Upper trough aided destabilization across Southeast Tennessee during the overnight period with decent shear from speed maximum. Convection was multi-cellular in nature and produced mostly wind damage with limited severe hail.
Every event with a place to put it. 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.
Upper trough aided destabilization across Southeast Tennessee during the overnight period with decent shear from speed maximum. Convection was multi-cellular in nature and produced mostly wind damage with limited severe hail.
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 May 6, 8:37 PM EST, 1 hour 41 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MORRISTOWN TN 937 PM EDT WED MAY 6 2009 .DISCUSSION...MOST PRECIP HAS EXITED THE AREA FOR THE MOMENT...BUT SOME SHOWERS OFF TO OUR WEST APPROACHING WITH NEXT WEAK SHORT WAVE. EXPECT SOME SHOWERS OVERNIGHT...AND PERHAPS SOME THUNDER...BUT BELIEVE MAIN FLOODING THREAT HAS ENDED FOR NOW SO WILL ALLOW FLOOD WATCH TO EXPIRE. WILL MAKE A FEW TWEAKS TO THE FORECAST DATABASE...BUT OVERALL FORECAST FOR TONIGHT LOOKS REASONABLE. && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... CHATTANOOGA AIRPORT, TN 60 82 63 85 66 / 60 30 20 40 20 KNOXVILLE MCGHEE TYSON AIRPORT, TN 59 79 61 85 66 / 60 30 20 50 30 OAK RIDGE, TN 58 80 61 84 66 / 60 30 20 50 30 TRI CITIES AIRPORT, TN 56 75 54 83 61 / 70 30 20 50 30 && .MRX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... NC...NONE. TN...NONE. VA...NONE. && LDW
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MORRISTOWN TN 436 AM EDT WED MAY 6 2009 NCZ060-061-TNZ012>018-035>047-067>074-081>087-098>102-VAZ001-002- 005-006-008-070845- 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- 436 AM EDT WED MAY 6 2009 /336 AM CDT WED MAY 6 2009/ THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF SOUTHWEST NORTH CAROLINA...EAST TENNESSEE AND SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT ...FLOOD WATCH IN EFFECT TODAY FROM FROM 10 AM THROUGH 10 PM... WIDESPREAD SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED TODAY...AS ANOTHER LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM AND COLD FRONT AFFECT THE REGION. SOME STRONG TO SEVERE STORMS MAY OCCUR MAINLY THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING...WITH DAMAGING WINDS IN EXCESS OF 50 MPH AND LARGE HAIL THE MAIN THREATS. SATURATED GROUNDS FROM SEVERAL WET DAYS COULD CAUSE TREES TO FALL MORE EASILY THAN NORMAL. MODERATE TO HEAVY RAINS FROM SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS TODAY COULD CAUSE FLOODING...ESPECIALLY OVER PARTS OF THE AREA WHICH RECEIVED THE HEAVIER RAINS OVER THE PAST FEW DAYS. FOR MORE DETAILS ON THE THREAT OF FLOODING...SEE THE LATEST FLOOD WATCH STATEMENT. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY ...A SLIGHT RISK OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS EXISTS THURSDAY AND FRIDAY... SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS MAY LINGER INTO THURSDAY...WITH A FEW STRONG TO MARGINALLY SEVERE STORMS POSSIBLE THURSDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING. ANOTHER LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM WILL MOVE ACROSS THE REGION FRIDAY...WITH THE POTENTIAL FOR MORE SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS DURING THE AFTERNOON AND EVENING HOURS. AN ASSOCIATED FRONTAL BOUNDARY MAY LINGER ACROSS THE REGION INTO SATURDAY...AND PRODUCE MORE SHOWERS AND STORMS INTO THE FIRST PART OF THE WEEKEND. THIS ADDITIONAL RAINFALL MAY CAUSE RIVERS AND STREAMS TO CONTINUE ABOVE FLOOD STAGE...AND LEAD TO FLASH FLOODING AND POSSIBLE MUD SLIDES. REMAIN ALERT FOR THIS POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS WEATHER...ESPECIALLY IF YOU LIVE NEAR AREA CREEKS AND STREAMS...AND ANY OTHER FLOOD PRONE AREAS. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE REQUIRED TODAY THROUGH SATURDAY. TG
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MORRISTOWN TN 647 PM EDT WED MAY 6 2009 TNZ016-037>039-042-069-070-073-062345- GRAINGER-HAMBLEN-HAWKINS-JEFFERSON-KNOX-NORTH SEVIER-NORTHWEST GREENE-UNION- 647 PM EDT WED MAY 6 2009 ...LINE OF SHOWERS AND POSSIBLE THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE AFFECTING GRAINGER...GREENE...HAMBLEN...HAWKINS...JEFFERSON...KNOX...SEVIER AND UNION COUNTIES... AT 646 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR WAS TRACKING A LINE OF SHOWERS AND POSSIBLE THUNDERSTORMS ALONG A LINE EXTENDING FROM RUTLEDGE TO 5 MILES NORTH OF ALCOA...MOVING EAST AT 35 MPH. PEA SIZE HAIL...AND WINDS AROUND 40 MPH ARE EXPECTED WITH THESE SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS. TD
The Northeast Alabama radar (KHTX), 113 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 03:20 UTC.
3 thunderstorm wind, 1 hail. Local standard time, as filed.
A tree was reported down on Cranmore Cove Road approximately 2 miles west southwest of Morgantown.
A tree was reported down on High Point Road approximately 1 mile southeast of Concord.
Quarter sized hail fell along Peakland Road approximately 2 miles southeast of Peakland.
A tree was reported down on Highway 72 near the Loudon County border approximately 2 miles southeast of Paint Rock.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Tennessee in 2009Every state in 2009This day in weather historyWarnings in Tennessee, May 2009
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: 157660, 157661, 157659, 157663.