Flash Flood in North Carolina, May 7, 2003

Name: Flash Flood in North Carolina, May 7, 2003
Start: 2003-05-07T09:00
End: 2003-05-07T11:00
Location: North Carolina

May 7, 2003 · NWS GSP · 1 event in 1 county or zone

1 flash flood, 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: $250,000
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 Greenville-Spartanburg, SC wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at May 7, 2:16 AM EST, 6 hours 44 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, May 7, 2:16 AM EST, 6 hours 44 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
316 AM EDT WED MAY 7 2003

ATMOSPHERE REMAINS MOIST AND UNSTABLE. LINE OF INSTABILITY IS
SURGING BACK NORTHEAST...THRU TN AND GA. MCS/TSTMS FIRING ALONG THE
TMB AND STRONG CONVECTION IS MOVING BACK INTO CWA FROM THE W. ON TOP
OF THE THREAT OF SEVERE STORMS...SIGNIFICANT FLOODING SEEMS LIKELY
OVER W ZONES AND HAVE EXTENDED THE FLOOD WATCH THROUGH TODAY. MODELS
INCREASE CAPE TO ABOVE 2000 BY THIS AFTN WITH DEEP ASCENT INDICATED.
EXPECT A CHANCE POP CONTINUING MUCH OF WEEK. NOT PLANNING ANY
CHANGES TO EXTENDED.

FCSTID = 77
GSP   80  62  83  62 /  70  40  30  30
AND   81  61  83  63 /  70  40  30  30
CLT   81  62  84  63 /  70  40  30  30
HKY   78  61  82  60 /  70  40  30  30
AVL   76  57  78  59 /  80  50  30  30

.GSP...
GA...FLOOD WATCH FOR TODAY FOR ZONES GAZ010...GAZ017>018...GAZ026...
GAZ028>029.

NC...FLOOD WATCH FOR TODAY FOR ZONES NCZ048...NCZ051>053...
NCZ058>059...NCZ062>067.

SC...FLOOD WATCH FOR TODAY FOR ZONES SCZ001>007...SCZ010>012...
SCZ019.

RB

Hazardous weather outlook, May 7, 3:30 AM EST, 5 hours 30 minutes before

GAZ010-017-018-026-028-029-NCZ033>037-048>059-062>072-082-SCZ001>014-
019-071100-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
430 AM EDT WED MAY 7 2003

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

.DAY ONE...

SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED AGAIN TODAY...SOME WITH LARGE HAIL
AND DAMAGING WIND. ISOLATED TORNADOES ARE ALSO POSSIBLE. FLOODING IS
LIKELY TO BE A SERIOUS CONCERN ...ESPECIALLY FOR THOSE COUNTIES THAT
HAVE ALREADY EXPERIENCED HIGH WATER PROBLEMS.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...

THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE THURSDAY AND FRIDAY. SOME MAY BECOME
SEVERE...ESPECIALLY LATE AFTERNOON THROUGH EVENING.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL BE LIKELY.

RB

In the hours before

Special weather statement, May 7, 3:41 AM EST, 5 hours 19 minutes before

GAZ018-026-028-029-SCZ001>008-010>013-019-070945-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
441 AM EDT WED MAY 7 2003

STRONG THUNDERSTORMS WILL AFFECT EXTREME NORTHEAST GEORGIA AND
UPSTATE SOUTH CAROLINA THIS MORNING.  AT 535 AM...RADAR SHOWED
STRONG STORMS...WITH VERY HEAVY RAINFALL...FROM THE MOUNTAINS NORTH
OF WALHALLA AND PICKENS...EXTENDING SOUTH TO ANDERSON...AND THEN TO
WEST OF CARNESVILLE GEORGIA.  THE STRONGEST STORM WAS WEST OF
CARNESVILLE...MOVING EAST TOWARD HARTWELL AND ANDERSON.

STRONG GUSTY WINDS AND SOME HAIL WILL BE THREATS WITH THESE
STORMS...IN ADDITION TO CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING.  ALSO...THE
STORMS BETWEEN CARNESVILLE AND ANDERSON COULD REPEAT OVER THE SAME
AREAS FOR A WHILE...POSSIBLY CAUSING FLASH FLOODING TO DEVELOP.  A
FLOOD WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT...AND A FLASH FLOOD WARNING COULD
BECOME NECESSARY IF THE HEAVY RAIN CONTINUES MUCH LONGER.

JONES

Special weather statement, May 7, 4:41 AM EST, 4 hours 19 minutes before

SCZ012-019-071045-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
541 AM EDT WED MAY 7 2003

...STRONG THUNDERSTORM TO MOVE ACROSS NORTHERN GREENWOOD AND
SOUTHERN LAURENS COUNTIES THIS MORNING...

A STRONG THUNDERSTORM WILL AFFECT LOCATIONS FROM WARE SHOALS...TO
LAURENS AND CLINTON THROUGH 630 AM. STRONG WIND GUSTS TO 50
MPH...VERY HEAVY RAINFALL...AND FREQUENT CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING
CAN BE EXPECTED.

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WILL CONTINUE TO MONITOR THE PROGRESS OF
THIS STORM FOR POSSIBLE WARNINGS.

LANE

Special weather statement, May 7, 4:50 AM EST, 4 hours 10 minutes before

GAZ017-018-071030-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
550 AM EDT WED MAY 7 2003

...STRONG THUNDERSTORM TO AFFECT HABERSHAM AND STEPHENS COUNTIES
THIS MORNING...

THROUGH 630 AM...A STRONG THUNDERSTORM WILL PRODUCE SMALL HAIL...
WIND GUSTS OF 40 TO 50 MPH...AND FREQUENT CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING
IN LOCATIONS FROM CLARKEVILLE AND CORNELIA TO TOCCOA.

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WILL CONTINUE TO MONITOR THE PROGRESS OF
THIS STORM FOR A POSSIBLE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING IN THE NEAR
FUTURE.

LANE

Local storm report, May 7, 8:33 AM EST, 27 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE SPARTANBURG SC
933 AM EDT WED MAY 07 2003

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

235 PM     8 SW HARTWELL             GA   TORNADO
05/06/03   HART                           HART CO 911 REPORTED
                                          TREES DOWNED ON PULLIAN
                                          LANE AND LIBERTY HILL
                                          CHURCH ROAD IN SOUTHERN
                                          HART COUNTY.

TJB

The radar

The Knoxville radar (KMRX), 99 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 13:59 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Flash Flood, Graham

When: May 7, 9:00 AM EST to 11:00 AM EST
Where: Graham County, Countywide
Property damage: $250,000
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 35.350, -83.834 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Another round of heavy rain-producing thunderstorms caused a second consecutive day of flash flooding across the county. Several roads were closed due to flooded creeks and streams, as well as due to rock and mud slides. Portions of highways 28 and 129 were closed. Rock and mudslides caused some homes and trailers to be swept away. Yellow Creek flooded several homes. Numerous bridges were washed out.

What these are

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.

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: 5356660.