North Carolina, 2013

Ice Storm in North Carolina, February 26, 2013

February 26, 2013 · NWS GSP · 5 events in 5 counties and zones

Rain and freezing rain began across the southern mountains shortly after midnight and continued through the pre-dawn hours. Many locations saw mainly rain.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 5 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.

  • Tornadoes
  • Tropical storms and surge
  • Floods
  • Wind
  • Hail
  • Winter weather
  • Heat and drought
  • Cold
  • Fire, smoke and dust
  • Marine and coastal
  • Other

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
5

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.

What happened

The episode as NWS GSP wrote it up.

Rain and freezing rain began across the southern mountains shortly after midnight and continued through the pre-dawn hours. Many locations saw mainly rain. However, cold air locked in near the escarpment resulted in an all-freezing rain event there. By the time temperatures warmed above freezing during late morning, up to a half inch of ice had accumulated within a few miles of the continental divide. Meanwhile, locations farther away from the Blue Ridge saw only trace amounts of ice. There were scattered downed trees and power lines, resulting in quite a number of power outages, especially in McDowell and Henderson counties.

What forecasters said that day

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 Greenville-Spartanburg, SC wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 25, 5:47 PM EST, 7 hours 13 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Feb 25, 5:47 PM EST, 7 hours 13 minutes before
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Hazardous weather outlook, Feb 25, 3:30 PM EST, 9 hours 30 minutes before
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The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

5 ice storm. Local standard time, as filed.

Ice Storm, Buncombe

When
February 26, 1:00 AM EST to 9:00 AM EST
Where
Buncombe forecast zone
Reported by
County Official
Coordinates
35.611, -82.530 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Henderson

When
February 26, 1:00 AM EST to 9:00 AM EST
Where
Henderson forecast zone
Reported by
County Official
Coordinates
35.336, -82.480 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, McDowell Mountains

When
February 26, 1:00 AM EST to 9:00 AM EST
Where
McDowell Mountains forecast zone
Reported by
County Official
Coordinates
35.681, -82.049 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Rutherford Mountains

When
February 26, 1:00 AM EST to 9:00 AM EST
Where
Rutherford Mountains forecast zone
Reported by
County Official
Coordinates
35.402, -81.920 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Polk Mountains

When
February 26, 1:00 AM EST to 9:00 AM EST
Where
Polk Mountains forecast zone
Reported by
County Official
Coordinates
35.279, -82.170 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Ice Storm
Freezing rain accumulating a quarter inch or more of ice, or less where it caused significant damage.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in North Carolina in 2013Every state in 2013This day in weather historyWarnings in North Carolina, February 2013

Sources

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 2026-09-30. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 436469, 436471, 436472, 436473, 436475.