Numerous showers and thunderstorms developed across Middle Tennessee during the afternoon hours on August 27. Several reports of wind damage were received.
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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 OHX wrote it up.
Numerous showers and thunderstorms developed across Middle Tennessee during the afternoon hours on August 27. Several reports of wind damage were received.
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 Nashville, TN wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Aug 27, 1:57 PM CST, 1 hour 48 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Nashville TN 257 PM CDT Thu Aug 27 2020 .DISCUSSION... Models have continued their slightly quicker trend with Laura through the mid state on Friday, yet the GFS/NAM/Canadian have trended further south to line up more with the ECMWF. The better alignment of model solutions has helped narrow the variability in QPF, and timing for strong to severe storm potential is largely unchanged, with potential for spin up tornadoes and damaging wind gusts in the afternoon and evening Friday. With 2 to 3 inches of rain and locally higher amounts possible, flooding may also be an issue Friday afternoon through the early morning hours Saturday. Currently Laura is a tropical storm heading for the Missouri Bootheel region before heading east. It looks to be a tropical depression by that point, and will head just north of the TN/KY border. Chances for showers and storms will increase around noon starting at the TN River, and move east during the day. LLJ winds will ramp up as the low approaches the northern half of the mid state, so surface winds will also increase as the pressure gradient tightens. Sustained winds of 10 to 25 mph gusting to 35 mph will be possible outside of thunderstorms. Winds may also back near the surface as the low approaches in the afternoon, which will increase low level SRH and 0-1km shear. Soundings do show this trend, especially the NAM, along with MU parcels from near the surface. This would point to a spin up tornado threat as well as a damaging wind threat area wide during the afternoon and evening. As the upper low moves east late in the evening/early overnight Friday night, severe chances will diminish as the CAPE/shear decline rapidly, and dry air aloft moves in on the backside of the trough. PWAT values still look to approach 2.5 inches in the late afternoon/evening, and consensus still has 2-3 inches of rain for most of the mid state Friday. Isolated higher amounts will be possible as CAMs show quite a few isolated signatures that will be able to produce heavy rain, and another band moving over the same areas. If there is any training of heavier showers, higher amounts than 2-3 inches will be possible for those areas, and will have a higher risk of flooding. Chances for rain will also decrease overnight into Saturday morning, however a cold front looks to move in late in the day Saturday, and may bring some chances for strong storms with the main threat being damaging wind gusts. On Sunday, a minor shortwave trough will bring chances for showers and storms again later on Sunday as well. We look to stay in an active pattern next week, with a series of shortwave troughs bringing chances for showers and storms along with the usual summertime diurnal chances. Late in the week/next weekend looks to be dry as models bring in either weak zonal flow, or a broad ridge towards the area, which should help limit the chances for afternoon showers and storms. && .AVIATION... 18Z TAF DISCUSSION. VFR conditions expected. There could be a few showers around middle TN this afternoon and evening so will cover this with VCSH. Winds should stay up overnight as remants of Hurricane Laura begins to approach. The only place that might have light enough winds for BR will be CSV. Models showing an outer band possible as early as 11Z so will include VCTS for BNA/MQY/CKV with scattered/broken MVFR clouds. && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... Nashville 76 86 72 88 68 / 30 100 100 60 30 Clarksville 74 83 71 86 65 / 40 90 90 50 20 Crossville 71 82 68 81 64 / 20 80 100 70 30 Columbia 75 85 72 89 69 / 30 100 100 60 30 Lawrenceburg 73 84 71 88 69 / 30 90 100 60 40 Waverly 74 84 72 88 70 / 40 100 100 60 30 && .OHX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... NONE. && DISCUSSION......Barnwell AVIATION........12
Hazardous Weather Outlook National Weather Service Nashville TN 502 AM CDT Thu Aug 27 2020 TNZ005>011-023>034-056>066-075-077>080-093>095-281015- Stewart-Montgomery-Robertson-Sumner-Macon-Clay-Pickett-Houston- Humphreys-Dickson-Cheatham-Davidson-Wilson-Trousdale-Smith-Jackson- Putnam-Overton-Fentress-Perry-Hickman-Lewis-Williamson-Maury- Marshall-Rutherford-Cannon-De Kalb-White-Cumberland-Bedford-Coffee- Warren-Grundy-Van Buren-Wayne-Lawrence-Giles- 502 AM CDT Thu Aug 27 2020 This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for Middle Tennessee. .DAY ONE...Today and tonight. No hazardous weather is expected at this time. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Friday through Wednesday. The remnants of Hurricane Laura are expected to move across Middle Tennessee Friday afternoon through early Saturday morning. Gusty winds will accompany Laura with localized wind damage possible, including a few downed trees and scattered power outages. An isolated tornado or two may occur across Middle Tennessee from late Friday afternoon through early Saturday morning. Heavy downpours could cause brief localized flooding. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... Spotter activation may be needed. Please relay any information about observed severe weather or flooding to the NWS while following all local, state, and CDC guidelines. 13
Special Weather Statement
National Weather Service Nashville TN
430 PM CDT Thu Aug 27 2020
TNZ093>095-272215-
Lawrence TN-Wayne TN-Giles TN-
430 PM CDT Thu Aug 27 2020
...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ADVISORY FOR WAYNE...LAWRENCE AND SOUTHWESTERN
GILES COUNTIES UNTIL 515 PM CDT...
At 430 PM CDT, Doppler radar was tracking strong thunderstorms along
a line extending from 9 miles northeast of Cherokee to near Lexington
to 8 miles east of Rogersville. Movement was north at 40 mph.
Pea size hail and wind gusts up to 50 mph will be possible with these
storms.
Locations impacted include...
Lawrenceburg, Pulaski, Waynesboro, Loretto, Collinwood, St. Joseph,
Minor Hill, Ethridge, Cypress Inn, Lutts, Goodspring, Leoma,
Westpoint and Iron City.
LAT...LON 3501 8798 3529 8798 3530 8802 3533 8802
3535 8800 3541 8761 3529 8707 3500 8706
TIME...MOT...LOC 2130Z 166DEG 34KT 3487 8789 3494 8745 3481 8714
WhiteheadThe Northeast Alabama radar (KHTX), 113 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 21:42 UTC.
5 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Multiple trees were blown down around the Evans Road area in Five Points, with one tree falling onto a house.
Trees were blown down onto power lines on Spring Creek Road in the Gandy Community.
A tree was blown down across Redhill Center Road at Big Springs Road.
A tree was blown down that blocked Mt. Joy Road at Baptist Branch Road.
Power lines were blown down on Marshall Stuart Drive in Dickson.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Tennessee in 2020Every state in 2020This day in weather historyWarnings in Tennessee, August 2020
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: 917936, 917937, 917938, 917939, 917940.