An upper level low over Texas began to lift northeast on May 25th, leading to widespread showers and thunderstorm affecting East Tennessee and the western North Carolina. Heavy rains noted in western North Carolina produced isolated flooding issues in Clay county.
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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 MRX wrote it up.
An upper level low over Texas began to lift northeast on May 25th, leading to widespread showers and thunderstorm affecting East Tennessee and the western North Carolina. Heavy rains noted in western North Carolina produced isolated flooding issues in Clay county.
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 May 25, 6:50 PM EST, 2 hours 23 minutes earlier. Its key messages:
Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Morristown TN
750 PM EDT Mon May 25 2026
...New AVIATION...
.KEY MESSAGES...
Updated at 747 PM EDT Mon May 25 2026
- Showers and storms are expected later today and tonight. These
will be efficient rainfall producing storms, with the ability to
produce localized torrential downpours and flash flooding.
Similar conditions will exist Tuesday.
- Drier air begins to approach from the north for Thursday onward.
Current forecast maintains rain chances area wide through the
weekend, but the trends support a drier pattern, at least across
the north, as we head into the weekend.
&&
.DISCUSSION...
Issued at 143 PM EDT Mon May 25 2026
The next 48 hours will feature continued south-southwesterly flow
aloft as we remain situated between a once-closed upper low over
Texas that will open up and drift north into the mid-Mississippi
river valley, and a subtropical ridge aloft centered off the
southeast coastline. Guidance shows high PWAT air continuing to
stream north from the Gulf into the Tennessee valley and southern
Appalachian region during this time. They're highest today through
tonight (upwards of 1.8-1.9" depending on the guidance source you
look at), but remain above the 90th percentile even into early
Wednesday before drier air impinges on the CWA from the north due
to a deepening upper trough over the northeast CONUS and
associated northerly low and mid level flow. The latter part of
the week well be drier and slightly cooler as a result of that
deepening trough to our north.
Regarding this afternoon through tonight, regional radar imagery
this afternoon shows a couple of MCVs lifting north from the Gulf
coast. One is in central Mississippi, just west of the MS/AL state
line, while another is moving north off the Gulf coast and will
be approaching Hattiesburg in the next few hours. Guidance shows
multiple rounds of convection developing over the region out in
advance of these features, possibly interacting with a stalled
frontal boundary in place across the TN valley. Forecast soundings
show prime warm rain processes through late tonight, with skinny
CAPE profiles with meager values, high freezing levels, and high
PWATs. Surface observations upstream support this and have shown
observed 2"/hr rainfall rates with rather unimpressive looking
showers and thunderstorms in some cases. Locally current 1hr
flash flood guidance in the TN valley ranges from maybe 1.5" in
portions of the southern valley, to less than 1" in the northern
valley near the I-81 corridor. Even the 3hr FFGs are less than 2"
across the board really. So I feel confident in having the flash
flood watch out for a good chunk of our CWA through late tonight.
To be clear, the flooding threat is isolated versus widespread.
But I think it is justified given what occurred yesterday. The
main question is whether it needs to be extended to cover the
convection that is likely tomorrow in essentially the same air
mass and synoptic setup. PWATs are slightly less tomorrow, but
still above the 90th percentile for this time of year, and we'll
likely have convection associated with that trailing MCV lifting
into northern AL and the southern Cumberland plateau (or somewhere
in that general area) tomorrow morning. Will let the evening
shift make the decision on whether to extend or not, but don't be
surprised if it is.
This wet pattern continues into Wednesday, but PWATs begin to
decline by that time and both convective coverage and intensity
should follow suite.
Again, as mentioned, the latter parts of the week will see a
trough deepen across the northeast CONUS and subsequently drier
northerly flow begin to spread into the CWA. Current NBM guidance
maintains some rain chances over much of the CWA Thu onward, with
the higher chances in the south. That seems reasonable for the
time being, but deterministic guidance is already showing the
focus of rainfall chances shifting south in response to the drier
air so I wouldn't be surprised to see those PoPs come down as
time goes on...especially across the northern parts of the CWA.
&&
.AVIATION...
(00Z TAFS)
Issued at 747 PM EDT Mon May 25 2026
Additional rain is moving south to north across the southern half
of the area currently, and is expected to continue to sweep to the
north through the next several hours. Overnight CIGs are pretty
uncertain, observations to the south are better than what would
otherwise be expected, and guidance is split on how poor
conditions trend overnight. Persisted the bulk of the previous
TAFs. Categorical conditions should improve by 18z tomorrow
though with the caveat of another round of scattered RA and TS to
begin thereafter.
&&
.PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS...
Chattanooga Airport, TN 66 79 66 82 / 90 80 80 90
Knoxville McGhee Tyson Airport, TN 65 80 65 81 / 80 70 80 90
Oak Ridge, TN 64 79 64 81 / 90 80 80 100
Tri Cities Airport, TN 62 81 62 80 / 60 80 60 90
&&
.MRX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
NC...Flood Watch until 3 AM EDT Tuesday for Cherokee-Clay.
TN...Flood Watch until 3 AM EDT /2 AM CDT/ Tuesday for Anderson-
Bledsoe-Blount Smoky Mountains-Bradley-Cocke Smoky
Mountains-East Polk-Grainger-Hamblen-Hamilton-Jefferson-
Knox-Loudon-Marion-McMinn-Meigs-North Sevier-Northwest
Blount-Northwest Carter-Northwest Cocke-Northwest Greene-
Northwest Monroe-Rhea-Roane-Sequatchie-Sevier Smoky
Mountains-Southeast Carter-Southeast Greene-Southeast
Monroe-Unicoi-Washington TN-West Polk.
VA...NONE.
&&
DISCUSSION...CD
AVIATION...WellingtonHazardous Weather Outlook National Weather Service Morristown TN 238 PM EDT Mon May 25 2026 NCZ060-061-TNZ012>018-035>047-067>074-081>087-098>102-VAZ001-002- 005-006-008-261845- 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-Northwest 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 VA-Russell-Washington VA- 238 PM EDT Mon May 25 2026 /138 PM CDT Mon May 25 2026/ This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for portions of southwest North Carolina...east Tennessee and southwest Virginia. .DAY ONE...This Afternoon and Tonight Scattered showers and thunderstorms are expected through late tonight. These may produce some locally heavy downpours and result in localized flooding. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Tuesday through Sunday Similar conditions are expected on Tuesday, with locally heavy downpours and flash flooding possible as more showers and thunderstorms occur. The wet pattern continues on Wednesday and Thursday, although additional heavy rains and flooding aren't expected those days. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... Spotter activation is not anticipated. However reports of any flooding that may occur would be appreciated.
Preliminary Local Storm Report
National Weather Service Morristown TN
910 PM EDT Mon May 25 2026
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0909 PM Flash Flood 2 SE Pigeon Forge 35.77N 83.53W
05/25/2026 Sevier TN Law Enforcement
Mud slide reported near the Spur. Several
roadways with flooding issues.
&&
dhSpecial Weather Statement
National Weather Service Morristown TN
927 PM EDT Mon May 25 2026
TNZ081-082-099-260230-
Sequatchie TN-Bledsoe TN-Hamilton TN-
927 PM EDT Mon May 25 2026
...A STRONG THUNDERSTORM WILL IMPACT SOUTHEASTERN SEQUATCHIE...SOUTH
CENTRAL BLEDSOE AND CENTRAL HAMILTON COUNTIES THROUGH 1030 PM EDT/930
PM CDT/...
At 927 PM EDT/827 PM CDT/, Doppler radar was tracking a strong
thunderstorm over Fairmount, or 8 miles northwest of Chattanooga,
moving northeast at 15 mph.
HAZARD...Wind gusts up to 40 mph.
SOURCE...Radar indicated.
IMPACT...Gusty winds could knock down tree limbs and blow around
unsecured objects.
Locations impacted include...
Chattanooga, Soddy-Daisy, Signal Mountain, Walden, Lakesite,
Fairmount, Red Bank, Flat Top Mountain, North Chickamauga Creek
Gorge, and Lone Oak.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
If outdoors, consider seeking shelter inside a building.
Torrential rainfall is also occurring with this storm and may lead to
localized flooding. Do not drive your vehicle through flooded
roadways.
Frequent cloud to ground lightning is occurring with this storm.
Lightning can strike 10 miles away from a thunderstorm. Seek a safe
shelter inside a building or vehicle.
&&
LAT...LON 3506 8530 3512 8539 3516 8539 3517 8540
3518 8539 3519 8540 3520 8539 3521 8540
3547 8529 3533 8501
TIME...MOT...LOC 0127Z 210DEG 15KT 3516 8533
MAX HAIL SIZE...0.00 IN
MAX WIND GUST...40 MPH
DHThe Knoxville radar (KMRX), 125 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 02:13 UTC.
1 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.
Several roadways having flooding issues in central Clay county.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in North Carolina in 2026Every state in 2026This day in weather historyWarnings in North Carolina, May 2026
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: 1336264.