTN/EVENING PERIOD WILL BE DECIDED AT ZFP ISSUANCE BY RADAR COVERAGE TRENDS. SYNOPTIC SUPPORT SHIFTS TO THE S TOMORROW NECESSITATING POPS ONLY IN S CAROLINA AND MAYBE ON THE NC COAST... DRY WX FOR THE REST OF THE CWA. ETA LOOKS VERY SUSPECT WITH CONVECTIVE EFFECTS CONTAMINATING THE MODEL ALONG THE CAROLINA COAST. GUIDANCE TEMPS IN GOOD AGREEMENT THRU THE SHORT TERM. FRI-WED: UPPER LEVEL RIDGE STRENGTHENS ACROSS THE EASTERN HALF OF THE COUNTRY. VORTICITY/PSBL LOW PRES IN THE SOUTHEAST GETS SQUIRTED WEST UNDERNEATH THE RIDGE ALONG THE GULF COAST. BROAD HIGH PRES AT THE SFC WILL KEEP LGT WINDS AND TEMPS NEAR CLIMO IN PLACE FOR THE CAROLINAS. WILL UNDERCUT MEX POPS THROUGH THE PERIOD AS WARM AIR IN THE MID LEVELS WITH THE BUILDING RIDGE SHOULD CAP OFF CONVECTION. A MORE WESTWARD POSITION TO THE RIDGE WOULD PUT THIS DRY FORECAST IN JEOPARDY WITH SHORT WAVE ENERGY/COOLER TEMPS ALOFT DIVING S ALONG THE COAST. MARINE: SEABREEZE HAS KICKED IN AND WINDS NEAR SHORE HAVE OBTAINED A SRLY COMPONENT. FARTHER OFFSHORE AT THE BUOYS...WINDS ARE GENERALLY W/WSW AROUND 10 KT. AS THE TROUGH ENTERS THE WATERS FROM THE N TONIGHT...WINDS WILL BEGIN TO VEER BUT REMAIN LESS THAN 10 KT. AN ONSHORE COMPONENT IS EXPECTED TO CONTINUE THROUGH THE FORECAST PERIOD . THE HIGHEST WIND/SEAS ARE EXPECTED ON SAT AS THE SFC PRES GRADIENT TIGHTENS...BUT WIND AND SEAS SHOULD REMAIN BELOW 20 KT/ 5 FT. FCSTID = 09 KILM 75 90 71 89 / 30 20 10 10 KLBT 74 92 70 91 / 30 10 10 10 KFLO 75 94 72 92 / 30 20 10 10 KMYR 76 88 73 87 / 30 20 10 10 .ILM... NC...NONE. SC...NONE. TRA/JAQ
The radar
The Wilmington radar (KLTX), 45 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 19:15 UTC.
Event by event
1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
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
- Flood and Hail in Georgia, July 31, 2002
- Wildfire in Colorado, July 31, 2002
- Tornadoes and Flash Flooding in North Dakota, July 31, 2002
- Flash Flood in Missouri, July 31, 2002
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Michigan, July 31, 2002
- Hail and Damaging Winds in South Carolina, July 31, 2002
- Marine Thunderstorm Winds in Lake Huron, July 31, 2002
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Minnesota, July 31, 2002
- Hail and Damaging Winds in North Dakota, July 31, 2002
- Hail and Damaging Wind in Michigan, July 31, 2002
- Damaging Winds in Georgia, July 31, 2002
- Hail in Minnesota, July 31, 2002
More
Every storm in North Carolina in 2002Every state in 2002This day in weather historyWarnings in North Carolina, 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 2026-10-01. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5310668.