A cold front tracked through the region producing high non-convective mountain waves over mainly the higher elevations. Wind gusts of 74 mph were measured at the Cove Mountain wind tower near Gatlinburg.
Every event with a place to put it; 2 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 MRX wrote it up.
A cold front tracked through the region producing high non-convective mountain waves over mainly the higher elevations. Wind gusts of 74 mph were measured at the Cove Mountain wind tower near Gatlinburg. In addition a wind gust of 72 mph was measured at the Camp Creek Elementary School in Camp Creek.
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 Feb 18, 7:05 PM EST, 2 hours 10 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MORRISTOWN TN
705 PM EST MON FEB 18 2013
.AVIATION...FAST MOVING COLD FRONT TO AFFECT EAST TN LATE TONIGHT
WITH SHOWERS MOVING IN AROUND 05Z AND THEN ENDING AROUND 12Z OR
EARLIER AT CHA AND TYS. LIGHT SHOWERS STILL AT TRI THROUGH ABOUT MID
MORNING. IFR VSBY IN LIGHT RAIN AND FOG AT CHA AND TYS WHILE BETTER
VSBY AT TRI. STRONG 850 MB JET INCREASES TO 50-60 KNOTS TONIGHT.
LLWS IN TAFS AS WIND SPEED INCREASES DRAMATICALLY FROM SURFACE
THROUGH TWO THOUSAND FEET FROM AROUND 00Z THROUGH 12Z TUESDAY.
&&
.MRX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
NC...WIND ADVISORY UNTIL 7 AM EST TUESDAY FOR THE FOLLOWING ZONES:
CHEROKEE.
TN...WIND ADVISORY UNTIL 7 AM EST /6 AM CST/ TUESDAY FOR THE
FOLLOWING ZONES: BLEDSOE...CAMPBELL...CLAIBORNE...EAST
POLK...HANCOCK...MARION...MORGAN...SCOTT TN...SEQUATCHIE.
HIGH WIND WARNING UNTIL 7 AM EST TUESDAY FOR THE FOLLOWING
ZONES: BLOUNT SMOKY MOUNTAINS...COCKE SMOKY MOUNTAINS...
JOHNSON...MCMINN...NW BLOUNT...NORTH SEVIER...NORTHWEST
CARTER...NORTHWEST COCKE...NORTHWEST GREENE...NORTHWEST
MONROE...SEVIER SMOKY MOUNTAINS...SOUTHEAST CARTER...
SOUTHEAST GREENE...SOUTHEAST MONROE...UNICOI...WASHINGTON
TN.
VA...WIND ADVISORY UNTIL 7 AM EST TUESDAY FOR THE FOLLOWING ZONES:
LEE...WISE.
&&HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MORRISTOWN TN 500 AM EST MON FEB 18 2013 NCZ060-061-TNZ012>018-035>047-067>074-081>087-098>102-VAZ001-002- 005-006-008-191000- 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- 500 AM EST (400 AM CST) MON FEB 18 2013 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR EAST TENNESSEE...SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA...AND EXTREME SOUTHWEST NORTH CAROLINA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT... A COLD FRONT WITH A VERY STRONG WIND FIELD WILL MOVE ACROSS THE TENNESSEE RIVER VALLEY TONIGHT AND TUESDAY MORNING. CONDITIONS WILL BE FAVORABLE FOR THE FORMATION OF VERY STRONG WINDS DUE TO MOUNTAIN WAVES AROUND THE MOUNTAINS AND THEIR ADJACENT FOOTHILLS. PLEASE SEE THE LATEST HIGH WIND WATCH FOR FURTHER DETAILS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY... NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE NEEDED ON TUESDAY MORNING FOR WIND DAMAGE REPORTS AROUND THE MOUNTAINS AND THEIR ADJACENT FOOTHILLS. DMG
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
2 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
A wind gust of 72 mph was measured at the NOAA wind tower at Camp Creek Elementary School in Camp Creek.
A wind gust of 74 mph was measured at the wind tower at Cove Mountain near Gatlinburg in the Great Smoky Mountains.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Tennessee in 2013Every state in 2013This day in weather historyWarnings in Tennessee, February 2013
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: 430205, 430206.