Lines of showers and thunderstorms developed in advance of an approaching cold front. Some of these storms contained damaging winds that downed trees, and one wind gust snapped a power pole.
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 RNK wrote it up.
Lines of showers and thunderstorms developed in advance of an approaching cold front. Some of these storms contained damaging winds that downed trees, and one wind gust snapped a power pole.
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 Blacksburg, VA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jul 14, 3:19 PM EST, 2 hours 48 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BLACKSBURG VA 419 PM EDT TUE JUL 14 2015 .SYNOPSIS... LOW PRESSURE WAS OVER LAKE ERIE WITH A COLD FRONT TRAILING FROM THE LOW INTO NORTHERN MISSOURI. THIS LOW AND COLD FRONT WILL MOVE SOUTHEAST TONIGHT AND WEDNESDAY AND WILL BE OFF THE MID ATLANTIC COAST BY WEDNESDAY NIGHT. HIGH PRESSURE...AND LESS HUMID AIR...WILL BUILD IN BEHIND THE FRONT AND WILL COVER THE REGION THURSDAY AND FRIDAY. && .NEAR TERM /THROUGH WEDNESDAY/... AS 330 PM EDT TUESDAY... FLASH FLOOD GUIDANCE WAS LOW IN THE MOUNTAINS...AND FLASH FLOOD THREAT WAS HIGHEST IN GREENBRIER COUNTY DOWN TO TAZEWELL COUNTY. NO FLASH FLOOD WATCH AT THIS TIME SINCE STORMS MOTION WILL LIMIT HEAVY RAIN...EVEN THOUGH RATES MAY BE HIGH. UPPER TROF AXIS FORECAST TO BE EXITING THE EASTERN COUNTY WARNING AREA WEDNESDAY MORNING. SURFACE COLD FRONT ALSO CROSSES THROUGH THE FORECAST AREA IN THE MORNING. HAVE HIGH PROBABILITY OF PRECIPITATION THROUGH MIDNIGHT USING THE TIMING OF THE HRRR AND SPC HRRR. PROBABILITY OF PRECIPITATION WILL DROP OFF SHARPLY AFTER THE FRONT GOES BY IN THE MORNING...WITH THE UPSLOPE AREAS HAVE THE BEST CHANCE OF GETTING SHOWERS. TEMPERATURES OVERNIGHT WILL REMAIN MILD WITH SURFACE DEW POINTS FROM THE LOWER 60S TO LOWER 70S. STAYED CLOSED TO COOLED GUIDANCE BEHIND THE FRONT FOR MAXIMUM TEMPERATURES ON WEDNESDAY. AS USUAL...AMOUNT OF CLOUD COVER IN THE MORNING WILL HAVE A LARGE INFLUENCE ON THE DAYTIME HIGHS. && .SHORT TERM /WEDNESDAY NIGHT THROUGH FRIDAY NIGHT/... AS OF 100 PM EDT TUESDAY... WEDNESDAY NIGHT THROUGH FRIDAY NIGHT NIGHT MAY BE ONE OF THE DRIEST TIME PERIODS WE HAVE HAD FOR A WHILE. THIS PATTERN IS BEING ATTRIBUTED TO BOTH SURFACE HIGH PRESSURE...AND AN UPPER RIDGE OF HIGH PRESSURE BUILDING OVER THE REGION. THIS WILL HAVE THE IMPACT OF SQUELCHING ANY CONVECTION AND TRENDING TEMPERATURES COOLER...AS COMPARED TO READINGS DURING THE EARLY PART OF THE WEEK. OUR SMALL CHANCES OF PRECIPITATION WILL COME IN TWO FORMS ON DIFFERENT DAYS. ON WEDNESDAY EVENING...CONVECTION FROM WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON OVER SOUTHEAST WEST VIRGINIA WILL LINGER INTO THE EVENING HOURS...BUT DISSIPATE QUICKLY..AND LIKELY BE ONLY SHOWERS. ON FRIDAY...THE CENTER OF THE SURFACE HIGH SHIFTS A BIT EAST...AND A WEAK SOUTHEAST UPSLOPE FLOW DEVELOPS. THIS MAY ALLOW FOR ENOUGH CONVERGENCE TO HELP INCREASE THE MAGNITUDE OF THE LIFT THAT PURE DIURNAL HEATING WILL GENERATE. THIS EXTRA LIFT MAY ALLOW FOR ISOLATED STORMS TO DEVELOP. WHILE THE FORECAST WILL REFLECT A DRY FRIDAY NIGHT...SOME MODEL GUIDANCE IS HINTING THAT SOME CONVECTION MAY REACH THE WESTERN PARTS OF THE REGION BY LATE IN THE NIGHT IN ADVANCE OF OUR NEXT APPROACHING GREAT LAKES SYSTEM. FOR NOW...THE FORECAST WILL FAVOR THE SLOWER SOLUTIONS...AND THUS KEEP THE FORECAST PRECIPITATION FREE. && .LONG TERM /SATURDAY THROUGH TUESDAY/... AS OF 130 PM EDT TUESDAY... DURING THIS PORTION OF THE FORECAST WE WILL RETURN TO A WETTER PATTERN...ONE NOT TOO UNLIKE WHAT HAS BEEN THE NORM FOR THE FIRST HALF OF JULY. THE NORTHERN JET WILL PLAY A GREATER ROLE IN OUR WEATHER PATTERN...BRINGING SHORTWAVE AFTER SHORTWAVE ACROSS THE TOP OF THE UPPER RIDGE AXIS. THIS WILL HAVE THE AFFECT OF RETROGRADING THE CENTER OF THE RIDGE BACK TO THE MIDDLE MISSISSIPPI VALLEY WITH NORTHWEST FLOW AGAIN THE DOMINANT STEERING FLOW ACROSS OUR REGION. LOOK FOR A RETURN OF DAILY SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS. SOME TIME PERIODS WILL HAVE A GREATER COVERAGE WITH THE POTENTIAL FOR THUNDERSTORM COMPLEXES TO AGAIN HEAD INTO OR THROUGH THE REGION. WHILE TIMING WILL LIKELY CHANGE...THE LATEST GUIDANCE OFFERS A SOLUTION OF SATURDAY NIGHT...AND THEN AGAIN TUESDAY OR TUESDAY NIGHT AS THE MOST LIKELY TIME FRAME FOR THESE. TEMPERATURES WILL TREND WARMER BY THE END OF THE WEEKEND...AND THEN WARM A LITTLE BIT MORE BY TUESDAY. && .AVIATION /20Z TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY/... AS OF 150 PM EDT TUESDAY... TWO VERSIONS OF THE HRRR BRINGS LINE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS THROUGH THE REGION THIS EVENING. TIMING OF STORMS AND ASSOCIATED MVFR CONDITIONS ARE BASED ON THIS GUIDANCE. ISOLATED TO SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS WILL DEVELOP AHEAD OF THIS LINE OF STORMS. LOWER PROBABILITY THAT THESE WILL IMPACT LOCAL AIRPORTS SO HAVE LEFT OUT OF THE TAFS FOR NOW. STRONG...GUSTY WINDS ARE POSSIBLE WITH ANY STRONG THUNDERSTORMS...AND ESPECIALLY WITH THE LINE OF STORMS THAT WILL BE COMING OUT OF OHIO AND KENTUCKY. WINDS SHIFT TO THE WEST BEHIND THIS SYSTEM WHICH WILL PRODUCE MVFR UPSLOPE CLOUDS IN THE MOUNTAINS LATE TONIGHT. DOWNSLOPING WILL CLEAR OUT KLYH AND KDAN AFTER MIDNIGHT. EXTENDED AVIATION DISCUSSION... AFTER THE PASSAGE OF THE UPPER LEVEL TROUGH AXIS AND HIGH PRESSURE IS EXPECTED TO BUILD ACROSS NEW ENGLAND AND THE NORTHERN MID ATLANTIC FOR WEDNESDAY NIGHT INTO FRIDAY. EXPECT MAINLY VFR CONDITIONS. CAN'T RULE OUT SOME WIDELY SCATTERED AFTERNOON AND EVENING SHOWERS...BUT NOT EXPECTING ANYTHING ORGANIZED FOR THE LATER HALF OF THE WEEK. WITH OPPORTUNITY FOR CLEARING TO TAKE PLACE AT NIGHT...WILL HAVE SOME MORNING FOG/LOW CLOUDS ISSUES IN THE MOUNTAIN VALLEYS...AND GROUND FOG FOR THE LOW LYING AREAS OF THE FOOTHILLS AND PIEDMONT. OVERALL CONDITIONS HOWEVER SHOULD BE MAINLY VFR. THE CHANCE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS RETURNS TO THE REGION ON SATURDAY AND SUNDAY. MVFR CONDITIONS ARE POSSIBLE WITH ANY OF THE STORMS. OTHERWISE VFR CEILINGS AND VISIBILITIES ARE EXPECTED. && .EQUIPMENT... AS OF 1000 AM EDT TUESDAY... NOAA WEATHER RADIO STATION WXM72 IN HINTON WEST VIRGINIA... OPERATING ON A FREQUENCY OF 162.425 MEGAHERTZ...IS EXPERIENCING INTERMITTENT OUTAGES. TECHNICIANS ARE ADDRESSING THE PROBLEM. && .RNK WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... VA...NONE. NC...NONE. WV...NONE. && SYNOPSIS...AMS NEAR TERM...AMS SHORT TERM...DS LONG TERM...DS AVIATION...AMS/PM EQUIPMENT...
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BLACKSBURG VA 649 PM EDT TUE JUL 14 2015 NCZ003>006-VAZ007-009>020-022>024-032>035-043>047-058-059-WVZ042>044- 507-508-152300- SURRY-STOKES-ROCKINGHAM-CASWELL-TAZEWELL-SMYTH-BLAND-GILES-WYTHE- PULASKI-MONTGOMERY-GRAYSON-CARROLL-FLOYD-CRAIG-ALLEGHANY VA-BATH- ROANOKE-BOTETOURT-ROCKBRIDGE-PATRICK-FRANKLIN-BEDFORD-AMHERST-HENRY- PITTSYLVANIA-CAMPBELL-APPOMATTOX-BUCKINGHAM-HALIFAX-CHARLOTTE-MERCER- SUMMERS-MONROE-EASTERN GREENBRIER-WESTERN GREENBRIER- 649 PM EDT TUE JUL 14 2015 ...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH 426 IN EFFECT UNTIL 1 AM EDT WEDNESDAY... THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTH CENTRAL NORTH CAROLINA...CENTRAL VIRGINIA...SOUTH CENTRAL VIRGINIA...SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA...WEST CENTRAL VIRGINIA AND SOUTHEAST WEST VIRGINIA. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT. PLEASE LISTEN TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO OR GO TO WEATHER.GOV ON THE INTERNET FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE FOLLOWING HAZARDS. SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY. THE PROBABILITY FOR WIDESPREAD HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS LOW. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER CONDITIONS ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES. NCZ001-002-018>020-152300- ASHE-ALLEGHANY NC-WATAUGA-WILKES-YADKIN- 649 PM EDT TUE JUL 14 2015 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTHWEST NORTH CAROLINA. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT. THERE IS A SLIGHT RISK OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS INTO LATE THIS EVENING. DAMAGING WINDS ARE THE PRIMARY THREAT...ALONG WITH TORRENTIAL RAIN. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY. THE PROBABILITY FOR WIDESPREAD HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS LOW. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE NEEDED.
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BLACKSBURG VA
707 PM EDT TUE JUL 14 2015
VAZ034-035-045-046-150000-
APPOMATTOX-CAMPBELL-BEDFORD-AMHERST-
707 PM EDT TUE JUL 14 2015
...A STRONG THUNDERSTORM WILL AFFECT APPOMATTOX...SOUTHERN
AMHERST...NORTHEASTERN CAMPBELL...CITY OF LYNCHBURG AND NORTHEASTERN
BEDFORD COUNTIES THROUGH 800 PM EDT...
AT 706 PM EDT...A STRONG THUNDERSTORM WAS OVER LYNCHBURG CITY...
MOVING EAST AT 20 MPH.
WINDS IN EXCESS OF 40 MPH AND PEA SIZE HAIL ARE POSSIBLE WITH THIS
STORM.
LOCATIONS IMPACTED INCLUDE...
LYNCHBURG...
APPOMATTOX...
BIG ISLAND...
LYNCHBURG CITY...
AND CONCORD.
TORRENTIAL RAINFALL IS ALSO OCCURRING WITH THIS STORM...AND MAY CAUSE
LOCALIZED FLOODING. DO NOT DRIVE YOUR VEHICLE THROUGH FLOODED
ROADWAYS.
LAT...LON 3726 7876 3744 7941 3754 7939 3752 7878
3748 7873
TIME...MOT...LOC 2306Z 277DEG 16KT 3744 7919
KKThe Charleston,WV radar (KRLX), 92 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 23:06 UTC.
4 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Thunderstorm winds downed two trees within the community of Crichton and downed several in the community of Quinwood. Damage values are estimated.
Thunderstorm winds snapped a power pole in half in the community of Fairlea. . Damage values are estimated.
Thunderstorm winds blew down multiple trees along Route 10 in Matoka. Damage values are estimated.
Thunderstorm winds blew down multiple trees along Route 19 in the Spanishburg area. Damage values are estimated.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in West Virginia in 2015Every state in 2015This day in weather historyWarnings in West Virginia, July 2015
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: 593304, 593306, 593310, 593313.