Tennessee, 2002

Flash Flood and Hail in Tennessee, April 30, 2002

April 30, 2002 · NWS MEG · 5 events in 2 counties and zones

3 hail, 1 flash flood, 1 thunderstorm wind, as filed by the National Weather Service.

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
$11,000
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
5

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 Memphis, TN wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Apr 30, 1:04 AM CST, 11 hours 31 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Apr 30, 1:04 AM CST, 11 hours 31 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEMPHIS TN
204 AM CDT TUE APR 30 2002

A BROAD RIDGE OVER THE SOUTHERN STATES FROM COAST TO COAST WILL
GRADUALLY SHIFT EASTWARD THIS FORECAST PERIOD. SHORT WAVES AND
IMPULSES WILL RIDE OVER THE RIDGE ACROSS THE CENTRAL PLAINS TO THE
SOUTHEAST. AT THE SURFACE A STATIONARY FRONT DRAPED ACROSS THE
GULF COAST STATES WILL MOVE NORTHWARD AS A WARM FRONT AND BE NORTH
OF THE MID SOUTH BY TONIGHT. WITH SUFFICIENT LOW LEVEL MOISTURE IN
PLACE AND WITH THE HELP OF THE UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCES THE FRONT
WILL BE THE FOCUS OF THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY OVER THE MID SOUTH.
MEANWHILE A SURFACE LOW OVER WEST TEXAS THIS MORNING WILL MOVE
EASTWARD AND BE CENTERED OVER NORTHEAST ARKANSAS BY LATE WEDNESDAY.
THE RESULT WILL BE WARM HUMID WEATHER WITH SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS
CONTINUING TONIGHT AND MAINLY NORTH PORTIONS OF THE MID SOUTH
WEDNESDAY.

.MEG...NONE.

The radar

The Memphis radar (KNQA), 4 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 18:36 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

3 hail, 1 flash flood, 1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Hail, Shelby

When
April 30, 12:35 PM CST to 12:40 PM CST
Where
Shelby County, 1 mi W of Millington
Measured
0.75 in hail
Property damage
$10
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
35.350, -89.917

Hail, Shelby

When
April 30, 1:00 PM CST to 1:25 PM CST
Where
Shelby County, Memphis
Measured
0.88 in hail
Property damage
$100
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
35.133, -90.017

Flash Flood, Shelby

When
April 30, 1:40 PM CST to 3:00 PM CST
Where
Shelby County, Memphis
Property damage
$500
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
35.184, -89.896 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Several cars were stalled in water that got up to 2 feet in depth in one section of East Memphis.

Hail, Henry

When
April 30, 9:50 PM CST to 9:55 PM CST
Where
Henry County, Puryear
Measured
0.75 in hail
Property damage
$10
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
36.450, -88.333

Thunderstorm Wind, Henry

When
April 30, 9:50 PM CST to 10:10 PM CST
Where
Henry County, Puryear
Property damage
$10,000
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
36.450, -88.333

A few structures were damaged. Several trees were knocked down.

What these are

Hail
Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.
Flash Flood
Flooding that begins within six hours of the rain that causes it, or of a dam or levee failure or ice jam release, often with deadly speed.
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 Tennessee in 2002Every state in 2002This day in weather historyWarnings in Tennessee, April 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: 5293601, 5293602, 5293603, 5293604, 5293605.