Convection developed during the afternoon with continuation into the evening hours near a stationary frontal boundary. Severe weather affected Southwest Virginia and East Tennessee and was composed entirely of damaging wind gusts.
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.
Convection developed during the afternoon with continuation into the evening hours near a stationary frontal boundary. Severe weather affected Southwest Virginia and East Tennessee and was composed entirely of damaging wind gusts.
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 16, 12:20 PM EST, 15 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MORRISTOWN TN 120 PM EDT SUN MAY 16 2010 .AVIATION...AREA OF THUNDERSTORMS MOVING NORTHEAST OVER CENTRAL EAST TENNESSEE. HAVE ISSUED ON SEVERE TSTM WARNING FOR HAIL...WINDS. EXPECT SOME HEAVY RAINS, AS WELL. ONCE THIS AREA PASSES THERE IS A GAP BUT ANY SUNSHINE WILL DRIVE FURTHER DEVELOPMENT OF MORE STORMS. ANY STORMS NEAR AIRFIELDS WILL CAUSE STRONG GUSTY WINDS AND POSSIBLE HAIL...HEAVY RAINS APPEAR TO BE THE BIGGEST THREAT AT THIS TIME. EXPECT MVFR CIGS VSBYS WITH STORMS AND DEVELOPMENT OF OVERNIGHT FOG AS CLOUDS LIFT SOME AND LOW LEVEL MOISTURE COOLS OFF. && .MRX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... NC...NONE. TN...NONE. VA...NONE. && BB
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MORRISTOWN TN 417 AM EDT SUN MAY 16 2010 NCZ060-061-TNZ012>018-035>047-067>074-081>087-098>102-VAZ001-002- 005-006-008-170900- 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- 417 AM EDT SUN MAY 16 2010 /317 AM CDT SUN MAY 16 2010/ THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF SOUTHWEST NORTH CAROLINA...EAST TENNESSEE AND SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT A WEAK FRONTAL BOUNDARY WILL REMAIN OVER THE REGION TODAY AND TONIGHT. OCCASIONAL SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS CAN BE EXPECTED...AND A FEW OF THESE THUNDERSTORMS MAY BECOME SEVERE THIS AFTERNOON WITH DAMAGING WINDS AND LARGE HAIL THE PRIMARY THREATS. IN ADDITION...VERY HEAVY RAIN WILL BE POSSIBLE...WHICH MAY LEAD TO LOCALIZED FLOODING. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY SOME SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE TO BE IN THE FORECAST INTO THE FIRST PART OF THE WEEK. SOME OF THESE THUNDERSTORMS MAY BECOME SEVERE...ALONG WITH THE POSSIBILITY OF VERY HEAVY RAIN CAUSING LOCALIZED FLOODING. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE NEEDED...ESPECIALLY ON SUNDAY.
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MORRISTOWN TN 1146 AM EDT SUN MAY 16 2010 TNZ085>087-101-102-161630- EAST POLK TN-MCMINN TN-NORTHWEST MONROE TN-SOUTHEAST MONROE TN-WEST POLK TN- 1146 AM EDT SUN MAY 16 2010 ...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ADVISORY FOR POLK...MONROE AND MCMINN COUNTIES UNTIL 1230 PM EDT... AT 1142 AM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR WAS TRACKING A STRONG THUNDERSTORM 8 MILES EAST OF BENTON...MOVING NORTH AT 30 MPH. HAIL UP TO THE SIZE OF NICKELS AND WIND GUSTS UP TO 50 MPH ARE EXPECTED WITH THIS STORM. FREQUENT LIGHTNING AND HEAVY RAIN ARE ALSO EXPECTED. LOCATIONS NEAR THE PATH OF THIS STORM INCLUDE...MADISONVILLE... SWEETWATER...ETOWAH...BULLET CREEK...ENGLEWOOD...TELLICO PLAINS AND MOUNT VERNON. BB
The Knoxville radar (KMRX), 69 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 17:33 UTC.
11 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
One tree was reported down in the southern part of Maryville on Hutton Ridge Road.
A 52 knot wind gust was measured one half mile west of Springdale.
Several trees were reported down on Lone Mountain Road and Highway 33S seven miles southwest of Tazewell.
Several trees were reported down in Greeneville and the surrounding area.
One tree was reported down seven miles south of Cleveland on Old Alabama Road.
Weather spotter/Ham radio operator estimated thunderstorm winds between 50 and 55 mph with gusts between 65 and 70 mph six miles southwest of Jonesborough at Teleford.
Several trees were reported down in Limestone and the surrounding area.
Numerous trees were reported down across the county.
A few trees were reported down in Friendsville and the surrounding vicinity.
Several trees were reported down along highway 11W between Bristol and Kingsport.
One tree was reported down on Yankee Camp Road.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Tennessee in 2010Every state in 2010This day in weather historyWarnings in Tennessee, May 2010
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: 222156, 222157, 222158, 222159, 222160, 222161, 222164, 222165, 222166, 222167, 222169.