High Wind in North Carolina, February 4, 2003

Name: High Wind in North Carolina, February 4, 2003
Start: 2003-02-04T04:00
End: 2003-02-04T08:00
Location: North Carolina

February 4, 2003 · NWS GSP · 5 events in 5 counties and zones

Numerous power poles were blown down, resulting in widespread power outages.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 5 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: 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 happened

The episode as NWS GSP wrote it up.

Numerous power poles were blown down, resulting in widespread power outages.

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 Feb 4, 3:52 AM EST, 8 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Feb 4, 3:52 AM EST, 8 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
352 AM EST TUE FEB 4 2003

FROPA EARLY THIS MORNING WITH RAPID DRYING LEE LATE THIS MORNING. NW
FLOW SHOWERS LATE MORNING TN LINE...CHANGING OVER TO SNOW AS
THICKNESS LOWERS THIS AFTERNOON...CONTINUING INTO EVENING.
COORDINATED SNOW AMOUNT WITH RNK/MRX...AND NO SNOW ADVISORY YET FOR
THIS AFTERNOON OR EVENING. WIND WILL BE UP TODAY...AND BUFKIT
SHOWING 38 KTS AT AVL. EVEN IF BUFKIT IS HIGH...N MOUNTAINS WILL BE
HIGHER...AND WILL GO WITH WIND WARNING N NC MTS...ADVISORY REST OF
MOUNTAINS FOR TODAY. WINDS BELOW ADVISORY CRITERIA TONIGHT...THOUGH
STILL WINDY NC MTS. SNOW CUTS OFF ALL BUT N NC MTS BY 06Z...WHERE
SLIGHT CHANCE LINGERS.

NEXT PROBLEM IS THU. MODELS FASTER WITH NEXT SYSTEM AND
MOISTURE...ESPECIALLY GFS. USING CONSERVATIVE ETA APPROACH BRINGS
PRECIP INTO AREA THU MORNING. PARTIAL THICKNESS SUPPORTS RAIN
SW...MIX NE THU AM...BECOMING SNOW NE...MIX I-26...RAIN SW BY AFTN.
NC MTS ALL SNOW. STARTED WITH SMALL POPS...AS UNCERTAINTY ABOUNDS.

MODEL GUIDANCE TEMPERATURES FLUCTUATING. TRIED TO STAY CLOSE TO
GUIDANCE.

EXTENDED WRAPS UP WINTER WX LATE FRI. DRY WEEKEND...FOLLOWED BY
ANOTHER S STREAM SYSTEM MON WITH CHANCE OF WINTER WX.

FCSTID =    7
GSP   58  30  49  30 /  50   0   0  10
AND   59  30  50  30 /  50   0   0  10
CLT   59  30  50  30 /  60   0   0  10
HKY   57  28  46  28 /  50   0   0  10
AVL   53  24  44  25 /  50  10   0  10

.GSP...
GA...WIND ADVISORY FOR TODAY FOR ZONES GAZ010...GAZ017.
NC...HIGH WIND WARNING FOR TODAY FOR ZONES NCZ033...NCZ049>050.
WIND ADVISORY FOR TODAY FOR ZONES NCZ048...NCZ051>053...NCZ058>059...
NCZ062>065.
SC...WIND ADVISORY FOR TODAY FOR ZONES SCZ001>003.

O7

Hazardous weather outlook, Feb 3, 5:00 AM EST, 23 hours before

GAZ010-017-018-026-028-029-NCZ033>037-048>059-062>072-082-SCZ001>014-
019-031200-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
500 AM EST MON FEB 3 2003

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

.DAY ONE...TODAY

THERE IS A CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS TONIGHT.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...

THERE IS A CHANCE OF SNOW SHOWERS IN THE NORTH CAROLINA MOUNTAINS
WEST OF ASHEVILLE TUESDAY AFTERNOON...CONTINUING IN THE NORTHERN
MOUNTAINS TUESDAY NIGHT. THERE IS A CHANCE OF SNOW MIXED WITH RAIN
THURSDAY NIGHT AND FRIDAY. THERE IS A CHANCE OF SNOW SHOWERS IN THE
NORTH CAROLINA MOUNTAINS WEST OF ASHVILLE FRIDAY NIGHT.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT ANTICIPATED.

07

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Feb 4, 3:44 AM EST, 16 minutes before

GAZ010-017-018-026-028-029-NCZ062>072-082-SCZ001>014-019-041130-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
344 AM EST TUE FEB 4 2003

...STRONG GUSTY WINDS TO MOVE ACROSS THE AREA THIS MORNING...

A LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS...EXTENDING SOUTHWARD FROM JUST NORTH OF THE
NORTH CAROLINA-SOUTH CAROLINA BORDER...WILL SWEEP QUICKLY ACROSS
NORTHEAST GEORGIA AND THE WESTERN CAROLINAS EARLY THIS MORNING.
STRONG AND GUSTY WINDS WILL ACCOMPANY THESE STORMS.

THE LINE WILL REACH GREENVILLE AND ANDERSON ABOUT 430 AM...AND THE
CHARLOTTE AREA ABOUT 530 AM. PERSONS IN THE PATH OF THESE STORMS
SHOULD EXPECT WIND GUSTS AS HIGH AS 45 MPH AS THE STORMS PASS.

STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO OR THE MEDIA FOR THE LATEST WEATHER
INFORMATION.

RWH

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

5 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.

High Wind, Swain

When: February 4, 4:00 AM EST to 8:00 AM EST
Where: Swain forecast zone
Measured: 60 kt (69 mph) estimated gust
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 35.487, -83.493 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, Graham

When: February 4, 4:00 AM EST to 8:00 AM EST
Where: Graham forecast zone
Measured: 60 kt (69 mph) estimated gust
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 35.350, -83.834 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, Northern Jackson

When: February 4, 4:00 AM EST to 8:00 AM EST
Where: Northern Jackson forecast zone
Measured: 60 kt (69 mph) estimated gust
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 35.287, -83.141 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, Macon

When: February 4, 4:00 AM EST to 8:00 AM EST
Where: Macon forecast zone
Measured: 60 kt (69 mph) estimated gust
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 35.150, -83.422 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, Southern Jackson

When: February 4, 4:00 AM EST to 8:00 AM EST
Where: Southern Jackson forecast zone
Measured: 60 kt (69 mph) estimated gust
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 35.287, -83.141 (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 2003 Every state in 2003 This day in weather history Warnings in North Carolina, February 2003

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: 5345584, 5345585, 5345586, 5345587, 5345588.