Hail in North Carolina, May 15, 2003

Name: Hail in North Carolina, May 15, 2003
Start: 2003-05-15T14:30
End: 2003-05-15T14:30
Location: North Carolina

May 15, 2003 · NWS RNK · 1 event in 1 county or zone

An isolated severe thunderstorm during the afternoon hours of the 15th produced hail up to half dollar size.

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

Open the live radar over this ground

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 happened

The episode as NWS RNK wrote it up.

An isolated severe thunderstorm during the afternoon hours of the 15th produced hail up to half dollar size.

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 Blacksburg, VA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at May 15, 10:50 AM EST, 3 hours 40 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, May 15, 10:50 AM EST, 3 hours 40 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BLACKSBURG, VA
1150 AM EDT THU MAY 15 2003

WL UPDATE ZONES TO TAKE OUT MORNING WORDING. NO OTHER CHANGES AT
THIS TIME.

.RNK...
NC...NONE.
VA...NONE.
WV...NONE.

AMS

Hazardous weather outlook, May 15, 5:32 AM EST, 8 hours 58 minutes before

NCZ001>006-018>020-VAZ007-009>020-022>024-032>035-043>047-058-059-
WVZ042>045-151230-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BLACKSBURG VA
632 AM EDT THU MAY 15 2003

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR SOUTHEAST WEST VIRGINIA...
WESTERN AND CENTRAL VIRGINIA...AS WELL AS NORTHWEST NORTH CAROLINA.

.DAY ONE...TODAY
THERE IS A SLIGHT RISK OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS TODAY...GENERALLY
WEST OF THE BLUE RIDGE MOUNTAINS. PLESE REFER TO THE SEVERE WEATHER
OUTLOOK ISSUED TODAY...SPSRNK...FOR DETAILS.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...

NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE REQUIRED THIS AFTERNOON.

06

In the hours before

Special weather statement, May 15, 11:27 AM EST, 3 hours 3 minutes before

NCZ001>006-018>020-VAZ007-009>020-022>024-032>035-043>047-058-059-
WVZ042>045-160130-
SEVERE WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BLACKSBURG VA
1227 PM EDT THU MAY 15 2003

THERE IS A SLIGHT RISK OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS THIS AFTERNOON AND
EVENING IN SOUTHEAST WEST VIRGINIA...NORTHWEST NORTH CAROLINA AND
SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA...MAINLY WEST OF A LINE FROM LEWISBURG WEST
VIRGINIA TO MARTINSVILLE VIRGINIA.

THE PRIMARY THREAT FROM ANY STORMS THAT BECOME SEVERE TODAY WILL BE
LARGE HAIL.

STORM SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE NECESSARY THIS AFTERNOON.

AMS

Special weather statement, May 15, 11:39 AM EST, 2 hours 51 minutes before

VAZ007-009-WVZ042-151730-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BLACKSBURG VA
1239 PM EDT THU MAY 15 2003

...STRONG THUNDERSTORMS APPROACHING TAZEWELL COUNTY...

A CLUSTER OF THUNDERSTORMS WILL APPROACH TAZEWELL AND NORTHERN SMYTH
COUNTIES EARLY THIS AFTERNOON. THE STORMS ARE EXPECTED TO REACH
RICHLANDS AROUND 12:45 PM AND TAZEWELL BETWEEN 1 AN 1:30 PM.
STRONG...GUSTY WINDS AND SMALL HAIL ARE POSSIBLE WITH THESE STORMS.

AMS

Special weather statement, May 15, 12:21 PM EST, 2 hours 9 minutes before

NCZ004-005-VAZ017-022>024-032>035-043-151815-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BLACKSBURG VA
121 PM EDT THU MAY 15 2003

...THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPING IN THE FOOTHILLS OF VIRGINIA AND NORTH
CAROLINA...

SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE TO DEVELOP IN THE FOOTHILLS
AND PIEDMONT OF VIRGINIA AND NORTH CAROLINA THIS AFTERNOON. THROUGH
2:30 PM...THE STRONGEST STORMS WILL MOVE FROM ROANOKE CITY AND
SOUTHERN ROANOKE COUNTY INTO NORTHERN FRANKLIN COUNTY AND WESTERN
BEDFORD COUNTY. EXPECT VERY HEAVY RAIN...STRONG GUSTY WINDS AND SMALL
HAIL WITH THESE STRONGER STORMS.

AMS

Special weather statement, May 15, 1:26 PM EST, 1 hour 4 minutes before

NCZ003-019-VAZ011-013-014-016-017-WVZ043>045-151930-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BLACKSBURG VA
226 PM EDT THU MAY 15 2003

...STRONG THUNDERSTORMS THIS AFTERNOON...

A LINE OF STRONG THUNDERSTORMS WILL MOVE ACROSS SOUTHEAST WEST
VIRGINIA...SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA AND NORTHWEST NORTH CAROLINA THIS
AFTERNOON. BY 3:00 PM THE LINE WILL EXTEND FROM UNION WEST VIRGINIA
TO RADFORD TO GALAX. THE STORMS WILL MOVE TO THE NORTHEAST AT 40
MPH. EXPECT VERY HEAVY RAIN...WIND GUSTS OF 40 TO 50 MPH AND SMALL
HAIL WITH THESE STORMS.

AMS

Local storm report, May 15, 2:28 PM EST, 2 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BLACKSBURG VA
328 PM EDT THU MAY 15 2003

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

0235 PM    ROANOKE                   VA   FLASH FLOOD
05/15/03   ROANOKE                        WATER COMING INTO
                                          MUNICIPAL
                                          BUILDINGS.REPORTED BY
                                          ROANOKE EMA.

0255 PM    FAIRLAWN                  VA   0.75 IN HAIL
05/15/03   RADFORD                        PENNY SIZE HAIL

0310 PM    BLACKSBURG                VA   WIND DAMAGE
05/15/03   MONTGOMERY                     LARGE TREE LIMBS DOWN.
                                          REPORTED BY NWS
                                          EMPLOYEE.

0315 PM    CHRISTIANSBURG            VA   0.88 IN HAIL
05/15/03   MONTGOMERY                     REPORTED BY SPOTTER.

The radar

The Greer radar (KGSP), 147 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 19:31 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 hail. Local standard time, as filed.

Hail, Watauga

When: May 15, 2:30 PM EST
Where: Watauga County, Blowing Rock
Measured: 1.25 in hail
Reported by: UNKNOWN
Coordinates: 36.133, -81.683

What these are

Hail: Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.

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, May 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: 5355850.