05/09/08 DISC: NC/SC/VA/MD

[Sam Sagnella]

With daylight, it is apparent that there is some pretty significant tornado damage in the Greensboro, NC area from storms very early this morning. The Greensboro News-Register is reporting damage from I-40 and Sandy Ridge Rd (~MM 202) into town, with the heaviest damage SW of Piedmont Triad Int'l Airport. Unfortunately, one fatality and several injuries have been attributed to the storm; most of the casualties (including the death) were in vehicles.

(CREDIT: Jerry Wolford/News & Record)

CNN was showing some aerial footage from WTVD-TV a little while ago, and, assuming the homes are as well-constructed as they appear to be, some of it appears to be in at least the low E-F3 range. It appears that it was at least 200 yds wide as it passed through a grove of trees just downstream of a shipping yard. This footage is available through CNN.com [located on the top-right side of the main page].

A quick NCDC search reveals that eleven tornadoes have affected Guilford County, NC since 1950, the strongest of which was an F2 in 1954. While Greensboro has been spared from significant tornado strikes in the past, strong tornadoes have been no stranger to neighboring Forsyth County, the most recent of which did $50M in damage nearly 10 yrs ago to the day.

 

[Sam Sagnella]

571   
NOUS42 KRAH 091715  
PNSRAH  
NCZ021-022-038-039-092200-  
  
PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT  
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RALEIGH NC  
115 PM EDT FRI MAY 9 2008  
   
..BRIEF RESULTS OF THE GUILFORD COUNTY STORM SURVEY  
  
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE...IN CONJUNCTION WITH LOCAL EMERGENCY  
MANAGEMENT...CONDUCTED A STORM SURVEY IN WESTERN GUILFORD COUNTY.  
IT WAS FOUND THAT A TORNADO...RATED EF2 WITH AN ESTIMATED WIND OF  
130 MPH...STRUCK AREAS IN AND NEAR THE WEST SIDE OF GREENSBORO.  
PRELIMINARY INDICATIONS SHOW A PATH LENGTH OF 3 MILES...AND A  
WIDTH OF A QUARTER MILE. THE TORNADO AFFECTED AREAS NEAR SANDY  
RIDGE AND INTERSTATE 40...ALONG WITH THE FARMERS MARKET AND AN  
INDUSTRIAL COMPLEX. MORE DETAILS WILL BE AVAILABLE IN LATER PUBLIC  
INFORMATION STATEMENTS ON THIS AND THE RESULTS OF THE FORSYTH  
COUNTY STORM SURVEY.

http://kamala.cod.edu/offs/KRAH/0805091715.nous42.html

As the severe weather continued into the daylight hours, another E-F2 tornado affected NErn NC.

[COLOR=#003366][B].TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON[/B][/COLOR]  [COLOR=#003366][B]
.DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE.[/B][/COLOR]  
            ..REMARKS..  
  
0844 AM     TORNADO          4 SE HARRELLSVILLE      36.26N 76.74W   
05/09/2008                   HERTFORD           NC   NWS STORM SURVEY  
  
            EF2 TORNADO CONFIRMED 4 MILES SE OF HARRELLSVILLE BY NWS   
            STORM SURVEY. PATH WAS APPROX. 1/4 MILE WIDE. NUMEROUS   
            TREES DOWN. ROOFS OFF TWO HOMES. SEVERAL BARNS DAMAGED   
            AND/OR DESTROYED.  
  
0849 AM     TORNADO          2 NW RYLAND             36.29N 76.66W   
05/09/2008                   CHOWAN             NC   EMERGENCY MNGR    
  
            ROOF BLOWN OFF OF PEANUT STORAGE BUILDING OFF RTE 32.

http://kamala.cod.edu/offs/KAKQ/0805091656.nwus51.html

 

[Brian Stertz]

SE Virginia mini-supercell

Sorry for the late report....am on a vacation in Williamsburg VA. Saw a mini supercell approach from the south Fri. morning. This nearly produced a tornado as it passed east of our condo. I will have some pics up when I get back to KC. Was a VERY interesting storm and the spin on it was impressive as it raced northeast.

 

[Jesse V. Bass III]

Sorry for the late report....am on a vacation in Williamsburg VA. Saw a mini supercell approach from the south Fri. morning. This nearly produced a tornado as it passed east of our condo. I will have some pics up when I get back to KC. Was a VERY interesting storm and the spin on it was impressive as it raced northeast.

Willimsburg huh??? not to far from me here in Portsmouth...

I headed out Friday morning south from Portsmouth, Norfolk area into North Carolina down Rt. 17 .. Several big storms were moving into northeast North Carolina that had been tornado warned. By the time I reached the area just north of Elizabeth City and intercepted one of the storms the tornado warning had been dropped but was issued as severe.. Driving south on 17 looking to the east i noticed scud and what looked like a brief spin up as the storm crossed 17.. I turned around to head north where I stopped along the side of the road to watch this area.. It appeared to spin up again before weakening.. I tried to follow and keep up with it as it moved basiclly east northeast but was limited by road options.. Anyway, below is a link to the vid of the morning chase..


http://www.vastormphoto.com/media/5-9-08-ncspinup.wmv

 

[Brian Stertz]

Mini supercell photo - N. Williamsburg VA

Here is a pic of the mini-supercell that was spinning like a top last Friday morning (5/9). The LLJ was really roaring over SE Virginia and this small supercell almost gave me a surprise.