A series of deep upper low pressure systems and associated intense surface lows tracked across the region during the last two weeks of December bringing winter weather and strong to high winds to southwest Virginia, southeast West Virginia, the adjacent Allegheny Highlands of Virginia, and northwest North Carolina. Several surface lows tracked from the week before Christmas through the final days of the year in a similar path from the Tennessee Valley across southwest Virginia and/or southeast West Virginia, then toward the mid-Atlantic region. As the surface low pressure areas intensified off the mid-Atlantic coast, very strong, gusty northwest winds developed across the region, especially across southwest Virginia and northwest North Carolina. Sustained winds of 25 to 35 mph with gusts in excess of 50 mph were common from the evening of the 26th through the early morning hours of the 27th. The strong winds blew down a number of trees, many onto power lines and some onto roads, resulting in scattered power outages throughout the region. Here are some sample wind gusts measured from various weather stations across southwest Virginia and the date/time that they occurred. Note, counties not listed either do not have reporting stations or had wind gusts reported or measured of less than 35 mph.
Bedford County (4SSE Buchanan): 12/27/12, 512 am EST, 35 mph,|Botetourt County (6W Fincastle): 12/27/12, 1215 am EST, 36 mph,|Carroll County (HLX AWOS): 12/26/12, 1155 pm EST, 44 mph,|Franklin County (3SW Moneta): 12/27/12, 813 am EST, 36 mph,|Montgomery County (BCB AWOS): 12/27/12, 235 am EST, 48 mph,|Pulaski County (PSK AWOS): 12/27/12, 1235 am EST, 41 mph,|Roanoke City (ROA ASOS): 12/27/12, 454 am EST, 48 mph,|Roanoke County (VDOT ROA): 12/27/12, 642 am EST, 36 mph,|Rockbridge County (6SSE Millboro): 12/27/12, 459 am EST, 41 mph,|Smyth County (Marion/Wytheville AWOS): 12/27/12, 155 am EST, 45 mph,|Wythe County (VDOT 2E Wytheville): 12/27/12, 326 am EST, 45 mph.