Strong gradient associated with a cold front produced sustained winds of 45 mph with gusts to 60 mph across the higher elevations of east Tennessee. Numerous trees and powerlines reported down above 2000 feet.
Every event with a place to put it; 9 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 episode as NWS MRX wrote it up.
Strong gradient associated with a cold front produced sustained winds of 45 mph with gusts to 60 mph across the higher elevations of east Tennessee. Numerous trees and powerlines reported down above 2000 feet. A tree fell on a mobile home in Cosby in Cocke County. 12 homes were damaged in the Camp Creek and Greystone communities in Greene County.
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 Morristown, TN wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Dec 22, 4:04 AM EST, 1 hour 56 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MORRISTOWN TN 404 AM EST WED DEC 22 2004 .SHORT TERM (TODAY AND TONIGHT)...SYSTEM APPROACHING FROM THE WEST ABOUT TO MAKE LIFE INTERESTING WEATHER-WISE FOR A COUPLE DAYS. MODELS IN DECENT AGREEMENT...WENT MOSTLY OFF OF GFS. EXPECT PRECIP TO BREAK OUT FROM WEST TO EAST AS THE DAY PROGRESSES...THEN WILL SEE NUMEROUS SHOWERS...AND POSSIBLY SOME THUNDER IN THE SOUTH...ALL AREAS TONIGHT. QPF WILL BE BETWEEN 1 AND 1.5 INCHES MOST AREAS...PERHAPS A BIT LESS IN FAR NE TENN AND SW VA. COLD FRONT APPROACHES LATE TONIGHT INTO EARLY THU PRODUCING AN INTERESTING MIN TEMP GRAPHIC. WILL SEE WARMEST MINIMUM TEMPS IN HIGHER ELEVATIONS OF OUR EASTERN CWA...WHICH ONLY HAPPENS A FEW TIMES PER YEAR. AS WED NIGHT BECOMES THU MORNING...WILL SEE RAPID COOLING FROM WEST TO EAST ACROSS THE AREA. COLD FRONT SHOULD EXTEND FROM WISE COUNTY VA TO GREENE COUNTY TN TO CLAY COUNTY NC AT 7 AM. .LONG TERM (THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY)...COLD FRONT WILL MOVE THROUGH EARLY ON THURSDAY. MODELS IN GOOD AGREEMENT ON TIMING AND STRENGTH OF CAA ADVECTION BEHIND FRONT. ETA MODEL HOLDS ONTO MOISTURE LONGER INTO THURSDAY AND THAT LOOKS REASONABLE. RAIN WILL MIX WITH SNOW BEFORE ENDING. SNOW SHOWERS WILL CONTINUE INTO THE AFTERNOON NE AREAS BUT WARM INITIAL SURFACE CONDITIONS SHOULD PRECLUDE SIGNIFICANT ACCUMULATIONS. MID LEVEL MOISTURE ADVECTS ACROSS AREA FROM WEST ON FRIDAY AND WOULD NOT BE SURPRISED TO SEE VIRGA/FLURRIES. OTHERWISE CHRISTMAS WEEKEND ON THE COLD SIDE WITH LIMITED TEMPERATURES ABOVE FREEZING. WARMING TREND EARLY NEXT WEEK. && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... CHATTANOOGA AIRPORT, TN 55 40 42 22 / 100 100 20 10 KNOXVILLE MCGHEE TYSON AIRPORT, TN 53 42 43 21 / 90 100 30 10 OAK RIDGE, TN 52 39 41 21 / 90 100 30 10 TRI CITIES AIRPORT, TN 55 43 45 19 / 70 100 60 10 && .MRX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... NC...WIND ADVISORY FROM 6 PM THIS EVENING TO 10 AM THURSDAY FOR NCZ060-061. TN...HIGH WIND WARNING FROM 6 PM THIS EVENING TO 10 AM THURSDAY FOR TNZ041-072-074. WIND ADVISORY FROM 6 PM THIS EVENING TO 10 AM THURSDAY FOR TNZ018-043-045-047-087-102. VA....WIND ADVISORY FROM 6 PM THIS EVENING TO 10 AM THURSDAY FOR VAZ001-002-006-008. SP/SON
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MORRISTOWN TN 637 AM EST TUE DEC 21 2004 NCZ060-061-TNZ012>018-035>047-067>074-081>087-098>102-VAZ001-002-005- 006-008-221100- ANDERSON-BLEDSOE-BLOUNT SMOKY MTN-BRADLEY-CAMPBELL-CHEROKEE- CLAIBORNE-CLAY-COCKE SMOKY MTN-EAST POLK-GRAINGER-HAMBLEN-HAMILTON- HANCOCK-HAWKINS-JEFFERSON-JOHNSON-KNOX-LEE-LOUDON-MARION-MCMINN- MEIGS-MORGAN-NORTH SEVIER-NORTHWEST CARTER-NORTHWEST COCKE- NORTHWEST GREENE-NORTHWEST MONROE-NW BLOUNT-RHEA-ROANE-RUSSELL- SCOTT TN-SCOTT VA-SEQUATCHIE-SEVIER SMOKY MTN-SOUTHEAST CARTER- SOUTHEAST GREENE-SOUTHEAST MONROE-SULLIVAN-UNICOI-UNION- WASHINGTON TN-WASHINGTON VA-WEST POLK-WISE- 637 AM EST (537 AM CST) TUE DEC 21 2004 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR EAST TENNESSEE...SOUTHWESTERN VIRGINIA AND EXTREME SOUTHWESTERN NORTH CAROLINA. .DAY ONE (TODAY AND TONIGHT)... NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER EXPECTED TODAY OR TONIGHT. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN (WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY)... A COLD FRONT WILL MOVE THROUGH THE AREA THURSDAY MORNING. THIS SYSTEM WILL BRING MODERATE RAINFALL TO THE AREA. AFTER THE FRONT PASSES BY...LIGHT SNOW AND FLURRIES ARE POSSIBLE. VERY COLD AIR WILL FOLLOW...SENDING TEMPERATURES BELOW NORMAL THROUGH THE WEEKEND. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT EXPECTED. PLEASE STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO OR VISIT OUR WEBSITE AT WWW.SRH.NOAA.GOV/MRX. SP
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
9 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Sustained winds at 45 mph with gusts to 60 mph.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Tennessee in 2004Every state in 2004This day in weather historyWarnings in Tennessee, December 2004
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: 5430253, 5430254, 5430255, 5430256, 5430257, 5430258, 5430259, 5430260, 5430261.