Complex of thunderstorms formed across the Ohio Valley and moved into the mid south. Strong to severe storms developed in association with an outflow boundary ahead of this complex affecting mainly the northern part of the Cumberland Plateau in East Tennessee as well as higher terrain in the vicinity of the Kentucky state line in Southwest Virginia.
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.
Complex of thunderstorms formed across the Ohio Valley and moved into the mid south. Strong to severe storms developed in association with an outflow boundary ahead of this complex affecting mainly the northern part of the Cumberland Plateau in East Tennessee as well as higher terrain in the vicinity of the Kentucky state line in Southwest Virginia.
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 19, 6:15 PM EST, 15 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION...UPDATED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MORRISTOWN TN 715 PM EDT THU JUL 19 2012 .AVIATION... THUNDERSTORMS NOW MOVING ACROSS TRI WILL PRODUCE GUSTY WINDS AND A PERIOD OF IFR VIS AS THEY MOVE THROUGH. THE STORMS ARE MOVING S-SE...AND ARE NOT EXPECTED TO IMPACT TYS OR CHA. SOME LIGHT FOG MAY DEVELOP AT TRI TONIGHT...BUT OVERCAST CLOUDS SHOULD PREVENT DENSE FOG DEVELOPMENT DESPITE THE RAINFALL. THUNDERSTORMS ARE LIKELY DURING THE DAY TOMORROW AS AN UPPER TROUGH MOVES ACROSS THE AREA. BEST ESTIMATE OF TIMING LOOKS TO BE BETWEEEN 16-20Z AT ALL SITES. && .MRX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... NC...NONE. TN...NONE. VA...NONE. && DGS
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MORRISTOWN TN 431 AM EDT THU JUL 19 2012 NCZ060-061-TNZ012>018-035>047-067>074-081>087-098>102-VAZ001-002- 005-006-008-200845- 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- 431 AM EDT THU JUL 19 2012 /331 AM CDT THU JUL 19 2012/ THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF SOUTHWEST NORTH CAROLINA...EAST TENNESSEE AND SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT... SCATTERED TO NUMEROUS THUNDERSTORMS WILL DEVELOP ACROSS THE FORECAST AREA THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING...AND WILL BECOME CAPABLE OF PRODUCING GUSTY OUTFLOW WINDS AND FREQUENT CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING. IN ADDITION...GIVEN THE VERY HUMID AIR MASS...LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL IS EXPECTED WITH ANY STORMS THAT DO DEVELOP. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY... ISOLATED SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE FRIDAY...WITH THE PRIMARY THREATS BEING LOCALIZED HEAVY RAIN...DAMAGING DOWN- BURST WINDS...AND FREQUENT CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT ANTICIPATED AT THIS TIME. TD/SON
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MORRISTOWN TN 507 PM EDT THU JUL 19 2012 VAZ002-192145- WISE VA- 507 PM EDT THU JUL 19 2012 ...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ADVISORY FOR CITY OF NORTON AND WISE COUNTIES UNTIL 545 PM EDT... AT 502 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR WAS TRACKING STRONG THUNDERSTORMS ALONG A LINE EXTENDING FROM CLINTWOOD TO 5 MILES WEST OF WHITESBURG...AND MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 20 MPH. PEA SIZE HAIL AND WIND GUSTS UP TO 50 MPH ARE EXPECTED WITH THESE STORMS. LOCATIONS NEAR THE PATH OF THESE STORMS INCLUDE...WISE...NORTON...BIG STONE GAP...POUND...PARDEE...COEBURN...APPALACHIA AND ST. PAUL. THIS STORM MAY INTENSIFY...SO BE CERTAIN TO MONITOR LOCAL RADIO AND TV STATIONS...AS WELL AS LOCAL CABLE TV OUTLETS...FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS FROM THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE. MJB
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MORRISTOWN TN 557 PM EDT THU JUL 19 2012 VAZ001-002-192245- LEE VA-WISE VA- 557 PM EDT THU JUL 19 2012 ...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ADVISORY FOR LEE...CITY OF NORTON AND WISE COUNTIES UNTIL 645 PM EDT... AT 550 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR WAS TRACKING A STRONG THUNDERSTORM NEAR BIG STONE GAP...OR 7 MILES WEST OF NORTON... MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 25 MPH. SMALL HAIL AND WIND GUSTS UP TO 40 MPH ARE EXPECTED WITH THIS STORM. LOCATIONS NEAR THE PATH OF THIS STORM INCLUDE...NORTON. THIS STORM MAY INTENSIFY...SO BE CERTAIN TO MONITOR LOCAL RADIO AND TV STATIONS...AS WELL AS LOCAL CABLE TV OUTLETS...FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS FROM THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE. MJB
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MORRISTOWN TN 620 PM EDT THU JUL 19 2012 VAZ005-192300- SCOTT VA- 620 PM EDT THU JUL 19 2012 ...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ADVISORY FOR SCOTT COUNTY UNTIL 700 PM EDT... AT 615 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR WAS TRACKING STRONG THUNDERSTORMS ALONG A LINE EXTENDING FROM 9 MILES NORTH OF GATE CITY TO 9 MILES NORTHWEST OF GATE CITY...AND MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 25 MPH. HAIL UP TO ONE-HALF INCH IN DIAMETER AND WIND GUSTS UP TO 50 MPH ARE EXPECTED WITH THESE STORMS. LOCATIONS NEAR THE PATH OF THESE STORMS INCLUDE...GATE CITY...WEBER CITY...NICKELSVILLE AND HILTONS. THIS STORM MAY INTENSIFY...SO BE CERTAIN TO MONITOR LOCAL RADIO AND TV STATIONS...AS WELL AS LOCAL CABLE TV OUTLETS...FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS FROM THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE. MJB
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MORRISTOWN TN 701 PM EDT THU JUL 19 2012 VAZ001-200000- LEE VA- 701 PM EDT THU JUL 19 2012 ...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ADVISORY FOR LEE COUNTY UNTIL 800 PM EDT... AT 653 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR WAS TRACKING STRONG THUNDERSTORMS ALONG A LINE EXTENDING FROM PENNINGTON GAP TO 8 MILES SOUTHEAST OF PONZA...AND MOVING EAST AT 15 MPH. HAIL UP TO ONE-HALF INCH IN DIAMETER AND WIND GUSTS UP TO 50 MPH ARE EXPECTED WITH THESE STORMS. LOCATIONS NEAR THE PATH OF THESE STORMS INCLUDE...JONESVILLE... PENNINGTON GAP...EWING...ROSE HILL...DRYDEN...JASPER AND PATTONSVILLE. THIS STORM MAY INTENSIFY...SO BE CERTAIN TO MONITOR LOCAL RADIO AND TV STATIONS...AS WELL AS LOCAL CABLE TV OUTLETS...FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS FROM THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE. MJB
The Knoxville radar (KMRX), 74 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 23:31 UTC.
9 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Several trees were reported down between Church Hill and Rogersville.
Two trees were reported down in the vicinity of Duck Creek.
Trees and power lines were reported down one mile east of Tazewell.
One tree was reported down along Owl Gap Road four miles southwest of Rutledge.
A few trees were reported down at Lone Mountain.
A few trees were reported down in New Tazewell.
Multiple trees were reported down in Jellico.
Multiple trees were reported down in La Follette.
Several trees were reported down across the northern half of the county in the vicinity of Jellico, Peabody, and Stinking Creek.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Tennessee in 2012Every state in 2012This day in weather historyWarnings in Tennessee, July 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: 389912, 389916, 389921, 389928, 389935, 389942, 389948, 389949, 389950.