Damaging Wind in North Carolina, July 21, 2008

Name: Damaging Wind in North Carolina, July 21, 2008
Start: 2008-07-21T18:00
End: 2008-07-21T18:00
Location: North Carolina

July 21, 2008 · NWS MRX · 1 event in 1 county or zone

Southward advancing cold pool caused the formation of severe convection in a moderately unstable atmosphere across Southeast Tennessee and Southwest North Carolina.

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 MRX wrote it up.

Southward advancing cold pool caused the formation of severe convection in a moderately unstable atmosphere across Southeast Tennessee and Southwest North Carolina.

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 Morristown, TN wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jul 21, 4:03 PM EST, 1 hour 57 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 21, 4:03 PM EST, 1 hour 57 minutes before

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Hazardous weather outlook, Jul 21, 8:20 AM EST, 9 hours 40 minutes before

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...UPDATED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MORRISTOWN TN
920 AM EDT MON JUL 21 2008

NCZ060-061-TNZ012>018-035>047-067>074-081>087-098>102-VAZ001-002-
005-006-008-221200-
CHEROKEE-CLAY-SCOTT TN-CAMPBELL-CLAIBORNE-HANCOCK-HAWKINS-
SULLIVAN-JOHNSON-MORGAN-ANDERSON-UNION-GRAINGER-HAMBLEN-
NORTHWEST COCKE-COCKE SMOKY MOUNTAINS-NORTHWEST GREENE-
SOUTHEAST GREENE-WASHINGTON TN-UNICOI-NORTHWEST CARTER-
SOUTHEAST CARTER-ROANE-LOUDON-KNOX-JEFFERSON-NW BLOUNT-
BLOUNT SMOKY MOUNTAINS-NORTH SEVIER-SEVIER SMOKY MOUNTAINS-
SEQUATCHIE-BLEDSOE-RHEA-MEIGS-MCMINN-NORTHWEST MONROE-
SOUTHEAST MONROE-MARION-HAMILTON-BRADLEY-WEST POLK-EAST POLK-LEE-
WISE-SCOTT-RUSSELL-WASHINGTON-
920 AM EDT MON JUL 21 2008 /820 AM CDT MON JUL 21 2008/

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF SOUTHWEST NORTH
CAROLINA...EAST TENNESSEE AND SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA.

.DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT

A COLD FRONT WILL REMAIN NEARLY STATIONARY ACROSS THE OHIO VALLEY.
HOWEVER UPPER LEVEL FLOW WILL CAUSE SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS TO
MOVE SOUTHEAST TOWARDS NORTHEAST TENNESSEE AND SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA
THIS AFTERNOON. INCREASED MOISTURE AND DAYTIME HEATING COMBINED
WITH HOT TEMPERATURES WILL CAUSE A FEW STORMS TO BE STRONG AND
POSSIBLY SEVERE LATE THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING WITH DAMAGING
WINDS AND LARGE HAIL POSSIBLE ESPECIALLY ACROSS NORTHERN TENNESSEE
AND SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY

UPPER LEVEL TROUGH DROPPING SOUTH AND EAST FROM THE OHIO VALLEY
INTO THE TENNESSEE VALLEY AND ACCOMPANYING COLD FRONT WILL CREATE AN
UNSTABLE ENVIRONMENT WHEN COMBINED WITH AMPLE MOISTURE AND DAYTIME
HEATING TUESDAY FOR POSSIBLE SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH DAMAGING
WINDS THE MAIN THREAT.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT ANTICIPATED TODAY DUE TO THE ISOLATED
NATURE OF THE SEVERE WEATHER...BUT MAY BE NEEDED TUESDAY AFTERNOON
AND EVENING.

TD

In the hours before

Local storm report, Jul 21, 5:08 PM EST, 52 minutes before

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Local storm report, Jul 21, 5:21 PM EST, 39 minutes before

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Local storm report, Jul 21, 5:29 PM EST, 31 minutes before

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Local storm report, Jul 21, 5:36 PM EST, 24 minutes before

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Local storm report, Jul 21, 5:44 PM EST, 16 minutes before

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Local storm report, Jul 21, 5:48 PM EST, 12 minutes before

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The radar

The Knoxville radar (KMRX), 133 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 23:02 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Cherokee

When: July 21, 6:00 PM EST
Where: Cherokee County, 0.69 mi N of Murphy
Measured: 55 kt (63 mph) estimated gust
Reported by: Law Enforcement
Coordinates: 35.090, -84.030

Numerous trees were reported down across the county.

What these are

Thunderstorm Wind: Winds from a thunderstorm of 50 knots (58 mph) or more, or lower winds that caused damage or casualties. Measured gusts are marked MG, estimated EG.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in North Carolina in 2008 Every state in 2008 This day in weather history Warnings in North Carolina, July 2008

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 2026-10-01. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 128888.