In the wake of a deepening low pressure system, high winds developed across northwest North Carolina.
Every event with a place to put it; 2 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 RNK wrote it up.
In the wake of a deepening low pressure system, high winds developed across northwest North Carolina.
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 Mar 8, 3:43 PM EST, 40 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BLACKSBURG VA
343 PM EST SAT MAR 8 2008
.SYNOPSIS...
LOW PRESSURE OVER MARYLAND WILL TRACK RAPIDLY NORTHEAST TONIGHT.
IN THE WAKE OF THIS SYSTEM...EXPECT VERY STRONG NORTHWEST WINDS
AND MUCH COLDER AIR TO OVERSPREAD TONIGHT INTO EARLY SUNDAY. HIGH
PRESSURE BUILDS IN ON SUNDAY.
&&
.NEAR TERM /UNTIL 6 AM SUNDAY MORNING/...
WITH WIND GUSTS AT BLF PUSHING 35 KTS AND MKJ ALREADY GUSTING INTO
THE 40S HAVE DECIDED TO GO AHEAD AND EXTEND THE WIND ADVISORY OUT
INTO OUR FAR WESTERN COUNTIES FOR THIS EVENING.
SURFACE LOW IS NOW IN MARYLAND WITH THE COLD FRONT EXTENDING INTO
EASTERN VIRGINIA AND EASTERN NORTH CAROLINA. MSAS IS SHOWING MAXIMUM
PRESSURE RISES BEHIND THE FRONT OF 5 MB/3 HOUR OVER EASTERN
TENNESSEE. ALREADY HAVE WINDS GUSTING 40 TO 45 KNOTS FROM MKJ TO
TNB TO BUY. NO ADJUSTMENTS NEEDED TO THE HIGH WIND WARNING AND WIND
ADVISORY AT THIS TIME.
THERE IS A LARGE AREA OF SNOW SHOWERS WITH THE COLD POOL AND UPPER
LOW BUT EXPECT THE COVERAGE WILL REDUCE BACK TO JUST THE TYPICAL
UPSLOPE AREAS AFTER SUNSET. MADE ONLY MINOR CHANGES TO THE CHANCE OF
PRECIPITATION AND MINIMUM TEMPERATURES...STAYING WITH A BLEND OF
MET/MAV GUIDANCE FOR LOWS TONIGHT.
&&
.SHORT TERM /6 AM SUNDAY MORNING THROUGH 6 PM SUNDAY/...
AFTER A VERY COOL START WITH LOWS IN THE TEENS IN THE WESTERN CWA
AND 20S OUT EAST SUNDAY WILL BE A MUCH CALMER DAY. THE SURFACE LOW
WILL BE ALL THE WAY INTO SE CANADA BY 12Z SUNDAY AND HIGH PRESSURE
BUILDS INTO THE AREA FORM THE TN VALLEY WITH TEMPERATURES 5 TO 10F
BELOW NORMAL BUT MUCH LESS WIND AND MOSTLY SUNNY SKIES.
&&
.LONG TERM /SUNDAY NIGHT THROUGH SATURDAY/...
TRIMMED POPS SUNDAY NIGHT LEANING TOWARDS SLOWER GFS SOLUTION.
A WEAK CLIPPER LOW DROP SOUTHEAST ACROSS WEST VIRGINIA ON MONDAY.
WITH INCREASED CLOUDS WENT COLDER THAN GMOS VALUES FOR HIGHS
MONDAY. IT MAY BE COLD ENOUGH FOR A LIGHT SNOW ACCUMULATIONS IN
WESTERN GREENBRIER VALLEY IN WEST VIRGINIA. HIGH PRESSURE WILL
EXTEND EAST ACROSS THE REGION TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY.
ANOTHER SOUTHERN STREAM SYSTEM SPREADS MOISTURE INTO PORTIONS OF SW
VA AND WESTERN NC THURSDAY INTO FRIDAY. WITH ADDITIONAL CLOUD COVER
AND WEAK WEDGE...DECIDED TO LOWER MAX TEMPERATURES ON FRIDAY. THERE
REMAINS BIG DIFFERENCES IN THE MEDIUM MODELS ON THE PLACEMENT OF THE
LOW CENTER FRIDAY INTO SATURDAY. THE 12Z GFS WAS THE STRONGEST WITH
THE STRENGTH OF THE SOUTHERN STREAM WAVE.
&&
.AVIATION /21Z SATURDAY THROUGH THURSDAY/...
LARGE AREA OF MVFR CEILINGS IS ASSOCIATED WITH THE UPPER LOW NOW
MOVING INTO SOUTHERN OHIO. EXPECT OCCASIONAL LOWER CEILINGS AND
VISIBILITIES WITH ANY OF THE BANS OF SHOWERS ROTATING AROUND THE
UPPER LOW...ESPECIALLY AT BLF AND LWB. MAY ALSO HAVE TO ADD A
BRIEF PERIOD OF RAIN AND SLEET IN AT LYH FOR THE BAND OF SHOWERS
THAT JUST CROSSED THE BLUE RIDGE.
HELD ON TO MVFR CEILINGS LONGER IN BLF AND LWB. OVERALL SYSTEM IS
MOVING FAST ENOUGH THAT STRONG WINDS WILL DIMINISH BY MORNING
THROUGHOUT THE COUNTY WARNING AREA.
ANOTHER WEAK DISTURBANCE MAY BRING A PERIOD OF MVFR/IFR CIGS BY
MONDAY TO SE WEST VA...OTRW APPEARS MAINLY VFR SUNDAY THRU TUESDAY
UNDER WEAK HIGH PRESSURE.
&&
.RNK WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
VA...HIGH WIND WARNING UNTIL MIDNIGHT EST TONIGHT FOR VAZ014>020.
WIND ADVISORY UNTIL MIDNIGHT EST TONIGHT FOR VAZ007-009>013-
022>024-032>035-043>047-058-059.
NC...HIGH WIND WARNING UNTIL MIDNIGHT EST TONIGHT FOR NCZ001-002-
018.
WIND ADVISORY UNTIL MIDNIGHT EST TONIGHT FOR NCZ003>006-019-
020.
WV...WIND ADVISORY UNTIL MIDNIGHT EST TONIGHT FOR WVZ042>045.
&&
SYNOPSIS...PC
NEAR TERM...AMS/JS
SHORT TERM...KK/PC
LONG TERM...KK
AVIATION...AMSHAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BLACKSBURG VA 359 PM EST SAT MAR 8 2008 NCZ001-002-018-VAZ014>020-092100- ASHE-ALLEGHANY NC-WATAUGA-MONTGOMERY-GRAYSON-CARROLL-FLOYD-CRAIG- ALLEGHANY VA-BATH- 359 PM EST SAT MAR 8 2008 ...HIGH WIND WARNING IN EFFECT UNTIL MIDNIGHT EST TONIGHT... THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTHWEST NORTH CAROLINA...SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA AND WEST CENTRAL VIRGINIA. .DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT PLEASE LISTEN TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO OR GO TO WEATHER.GOV ON THE INTERNET FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE FOLLOWING HAZARDS. HIGH WIND WARNING. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. NCZ003>006-019-020-VAZ022>024-032>035-043>047-058-059-092100- SURRY-STOKES-ROCKINGHAM-CASWELL-WILKES-YADKIN-ROANOKE-BOTETOURT- ROCKBRIDGE-PATRICK-FRANKLIN-BEDFORD-AMHERST-HENRY-PITTSYLVANIA- CAMPBELL-APPOMATTOX-BUCKINGHAM-HALIFAX-CHARLOTTE- 359 PM EST SAT MAR 8 2008 ...WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL MIDNIGHT EST TONIGHT... THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTH CENTRAL NORTH CAROLINA...NORTHWEST NORTH CAROLINA...CENTRAL VIRGINIA...SOUTH CENTRAL VIRGINIA...SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA AND WEST CENTRAL VIRGINIA. .DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT PLEASE LISTEN TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO OR GO TO WEATHER.GOV ON THE INTERNET FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE FOLLOWING HAZARDS. WIND ADVISORY. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. VAZ007-009>013-WVZ042>045-092100- TAZEWELL-SMYTH-BLAND-GILES-WYTHE-PULASKI-MERCER-SUMMERS-MONROE- GREENBRIER- 359 PM EST SAT MAR 8 2008 ...WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL MIDNIGHT EST TONIGHT... THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA AND SOUTHEAST WEST VIRGINIA. .DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT PLEASE LISTEN TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO OR GO TO WEATHER.GOV ON THE INTERNET FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE FOLLOWING HAZARDS. WIND ADVISORY. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
2 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
The West Jefferson AWOS measured sustained winds of 45 mph and a wind gust to 62 mph.
A 58 MPH wind gust was measured.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in North Carolina in 2008Every state in 2008This day in weather historyWarnings in North Carolina, March 2008
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: 89256, 89257.