5 flash flood, as filed by the National Weather Service.
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.
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.
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 Raleigh, NC wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jul 29, 1:08 AM EST, 13 hours 27 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RALEIGH NC 210 AM EDT TUE JUL 28 2003 MOISTURE INCREASED ABOUT THREE QUARTERS OF AN INCH ON THE GSO SOUNDING AT 00Z. EARLIER FRONTAL PASSAGE WILL BE HINDERED BY LESSER INSTABILITY IN THE NORTHWEST. BUT FURTHERN SOUTH AND EAST...WHERE DEW POINTS ARE IN THE 70 TO 76 RANGE...THERE WONT BE ANY LACK OF POTENTIAL THERMODYNAMICS AS THE FRONT SAGS THROUGH LATER THIS MORNING AND THE AFTERNOON. WILL RAISE TO HIGH LIKELY POPS ALL BUT NORTHWEST. JET AXIS IS WELL REMOVED TO THE NORTH WITH WEAK UPPER DIVERGENCE AND A WEAK VERTICAL WIND PROFILE AS WELL SO SEVERE STORMS LOOK UNLIKELY. CLOUDINESS FROM THE MCS IS NOT AS WIDESPREAD AS ONE WOULD EXPECT...SO LOW 80S NORTHWEST TO UPPER 80S SOUTHEAST LOOK ON TRACK. WILL KEEP BETTER POPS SOUTH AND EAST THROUGH WEDNESDAY NIGHT AS DRIER AIR...ESPECIALLY AT MID AND UPPER LEVELS...NOSES IN BRIEFLY WITH EAST OR NORTHEAST LOW LEVEL FLOW INTO MY CENTRAL CWFA. SOMETHING LIKE 20 NORTHWEST TO 40 EAST. FAIR CHANCES AGAIN THURSDAY WITH THE FRONT LIFTING OUT AS LONG WAVE TROF PATTERN SETS UP AGAIN OVER THE CENTRAL UNITED STATES. THIS SETS UP SOUTHWEST FLOW OVER THE EAST THROUGH THE WEEKEND. HARD TO DETERMINE WHAT DAY(S) MIGHT BE A BIT MORE LIKELY TO HAVE POPS AT THIS POINT SO WILL CONTINUE CLIMATOLOGICAL DIURNAL CONVECTION. .RAH...NONE. MLM
NCZ007>011-021>028-038>043-073>078-083>086-088-089-291020- HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RALEIGH NC 422 AM EDT TUE JUL 29 2003 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR CENTRAL NORTH CAROLINA. .DAY ONE...TODAY NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN... NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED TODAY OR TONIGHT.
NCZ041-292000- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RALEIGH NC 305 PM EDT TUE JUL 29 2003 ...STRONG THUNDERSTORMS WILL MOVE ACROSS WAKE COUNTY THROUGH 400 PM... AT 305 PM EDT...A CLUSTER OF STRONG THUNDERSTORMS WAS MOVING OVER CENTRAL WAKE COUNTY...INCLUDING THE CITY OF RALEIGH. THE STORMS ARE MOVING EAST AT AROUND 10 MPH. GUSTY WINDS OF 40 TO 50 MPH...VERY HEAVY RAIN...DANGEROUS LIGHTNING AND SMALL HAIL CAN BE EXPECTED WITH THESE STORMS. RAIN AMOUNTS OF ONE TO TWO INCHES HAVE BEEN NOTED NEAR RALEIGH SINCE 2 PM. PEA SIZED HAIL WAS REPORTED NEAR THE CROSSROADS INTERSECTION IN CARY. THE HEAVY RAIN WILL CAUSE WATER LEVELS TO RISE RAPIDLY IN CREEKS AND DITCHES. MOTORISTS WILL NEED TO USE EXTREME CAUTION IN AREAS WHERE WATER COVERS THE ROAD. IF YOU ENCOUNTER AN INTERSECTION OR ROAD WHERE WATER IS MOVING SWIFTLY OR YOU ARE UNCERTAIN OF THE WATER DEPTH...DO NOT TAKE ANY CHANCES. TURN AROUND AND TAKE ANOTHER ROUTE TO YOUR DESTINATION. SOME LOCATIONS AFFECTED BY THESE STORMS INCLUDE...NEW HOPE...KNIGHTDALE...WENDELL...AND ZEBULON. SGY
NCZ075>077-086-088-292015- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RALEIGH NC 320 PM EDT TUE JUL 29 2003 ...SEVERAL STRONG THUNDERSTORMS WILL MOVE ACROSS LEE...HARNETT... MOORE...CUMBERLAND... AND HOKE COUNTIES THROUGH 415 PM... AT 320 PM EDT...DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED SEVERAL STRONG THUNDERSTORMS EXTENDING FROM EAST OF CARTHAGE TO NORTHWEST OF FORT BRAGG. THE STORMS WERE MOVING EAST AT AROUND 10 MPH. GUSTY WINDS UP OF 40 TO 50 MPH...VERY HEAVY RAIN AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING STRIKES CAN BE EXPECTED WITH THESE STORMS. SOME LOCATIONS AFFECTED BY THESE STORMS INCLUDE...POPE AFB...WHISPERING PINES...LEMON SPRINGS... PINEVIEW... OLIVIA...AND ANDERSON CREEK. A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 9 PM. SGY
The Raleigh/Durham radar (KRAX), 20 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 19:32 UTC.
5 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.
Cars were flooded on Avent Ferry Road. One car sitting at a stop light was swept off the road.
Little Creek overflowed its banks, and an apartment complex was damaged from flooding. A furniture store also sustained flood damage.
Vehicles were stranded in flooded roads in Lexington, requiring rescues. Muddy Creek overflowed its banks, flooding Highway 109.
Numerous roads were flooded.
Several roads were flooded.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in North Carolina in 2003Every state in 2003This day in weather historyWarnings in North Carolina, July 2003
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: 5376186, 5376187, 5376188, 5376189, 5376190.