Strong pressure gradient winds from a developing low pressure system through the Carolinas resulted in winds gusts to around 40 mph.
Every event with a place to put it; 1 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 RAH wrote it up.
Strong pressure gradient winds from a developing low pressure system through the Carolinas resulted in winds gusts to around 40 mph.
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 Raleigh, NC wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Dec 26, 7:25 AM EST, 2 hours 5 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RALEIGH NC 725 AM EST WED DEC 26 2012 .SYNOPSIS... A POWERFUL STORM SYSTEM WILL SWEEP THROUGH THE AREA TODAY. COOL HIGH PRESSURE WILL BUILD INTO THE REGION FOR THURSDAY AND FRIDAY. ANOTHER STORM SYSTEM WILL MOVE IN FROM THE SOUTHWEST LATE FRIDAY NIGHT THROUGH SATURDAY. && .NEAR TERM /THROUGH TODAY/... AS OF 315 AM WEDNESDAY... ...STRONG TO SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS APPEAR LIKELY ACROSS A LARGE SECTION OF CENTRAL NC TODAY... A STRONG LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM WILL CONTINUE TO TRACK E-NE ACROSS THE TN VALLEY TODAY AND INTO THE CENTRAL APPALACHIANS BY THIS EVENING. THE ATTENDANT SURFACE LOW AND COLD FRONT WILL SWEEP ACROSS OUR REGION THIS AFTERNOON. CURRENTLY...AIR MASS ACROSS CENTRAL NC FAIRLY STABLE AS SURFACE DEWPOINTS IN THE UPPER 30S NORTH TO THE MID 40S SOUTH AS DRY AIR RIDGE ASSOCIATED WITH A PARENT HIGH OVER SOUTHERN ONTARIO IS MAINTAINING ITS INFLUENCE A BIT LONGER THAN PROJECTED BY THE MODELS. THIS MAY SLOW OR LIMIT THE PREDICTED DESTABILIZATION PROCESS...ESPECIALLY ACROSS THE NRN HALF OF THE FORECAST AREA. IN THE VERY NEAR TERM...STILL EXPECT RAIN SHOWERS TO BECOME WIDESPREAD ACROSS THE REGION EARLY THIS MORNING AS ISENTROPIC LIFT IN THE 295-290K LAYER RAMPS UP...THANKS TO A STRENGTHENING LOW LEVEL JET. POTENTIAL TO SEE A BAND OF MODERATE TO LOCALLY HEAVY RAIN SET UP OVER OR JUST WEST OF OUR WESTERN PIEDMONT THIS MORNING WITH RAINFALL RATES CLOSE TO A HALF INCH PER HOUR POSSIBLE. IN LIGHT OF RECENT DRY CONDITIONS...THE RAINFALL WILL BE WELCOMED BUT RAINFALL INTENSITIES OF THIS MAGNITUDE FOR A COUPLE OF HOURS MAY LEAD TO ISOLATED RUNOFF ISSUES...ESPECIALLY IN URBAN LOCATIONS. A SURFACE WARM FRONT OUT AHEAD OT THE SURFACE LOW PROJECTED TO BE NEAR OUR BORDER WITH SC EARLY THIS MORNING THEN LIFT INTO OUR SOUTHERN COUNTIES BY NOON. PER SURFACE DEWPOINT ANALYSIS...THIS WARM FRONT AT 07Z APPEARS TO LIE ACROSS CENTRAL GA THEN BENDS SE TOWARD SAVANNAH/HILTON HEAD REGION. WILL CONTINUE TO MONITOR THE PROGRESSION OF THIS FEATURE AS THE WARMER AIR BEHIND THIS FRONT WILL BE THE KEY INGREDIENT FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF STRONG/SEVERE STORMS. SEVERE STORMS TUESDAY AFTERNOON-EVENING ACROSS THE DEEP SOUTH APPEARED TO COINCIDE WITH SURFACE DEWPOINTS NEAR 60-LOWER 60S AND NEAR OR IMMEDIATELY WEST OF THE CORE OF 850MB JET. MOST MODEL GUIDANCE LIMIT SURFACE DEWPOINTS AT OR ABOVE 60 DEGREES TO OUR FAR SOUTH-EASTERN COUNTIES THIS AFTERNOON WHILE CORE OF 850MB JET (55-60KTS) LIFTS ACROSS OUR SANDHILLS AND COASTAL PLAIN THIS AFTERNOON. THUS...FEEL FAIRLY CERTAIN THAT SEVERE STORMS ARE A GOOD BET FOR THE SE QUARTER OF A CWA WITH THREAT DECREASING APPRECIABLY TO THE NW (BUT STILL NON-ZERO). EXPECT RAIN THIS MORNING TO LOCK IN A CAD AIR MASS OVER THE NW PIEDMONT KEEPING THIS REGION COOL AND STABLE THROUGH THE BULK OF THE EVENT THOUGH THERE MAY BE A VERY NARROW WIND OF OPPORTUNITY WHEN THE SFC COLD FRONT AND ASSOCIATED STRONG CONVECTION CROSSES THE REGION THIS AFTERNOON WITH AN ISOLATED DAMAGING WIND THREAT. BIG QUESTION MARK IS THE REGION STRETCHING FROM THE SOUTHERN PIEDMONT UP TO THE TRIANGLE AREA. THIS REGION WILL LIKELY SEE THE WARM FRONT WAVER OVERHEAD. WHERE THIS WARM FRONT LIES WILL ALSO BE WHERE NEAR SURFACE HELICITY WILL BE MAXIMIZED AND AN ENHANCE TORNADIC THREAT. OVERALL...STRONG FORCING ASSOCIATED WITH THE STRENGTHENING LOW E LEVEL JET COUPLED WITH INCREASING UPPER DIVERGENCE ASSOCIATED WITH THE LEFT EXIT REGION OF UPPER JET SHOULD CAUSE WIDESPREAD SHOWERS AND SCATTERED T-STORMS BY THIS AFTERNOON. EXPECT A BAND OF STRONG-SEVERE STORMS TO OCCUR IMMEDIATELY AHEAD OF THE SFC COLD FRONT. WHILE MAIN SEVERE WEATHER THREAT WILL BE DAMAGING STRAIGHT LINE WINDS...LOW LEVEL HELICITY QUITE STRONG SUGGESTING THAT ANY DISCRETE CELLS AHEAD OR EMBEDDED INT EH BAND OF CONVECTION WILL HAVE THE POTENTIAL TO ROTATE...LEADING TO A THREAT FOR ISOLATED TORNADOES. THIS THREAT WILL BE GREATEST ALONG AND SOUTH OF A WARM FRONT THAT WILL BISECT OUR REGION THIS AFTERNOON. IF WARM FRONT AND ASSOCIATED SFC DEWPOINTS NEAR 60/LOWER 60S REMAIN S-SW OF OUR REGION...THEN SEVERE WEATHER THREAT WILL BE REDUCED (BUT NOT TOTALLY ELIMINATED DUE TO STRENGTH OF THE WIND FIELD ALOFT). SLY WINDS BEHIND THE FRONT WILL BE BREEZY WITH GUSTS 30-35 MPH LIKELY. CONSIDERED A WIND ADVISORY FOR THIS AFTERNOON FOR THE SOUTHERN COUNTIES BUT PREFERRED TO FOCUS ATTENTION MORE ON THE SEVERE WEATHER THREAT. THIS WARM FRONT WILL ALSO PLAY A ROLE IN DETERMINING MAX TEMPS. MAY SEE A TEMP VARIANCE OF 10-15 DEGREES ACROSS WAKE COUNTY ALONE WITH TEMPS NEAR 50-LOWER 50S NEAR FALLS LAKE...TRENDING TO NEAR 60-LOWER 60S OVER THE SE SECTION OF THE COUNTY. CURRENTLY EXPECT MAX TEMPS TO VARY FROM UPEPR 40S TO NEAR 50 FAR N-NW TO THE MID-UPPER 60S IN THE FAR SE. && .SHORT TERM /TONIGHT THROUGH THURSDAY NIGHT/... AS OF 340 AM WEDNESDAY... TONIGHT...STRING SFC COLD FRONT WILL EXIT THE COASTAL PLAIN EARLY THIS EVENING. WLY WINDS BEHIND THIS FEATURE WILL REMAIN BREEZY. PER GFS AND NAM BUFR SOUNDING...POTENTIAL FOR WIND GUSTS AROUND 35 MPH THROUGH MOST OF THE NIGHT. A SHALLOW STABLE LAYER MAY DEVELOP OVERNIGHT TO PREVENT STRONGEST WINDS FROM REACHING THE SURFACE. ON THE FENCE ABOUT THE NEED FOR A WIND ADVISORY. WILL WAIT AND SEE WHAT 12Z MODEL GUIDANCE OFFERS. OTHERWISE EXPECT CLEARING FROM THE SW THIS EVENING INTO THE OVERNIGHT...MAINLY ACROSS THE SOUTH AND EAST SECTIONS. STRONG CYCLONIC FLOW ASSOCIATED WITH THE UPPER TROUGH MAY MAINTAIN SOME CLOUDINESS ACROSS THE NORTHERN PIEDMONT WELL INTO THE NIGHT. STRONG CAA WILL SEND TEMPS PLUMMETING BEHIND THE FRONT. MIN TEMPS BY EARLY THU SHOULD RANGE FROM NEAR 30-LOWER 30S NORTH AND WEST TO THE MID 30S SE-EAST. THURSDAY...VERY WINDY TO START THE DAY WITH CONTINUED THREAT OF WIND GUSTS NEAR 35 MPH IN THE MORNING. AS THE STRONG LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM PULLS AWAY FROM THE NE U.S. COAST...WIND ACROSS CENTRAL NC WILL BEGIN TO SUBSIDE. MAY SEE A THICK VEIL OF CIRRUS OVERHEAD THU...LIMITING SUNSHINE A BIT. OTHERWISE...SHOULD SEE TEMPS REBOUND INTO THE UPPER 40S-LOWER 50S BY AFTERNOON. THURSDAY NIGHT...EXPECT COLD CONDITIONS AS AIR MASS QUITE DRY (DEWPOINTS IN THE 20S THU-THU EVENING) AND WINDS SHOULD BECOME LIGHT/CALM. OVERNIGHT TEMPS IN THE MID-UPPER 20S SHOULD BE COMMON. && .LONG TERM /FRIDAY THROUGH TUESDAY/... AS OF 300 AM WEDNESDAY... FRIDAY/FRIDAY NIGHT: WEAK SURFACE HIGH PRESSURE SLIPS OFF THE SOUTHEAST COAST FRIDAY... BRINGING A LIGHT LOW LEVEL SRLY WIND FLOW INTO NC. HIGH CLOUDS WILL BE INCREASING GRADUALLY WITH STRENGTHENING LONG-FETCH MID-HIGH LEVEL FLOW FROM THE SW... IN ADVANCE OF THE NEXT STORM SYSTEM DIGGING OVER THE CENTRAL/SRN PLAINS. WITH LITTLE CHANGE IN AIR MASS OR LOW LEVEL VERTICAL THERMAL STRUCTURE... EXPECT HIGHS TO BE MINIMALLY HIGHER THAN ON THURSDAY... 48-54. SKIES SHOULD TREND TO OVERCAST FRIDAY NIGHT WITH THICKENING AND LOWERING CLOUDS FROM SOUTHWEST TO NORTHEAST AS THE MID LEVEL TROUGH AXIS SWINGS EASTWARD... EXTENDING FROM WRN MI THROUGH THE MISS VALLEY BY DAYBREAK... WHILE LOW CLOUDS ENVELOP MUCH OF THE FORECAST AREA AS WELL WITH INCREASING LOW LEVEL (280K-285K) MOIST ISENTROPIC UPGLIDE PARTICULARLY IN THE SRN/ERN SECTIONS. MODELS DEPICT INCREASING FORCING FOR ASCENT AFTER 06Z ATTRIBUTABLE TO STRENGTHENING MOIST UPGLIDE ALOFT AT 290K-300K OVER THE WRN CWA LATE... WEAK BUT INCREASING MID LEVEL DPVA AS A SHEARED VORTICITY MAXIMUM TRACKS UP TOWARD THE SRN APPALACHIANS... AND STRENGTHENING UPPER DIVERGENCE OVER THE SOUTHEAST STATES IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE ELONGATED 140+ KT UPPER JET FROM BAJA THROUGH THE MIDATLANTIC REGION. WITH MUCH OF THIS LIFT ROOTED IN THE MID-UPPER LEVELS AND WITH FORECAST SOUNDINGS DEPICTING A LINGERING DRIER LAYER AT 925-850 MB... INITIAL AMOUNTS WILL BE SMALL... BUT THE DEGREE OF OVERALL MOISTENING AS WELL AS THE ECMWF TREND TOWARD A BROADER AND MORE PROGRESSIVE TROUGH SUPPORTS INCREASING RAIN CHANCES OVERNIGHT IN THE FAR WEST AND SW FORECAST AREA... WITH DRIZZLE POSSIBLE IN THE SOUTHEAST AS LOW LEVEL ATLANTIC MOISTURE IS DRAWN IN. FORTUNATELY CURRENT INDICATIONS ARE THAT THE NEAR-SURFACE AIR IN THE TRIAD SHOULD HOLD ABOVE FREEZING... AND THE 850 MB WARM FRONT IS EXPECTED TO HOLD TO OUR SOUTH OVERNIGHT... SO WE'RE UNLIKELY TO SEE ANY PRECIP-TYPE ISSUES OVERNIGHT IN OUR CWA. WITH THE INCREASING CLOUDS... HAVE NUDGED UP LOWS A BIT TO 34-39. FOR SATURDAY/SATURDAY NIGHT: WITH THE ECMWF'S MID LEVEL PATTERN HAVING TRENDED MORE TOWARD THE GFS IN THE LAST COUPLE OF RUNS... ITS SURFACE PATTERN OF CYCLOGENESIS HAS SHIFTED AWAY FROM A SINGLE-LOW MILLER TYPE-A AND NOW MORE CLOSELY RESEMBLES THE MORE MILLER A/B PATTERN OF THE GFS. AS THE LEAD WAVE SHEARS NORTHEASTWARD UP THE SRN/CENTRAL APPALACHIANS TOWARD THE NORTHEAST STATES... ADDITIONAL ENERGY DROPS INTO THE MEAN TROUGH FROM THE UPPER MIDWEST... EVENTUALLY SHIFTING THE DEEPENING TROUGH AXIS OFF THE MIDATLANTIC COAST BY LATE SATURDAY NIGHT. AT THE SURFACE... THE ANTICIPATED COMPLEX PATTERN WILL FEATURE AN OCCLUDED LOW OVER ERN KY LINKED TO A WEAK LOW OVER NE GA AND A STRONGER LOW OVER THE FL PANHANDLE EARLY SATURDAY... AND A NW-MOVING COASTAL FRONT FROM NRN GA THROUGH CENTRAL SC AND ERN NC. TOUGH CALL ON PRECIP CHANCES AS WE MAY BE SITUATED BETWEEN THE BETTER INSTABILITY OVER THE GULF AND SE COAST AND THE GREATER DYNAMICS JUST TO OUR NW. BUT GIVEN THE LIKELIHOOD OF FAIRLY DEEP MOISTURE WITH A GOOD GULF FEED AND STRONG ASCENT INDICATED BY THE MODELS... THE TREND TOWARD LIKELY POPS CONTINUES TO LOOK REASONABLE... BUT RAINFALL AMOUNTS AWAY FROM THE COASTAL FRONTAL ZONE MAY BE QUITE LOW... ESPECIALLY IF THE GFS IS CORRECT IN SHOWING RAPID DRYING ABOVE -5C AS EARLY AS NOON ON SATURDAY. THE GREATEST COVERAGE SHOULD CONTINUE TO BE ALONG/EAST OF I-95 AS THE COASTAL LOW INTENSIFIES OVER THE NC COAST AND BECOMES THE DOMINANT LOW AS IT MOVES NE THROUGH SATURDAY NIGHT. ASIDE FROM THE FAR ERN CWA NEAR THE WARM FRONT... THICKNESSES MOVE LITTLE SATURDAY... AND FORECAST SOUNDINGS DEPICT A DEEP NEARLY ISOTHERMAL LAYER BELOW 700 MB. WILL DROP HIGHS DOWN A COUPLE OF CATEGORIES... TO RANGE FROM 40 NW TO NEAR 50 SE. EXPECT RAIN TO END WEST TO EAST EARLY SATURDAY NIGHT WITH THE TROUGH AXIS SHIFTING OVERHEAD ACCOMPANIED BY INCREASING COLD AIR ADVECTION. LOWS 27-33 WITH CLEARING SKIES. FOR SUNDAY THROUGH TUESDAY: COOL HIGH PRESSURE BUILDS OVER THE CAROLINAS THROUGH MONDAY AS MID LEVEL RIDGING BUILDS OVER THE EASTERN HALF OF THE CONUS IN THE WAKE OF SATURDAY'S SYSTEM. MODEL SOLUTIONS START TO DIVERGE WITH THE ECMWF SHOWING AN EXPANSIVE DEEP VORTEX CENTERED OVER THE CANADIAN MARITIMES AND ENCOMPASSING ERN NOAM AND THE NW ATLANTIC BY TUESDAY... FAVORING GENERALLY DRY BUT COLDER WEATHER... WHILE THE MORE-PHASED GFS TAKES A WEAKER AND POSITIVELY TILTED TROUGH EASTWARD... EXTENDING FROM ERN CANADA TO THE DESERT SOUTHWEST WITH A FRONTAL ZONE EASING TOWARD THE APPALACHIANS YIELDING AN INCREASING MOISTURE FEED INTO CENTRAL NC... SUPPORTING WETTER AND MILDER WEATHER. THE OLD (12Z/25) ECMWF ENSEMBLE MEAN AGREES BETTER WITH THE GFS THAN WITH THE NEW OP ECMWF... SO FOR NOW... WILL NOT MAKE ANY SIGNIFICANT CHANGES TO THE EXISTING FORECAST... STAYING WITH TEMPS JUST UNDER CLIMATOLOGY AND LOW CHANCE POPS MAINLY IN THE NW AS WE HEAD INTO THE NEW YEAR. -GIH && .AVIATION /12Z WEDNESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY/... AS OF 725 AM WEDNESDAY... WIDESPREAD IFR/LIFR CEILINGS BEING REPORTED ACROSS CENTRAL NC THIS MORNING...WITH LITTLE IMPROVEMENT EXPECTED THROUGH MID AFTERNOON. NUMEROUS SHOWERS WILL CONTINUE TO MOVE NWD ACROSS THE REGION THROUGH LATE MORNING. THE HEAVIER SHOWERS WILL PRODUCE RAINFALL RATES CLOSE TO A HALF INCH PER HOUR. ELY SURFACE WINDS 8-14KTS WITH GUSTS 25KTS COMMON ACROSS CENTRAL NC EARLY THIS MORNING. BY 10 AM...A WARM FRONT WILL ADVANCE NWD INTO CENTRAL NC FROM SC. THIS WARM FRONT EXPECTED TO PASS THE KFAY AREA 15-18Z TIME FRAME...AND POSSIBLY AS FAR NORTH AS KRDU AND KRWI IN THE 18-2Z TIME FRAME. THE PASSAGE OF THIS FRONT WILL BE NOTED BY THE WIND SHIFTING TO A SLY DIRECTION WITH SUSTAINED WIND SPEEDS 15-20KTS AND GUSTS 30-35KTS. AT MIDDAY...A STRONG COLD FRONT WILL ENTER THE WESTERN PIEDMONT THEN SWEEP RAPIDLY NEWD...EXITING OUR COASTAL PLAIN COUNTIES BY DUSK. AHEAD AND ALONG THIS BOUNDARY...EXPECT NUMEROUS SHOWERS AND SCATTERED T-STORMS. WIND GUSTS IN VICINITY OF THE STRONGER STORMS MAY EXCEED 50-55KTS. THE SEVERE STORM THREAT SHOULD END AT MOST TAF SITES BETWEEN 21Z WED-00Z THU. IN WAKE OF THE FRONT...CEILINGS WILL LIFT INTO THE LOW END VFR CATEGORY. HOWEVER IT WILL BE WINDY WITH WLY WINDS 15-20KTS SUSTAINED AND GUSTS 30-35 KTS HIGHLY PROBABLY. THESE WINDY CONDITIONS WILL PERSIST INTO THURSDAY. ASIDE FROM WINDY CONDITIONS THURSDAY...EXPECT VFR PARAMETERS. WINDS SHOULD SUBSIDE THU AFTERNOON AND BECOME LIGHT/NEAR CALM THU NIGHT. THE NEXT THREAT FOR ADVERSE AVIATION WEATHER CONDITIONS IS EXPECTED FRIDAY NIGHT INTO SATURDAY AS THE NEXT LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM APPROACHES AND CROSSES THE REGION FROM THE SW. A RETURN TO VFR CONDITIONS IS ANTICIPATED FOR SUNDAY. && .CLIMATE... A QUICK RESEARCH INTO THE TORNADO CLIMATOLOGY IN DECEMBER FOR NORTH CAROLINA INCLUDED: THERE HAVE ONLY BEEN 3 RECORDED EF-2 TORNADOES SINCE 1884. THERE HAVE BEEN NO RECORDED STRONG (EF-3 OR GREATER TORNADOES RECORDED IN NC IN DECEMBER). THE EF-2 TORNADO - OCCURRENCES IN NORTH CAROLINA SINCE 1884 ARE AS INDICATED BELOW: THERE HAVE BEEN ONLY 3 (EF-2 OR GREATER) TORNADOES IN NORTH CAROLINA SINCE 1884. ALL WERE WITHIN 50 MILES OF THE COAST. ONE WAS RECORDED IN SAMPSON COUNTY... ONE IN COLUMBUS COUNTY... AND ONE RECORDED IN CARTERET COUNTY. THE SAMPSON TORNADO WAS RATED F2 AND OCCURRED IN 1884 (DECEMBER 22 AT 1750 LOCAL TIME). 2 WERE KILLED AND 5 INJURED. THE COLUMBUS COUNTY TORNADO OCCURRED ON DECEMBER 1, 1967 AT 1930 LOCAL TIME. 1 PERSON WAS INJURED. THE CARTERET COUNTY TORNADO OCCURRED ON DECEMBER 3, 1967 AT 0915 LOCAL TIME. THERE HAVE BEEN 10 OR SO EF-1 OR EF-0 TORNADOES... BUT THE DATA ON THE OCCURRENCES IS LIMITED. ONE THING TO ADD... TORNADOES IN DECEMBER CAN OCCUR BUT ARE RARE. EVEN STRONG ONES HAVE BEEN RECORDED AT OR NORTH OF OUR LATITUDE IN DECEMBER. THE DECEMBER 24-25, 1982 TORNADO OUTBREAK FROM ARKANSAS THROUGH MISSOURI INTO ILLINOIS AND TENNESSEE WAS ONE OF THE LARGEST LATE DECEMBER OUTBREAKS. && .RAH WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... NONE. && SYNOPSIS...HARTFIELD NEAR TERM...WSS SHORT TERM...WSS LONG TERM...HARTFIELD AVIATION...WSS CLIMATE..BADGETT
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RALEIGH NC 423 AM EST WED DEC 26 2012 NCZ008>011-025>028-040>043-073>078-083>086-088-089-271030- GRANVILLE-VANCE-WARREN-HALIFAX-DURHAM-FRANKLIN-NASH-EDGECOMBE- CHATHAM-WAKE-JOHNSTON-WILSON-STANLY-MONTGOMERY-MOORE-LEE-HARNETT- WAYNE-ANSON-RICHMOND-SCOTLAND-HOKE-CUMBERLAND-SAMPSON- 423 AM EST WED DEC 26 2012 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR CENTRAL NORTH CAROLINA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT. ...RISK OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS TODAY... A STRONG LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM WILL MOVE EAST NORTHEAST FROM THE TENNESSEE VALLEY INTO THE CENTRAL APPALACHIANS TODAY. THIS WEATHER SYSTEM WILL SEND A STRONG COLD FRONT ACROSS CENTRAL NORTH CAROLINA THIS AFTERNOON. ALONG AND AHEAD OF THE FRONT...SCATTERED STRONG TO SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WILL OCCUR. THE PRIMARY SEVERE WEATHER THREAT WILL BE DAMAGING STRAIGHT LINE WINDS IN EXCESS OF 50 TO 60 MPH ALONG WITH ISOLATED TORNADOES. THE SEVERE WEATHER THREAT APPEARS MOST LIKELY BETWEEN NOON AND 6 PM...ALTHOUGH STORMS MAY DEVELOP AS EARLY AS 10 AM IN THE FAR SOUTHERN PIEDMONT AND SANDHILLS. IN ADDITION...STRONG SOUTHERLY WINDS AHEAD OF THE APPROACHING COLD FRONT ARE LIKELY TO OCCASIONALLY GUST TO 35 MPH...FOLLOWED BY STRONG WESTERLY WINDS BEHIND THE FRONT LATE TODAY AND TONIGHT. RESIDENTS OF CENTRAL NORTH CAROLINA AS WELL AS AREA 911 CENTERS AND EMERGENCY MANAGERS SHOULD CLOSELY MONITOR THE WEATHER CONDITIONS TODAY AND KEEP ABREAST OF THE LATEST FORECAST AND STATEMENTS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY. WINDY CONDITIONS WILL OCCUR THURSDAY...ESPECIALLY IN THE MORNING...WITH WIND GUSTS 30 TO 40 MPH PROBABLE. A WIND ADVISORY MAY BE NEEDED ON THURSDAY. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SKYWARN SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL LIKELY BE NEEDED BETWEEN 10 AM AND 7 PM. SPOTTERS SHOULD REPORT SEVERE WEATHER AS SOON AS IT IS SAFE TO DO SO. PLEASE STAY TUNED FOR LATER WATCHES AND WARNINGS. NCZ007-021>024-038-039-271030- PERSON-FORSYTH-GUILFORD-ALAMANCE-ORANGE-DAVIDSON-RANDOLPH- 423 AM EST WED DEC 26 2012 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR CENTRAL NORTH CAROLINA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT. ...STRONG TO SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS LIKELY TODAY... A STRONG LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM WILL MOVE EAST NORTHEAST FROM THE TENNESSEE VALLEY INTO THE CENTRAL APPALACHIANS TODAY. THIS WEATHER SYSTEM WILL SEND A STRONG COLD FRONT ACROSS CENTRAL NORTH CAROLINA THIS AFTERNOON. ALONG AND AHEAD OF THE FRONT SCATTERED STRONG TO SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WILL OCCUR. THE PRIMARY SEVERE WEATHER THREAT WILL BE DAMAGING STRAIGHT LINE WINDS IN EXCESS OF 50 TO 60 MPH. THE SEVERE WEATHER THREAT APPEARS MOST LIKELY BETWEEN NOON AND 4 PM. BEHIND THE COLD FRONT...SOUTHWEST TO WEST WINDS WILL GUSTS AS HIGH AS 35 MPH LATE TODAY AND TONIGHT. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY. WINDY CONDITIONS WILL OCCUR THURSDAY...ESPECIALLY IN THE MORNING...WITH WIND GUSTS 30 TO 40 MPH PROBABLE. A WIND ADVISORY MAY BE NEEDED ON THURSDAY. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SKYWARN SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL LIKELY BE NEEDED BETWEEN NOON AND 4 PM. SPOTTERS SHOULD REPORT SEVERE WEATHER AS SOON AS IT IS SAFE TO DO SO. PLEASE STAY TUNED FOR LATER WATCHES AND WARNINGS.
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 strong wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Numerous trees and power-lines were reported down across the county resulting in approximately 84 power outages.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in North Carolina in 2012Every state in 2012This day in weather historyWarnings in North Carolina, December 2012
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: 425028.