Cold in Georgia, December 23 to 24, 2022

Name: Cold in Georgia, December 23 to 24, 2022
Start: 2022-12-23T17:00
End: 2022-12-24T10:00
Location: Georgia

December 23 to 24, 2022 · NWS GSP · 4 events in 4 counties and zones

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 4 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: 4

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.

An arctic cold front swept across the foothills and Piedmont of northeast Georgia during the morning of the 23rd and introduced the coldest air mass in more than 5 years. Temperatures in the single digits and lower teens combined with 10 to 20 mph winds to produce wind chill values in the 0 to -15 range from the evening of the 23rd through Christmas Eve morning. While winds abated throughout Christmas Eve into Christmas Day, unseasonably cold weather persisted for the better part of four days. There were numerous reports of frozen and burst pipes along with mostly minor damage to infrastructure throughout the area.

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 Dec 23, 2:32 PM EST, 2 hours 28 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Dec 23, 2:32 PM EST, 2 hours 28 minutes before

Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Greenville-Spartanburg SC
232 PM EST Fri Dec 23 2022

.SYNOPSIS...
Precipitation chances taper off today with dry conditions returning
for the remainder of he weekend and into next week. Arrival of the
front today will continue to plunge temperatures and wind chills
with the gusty winds. The area should remain in this cold snap
through Christmas Day and begin to slowly warm through next week.

&&

.NEAR TERM /THROUGH SATURDAY/...
As of 230 PM...Arctic air will continue to spread into the region
tonight within a stout NWLY CAA flow. A little moisture continues
to bank up against the western slopes of the NC mountains, so a
few snow showers continue, but should taper off to just scattered
flurries tonight. Any additional snow accums are expected to be
just a dusting here and there. The webcams around Avery County
show some reduced vsby in snow and blowing snow. Have opted to
keep the elevation-based Winter Weather Advisory as is thru 00z.

The next concerns are the winds and wind chills. The mixing is
beginning to become more shallow, and overall gradient should
be loosening. So a very slow decreasing wind trend is expected
outside the mountains. However, overnight, another surge of some
stronger CAA will hit the high terrain, as a vort max rotates
around the deep vortex over the Great Lakes. This will cause a
slight uptick in moisture, and winds across the NC mountains, with
some valleys channeling strong gusts. So the wind advisory across
the Northern Mountains and French Broad Valley looks good thru
tonight. The wind chill warnings and advisories also look good,
given latest forecast. Lows tonight will be near a record at GSP,
but looks a little short for AVL and CLT.

Saturday should be sunny, except for some lingering stratocu
possible along the TN border. Despite the sunshine, persistent
CAA and anomalously low thicknesses will keep temps below freezing
pretty much everywhere, with highs near record low maxima at GSP
and CLT. Wind chills will warm out of advisory criteria by early
aftn, but there will be enough wind to make it feel really cold
thru the day.

&&

.SHORT TERM /SATURDAY NIGHT THROUGH MONDAY/...
As of 215 PM Friday: A deep upper low will continue to churn over
northern Quebec and begin to lift northeast through Saturday night.
Ridging over the western portion of the CONUS should keep general
upper flow quasi-zonal into Sunday. An upper shortwave is expected
to sweep across the region Sunday into Sunday night. However, given
the subsidence aloft and lack of moisture, no precipitation should
occur for this period. Surface high pressure located in the central
plains should begin to traverse southeastward and also help keep
conditions dry throughout Monday night. For Saturday night, as the
upper low continues to move northward, the pressure gradient at the
surface should begin to spread out, with winds continuing to taper
off into the overnight hours. In the higher elevations, expect wind
gusts to be higher, but remain under advisory thresholds. By Monday,
winds should be relatively light. As for temperatures, a general and
slow warming trend is expected. Saturday night won't be as cold as
the previous night, but will likely reach single digits in the
mountains and wind chills below zero. Christmas Day should be a bit
warmer, with highs rising above freezing in the Piedmont and lows
falling below freezing at night. By Monday, some scattered 40s
throughout the Piedmont and 30s for the Carolina mountains.

&&

.LONG TERM /MONDAY NIGHT THROUGH FRIDAY/...
As of 215 PM Friday: For this forecast period, the cold Canadian air
will begin to mix out as a surface high continues to build over the
region. Aloft, guidance indicates a weak upper low dipping into the
region Monday. With the amount of stout arctic air that overtook the
area over the weekend, moisture is not expected to rebound in time
for this system, leaving little to no precipitation chances. Hence,
no mentionable PoPs for Monday. On Tuesday, upper flow should return
to a more zonal pattern ahead of another amplifying trough in the
west. Surface high pressure will remain across the region and extend
NE for the remainder of the forecast period. Guidance from GFS and
ECMWF start to latch onto a possible system for the end of the week,
but remains too uncertain given the amount of time between now and
then. As for temperatures, the cold air will mix out and begin to
warm a bit through the end of next week. Expect highs in the mid 50s
for the majority of the CWA by Wednesday and lows at or near
freezing through the remainder of the period. Overall, a quiet and
dry weather pattern should emerge to close out the 2022 year.

&&

.AVIATION /20Z FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY/...
At KCLT and elsewhere: The main concern for the 18z TAFs will be
the winds. Skies have cleared out, except for some cu and snow
showers in the westerly upslope areas of the NC mountains near the
TN Border. Winds should be on a very slow downward trend this aftn
into this evening, possibly losing their gusts late tonight, before
resuming some low-end gusts Saturday morning. The exception will
be KAVL, where winds are expected to increase early this evening,
as winds veer slightly and flow is channeled up the valley, before
decreasing early Saturday morning. Winds will be generally WNW
until toggling to favor more WSW across the Piedmont TAF sites
after daybreak Saturday morning.

Outlook: Dry and very cold air will persist through the weekend
and into Monday. Gusty winds continue through Saturday but with
lower speeds than observed on Friday. A dry warming trend develops
through most of next week.

&&

.CLIMATE...
RECORDS FOR 12-23

               MAX TEMPERATURE         MIN TEMPERATURE
  STATION      HIGH        LOW         HIGH        LOW
  -------  ----------  ----------  ----------  ----------
   KAVL      69 1933     16 1989     59 1990      1 1989
   KCLT      73 1990     21 1989     63 1990      8 1989
   KGSP      70 1970     24 1989     61 1990     10 1989
                1933

RECORDS FOR 12-24

               MAX TEMPERATURE         MIN TEMPERATURE
  STATION      HIGH        LOW         HIGH        LOW
  -------  ----------  ----------  ----------  ----------
   KAVL      72 1955     17 1906     59 2015     -5 1983
   KCLT      73 2015     29 1906     63 2015      6 1983
   KGSP      71 1964     30 1945     61 2015      8 1983
                            1906

RECORDS FOR 12-25

               MAX TEMPERATURE         MIN TEMPERATURE
  STATION      HIGH        LOW         HIGH        LOW
  -------  ----------  ----------  ----------  ----------
   KAVL      71 2021     14 1983     59 2015     -7 1983
   KCLT      77 1955     22 1983     63 2015      4 1983
   KGSP      78 1955     22 1983     61 2015      6 1983

&&

.GSP WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
GA...Wind Chill Warning until 1 PM EST Saturday for GAZ010.
     Wind Advisory until 7 PM EST this evening for GAZ010-017-018-
     026-028-029.
     Wind Chill Advisory until 1 PM EST Saturday for GAZ017.
     Wind Chill Advisory until 1 PM EST Saturday for GAZ018-026-028-
     029.
NC...Wind Chill Warning until 1 PM EST Saturday for NCZ033-048>053-
     058-059-062>064-501-503-505.
     Wind Advisory until 7 PM EST this evening for NCZ035>037-051-
     052-056>059-062>065-068>072-082-502-504-506>510.
     Wind Chill Advisory until 1 PM EST Saturday for NCZ035-065-502-
     504-506>510.
     Wind Chill Advisory until 1 PM EST Saturday for NCZ036-037-056-
     057-068>072-082.
     High Wind Warning until 7 PM EST this evening for NCZ033-049-
     050-053-501-503-505.
     Winter Weather Advisory above 3500 feet until 7 PM EST this
     evening for NCZ033-048>053-058-059-062-063.
     Wind Advisory from 7 PM this evening to 3 AM EST Saturday for
     NCZ033-049-050-053-501-503-505.
     Wind Advisory until 3 AM EST Saturday for NCZ048.
SC...Wind Advisory until 7 PM EST this evening for SCZ008>014-019-
     101>109.
     Wind Chill Advisory until 1 PM EST Saturday for SCZ101>103.
     Wind Chill Advisory until 1 PM EST Saturday for SCZ008>014-019-
     104>109.

&&

SYNOPSIS...CP
NEAR TERM...ARK
SHORT TERM...CP
LONG TERM...CP
AVIATION...ARK
CLIMATE...

Hazardous weather outlook, Dec 23, 4:24 AM EST, 12 hours 36 minutes before

Hazardous Weather Outlook
National Weather Service Greenville-Spartanburg SC
424 AM EST Fri Dec 23 2022

GAZ018-026-028-029-NCZ036-037-056-057-068>072-082-SCZ008>014-019-
104>109-240930-
Stephens-Franklin-Hart-Elbert-Iredell-Davie-Catawba-Rowan-Cleveland-
Lincoln-Gaston-Mecklenburg-Cabarrus-Union NC-Cherokee-York-Anderson-
Abbeville-Laurens-Union SC-Chester-Greenwood-Greater Oconee-
Greater Pickens-Central Greenville-Southern Greenville-
Northern Spartanburg-Southern Spartanburg-
424 AM EST Fri Dec 23 2022

...WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 7 PM EST THIS EVENING...
...WIND CHILL ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 5 PM THIS AFTERNOON TO 1 PM
EST SATURDAY...

This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for northeast Georgia, piedmont
North Carolina and upstate South Carolina.

.DAY ONE...Today and tonight.

Please listen to NOAA Weather Radio or go to weather.gov on the
Internet for more information about the following hazards.

   Wind Advisory.
   Wind Chill Advisory.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Saturday through Thursday.

Please listen to NOAA Weather Radio or go to weather.gov on the
Internet for more information about the following hazards.

   Wind Chill Advisory.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

None.

NCZ051-052-058-059-062-063-240930-
Swain-Haywood-Graham-Northern Jackson-Macon-Southern Jackson-
424 AM EST Fri Dec 23 2022

...WIND CHILL WARNING IN EFFECT UNTIL 1 PM EST SATURDAY...
...WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 7 PM EST THIS EVENING...
...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 7 PM EST THIS EVENING
ABOVE 3500 FEET...

This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for western North Carolina.

.DAY ONE...Today and tonight.

Please listen to NOAA Weather Radio or go to weather.gov on the
Internet for more information about the following hazards.

   Wind Chill Warning.
   Wind Advisory.
   Winter Weather Advisory.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Saturday through Thursday.

Please listen to NOAA Weather Radio or go to weather.gov on the
Internet for more information about the following hazards.

   Wind Chill Warning.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

None.

NCZ033-049-050-053-240930-
Avery-Yancey-Mitchell-Buncombe-
424 AM EST Fri Dec 23 2022

...HIGH WIND WARNING IN EFFECT UNTIL 7 PM EST THIS EVENING...
...WIND CHILL WARNING IN EFFECT UNTIL 1 PM EST SATURDAY...
...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 7 PM EST THIS EVENING
ABOVE 3500 FEET...
...WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 7 PM THIS EVENING TO 3 AM EST
SATURDAY...

This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for western North Carolina.

.DAY ONE...Today and tonight.

Please listen to NOAA Weather Radio or go to weather.gov on the
Internet for more information about the following hazards.

   High Wind Warning.
   Wind Chill Warning.
   Winter Weather Advisory.
   Wind Advisory.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Saturday through Thursday.

Please listen to NOAA Weather Radio or go to weather.gov on the
Internet for more information about the following hazards.

   Wind Chill Warning.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

None.

NCZ048-240930-
Madison-
424 AM EST Fri Dec 23 2022

...WIND CHILL WARNING IN EFFECT UNTIL 1 PM EST SATURDAY...
...WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 3 AM EST SATURDAY...
...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 7 PM EST THIS EVENING
ABOVE 3500 FEET...

This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for western North Carolina.

.DAY ONE...Today and tonight.

Please listen to NOAA Weather Radio or go to weather.gov on the
Internet for more information about the following hazards.

   Wind Chill Warning.
   Wind Advisory.
   Winter Weather Advisory.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Saturday through Thursday.

Please listen to NOAA Weather Radio or go to weather.gov on the
Internet for more information about the following hazards.

   Wind Chill Warning.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

None.

GAZ017-NCZ035-065-502-504-506>510-SCZ101>103-240930-
Habersham-Alexander-Henderson-Greater Caldwell-Greater Burke-
Eastern McDowell-Rutherford Mountains-Greater Rutherford-
Polk Mountains-Eastern Polk-Oconee Mountains-Pickens Mountains-
Greenville Mountains-
424 AM EST Fri Dec 23 2022

...WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 7 PM EST THIS EVENING...
...WIND CHILL ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 1 PM EST SATURDAY...

This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for northeast Georgia, piedmont
North Carolina, western North Carolina and upstate South Carolina.

.DAY ONE...Today and tonight.

Please listen to NOAA Weather Radio or go to weather.gov on the
Internet for more information about the following hazards.

   Wind Advisory.
   Wind Chill Advisory.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Saturday through Thursday.

Please listen to NOAA Weather Radio or go to weather.gov on the
Internet for more information about the following hazards.

   Wind Chill Advisory.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

None.

NCZ501-503-505-240930-
Caldwell Mountains-Burke Mountains-McDowell Mountains-
424 AM EST Fri Dec 23 2022

...HIGH WIND WARNING IN EFFECT UNTIL 7 PM EST THIS EVENING...
...WIND CHILL WARNING IN EFFECT UNTIL 1 PM EST SATURDAY...
...WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 7 PM THIS EVENING TO 3 AM EST
SATURDAY...

This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for western North Carolina.

.DAY ONE...Today and tonight.

Please listen to NOAA Weather Radio or go to weather.gov on the
Internet for more information about the following hazards.

   High Wind Warning.
   Wind Chill Warning.
   Wind Advisory.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Saturday through Thursday.

Please listen to NOAA Weather Radio or go to weather.gov on the
Internet for more information about the following hazards.

   Wind Chill Warning.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

None.

GAZ010-NCZ064-240930-
Rabun-Transylvania-
424 AM EST Fri Dec 23 2022

...WIND CHILL WARNING IN EFFECT UNTIL 1 PM EST SATURDAY...
...WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 7 PM EST THIS EVENING...

This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for northeast Georgia and western
North Carolina.

.DAY ONE...Today and tonight.

Please listen to NOAA Weather Radio or go to weather.gov on the
Internet for more information about the following hazards.

   Wind Chill Warning.
   Wind Advisory.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Saturday through Thursday.

Please listen to NOAA Weather Radio or go to weather.gov on the
Internet for more information about the following hazards.

   Wind Chill Warning.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

None.

In the hours before

Local storm report, Dec 23, 11:07 AM EST, 5 hours 53 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
1107 AM EST FRI DEC 23 2022

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

1106 AM     NON-TSTM WND DMG 3 SSW VALE              35.49N 81.42W
12/23/2022                   LINCOLN            NC   PUBLIC

            WIND DAMAGE TO HOME PROPERTY.

&&

Local storm report, Dec 23, 2:38 PM EST, 2 hours 22 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
238 PM EST FRI DEC 23 2022

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0237 PM     NON-TSTM WND DMG 2 SE PATTERSON SPRINGS  35.21N 81.50W
12/23/2022                   CLEVELAND          NC   PUBLIC

            TREES AND POWER LINES DOWN BLOCKING ROAD.

&&

Local storm report, Dec 23, 2:53 PM EST, 2 hours 7 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
253 PM EST FRI DEC 23 2022

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0951 AM     NON-TSTM WND DMG 4 ESE YORK              34.97N 81.17W
12/23/2022                   YORK               SC   LAW ENFORCEMENT

            TREES DOWN BLOCKING HWY 5.

&&

Local storm report, Dec 23, 3:46 PM EST, 1 hour 14 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
346 PM EST FRI DEC 23 2022

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0230 PM     NON-TSTM WND DMG 2 NNE MATTHEWS          35.15N 80.70W
12/23/2022                   MECKLENBURG        NC   BROADCAST MEDIA

            TREE FALLS ON HOME, NO INJURIES REPORTED.

&&

MPR

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

4 cold/wind chill. Local standard time, as filed.

Cold/Wind Chill, Elbert

When: December 23, 5:00 PM EST to December 24, 10:00 AM EST
Where: Elbert forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS
Coordinates: 34.117, -82.840 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Franklin

When: December 23, 5:00 PM EST to December 24, 10:00 AM EST
Where: Franklin forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS
Coordinates: 34.375, -83.229 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Hart

When: December 23, 5:00 PM EST to December 24, 10:00 AM EST
Where: Hart forecast zone
Reported by: Mesonet
Coordinates: 34.351, -82.964 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Stephens

When: December 23, 5:00 PM EST to December 24, 10:00 AM EST
Where: Stephens forecast zone
Reported by: Mesonet
Coordinates: 34.554, -83.293 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Cold/Wind Chill: Cold or wind chill below warning criteria that caused deaths, injuries or damage.

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

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Georgia in 2022 Every state in 2022 This day in weather history Warnings in Georgia, December 2022

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 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 1071120, 1071121, 1071122, 1071123.