Severe Thunderstorms and Tornadoes Preparedness

A thunderstorm is a local storm that produces lightning and thunder.  Thunderstorms are often accompanied by showery rain and gusty winds, and may also bring hail or snow. Thunderstorms occur most frequently during the spring and summer, but they are also possible in the fall and winter.  North Carolina experiences about 40 to 50 thunderstorm days per year.  About 10 percent of thunderstorms are classified as severe – one that produces hail at least an inch in diameter, has winds of 58 miles per hour or stronger, or produces a tornado. 

Thunderstorms are sometimes underestimated as a serious weather threat, but they can be deadly. Strong winds can turn tree branches and ordinary loose objects into dangerous projectiles — help your community stay safe by trimming trees and picking up loose items.

Lightning can strike up to 10 miles away from a storm. Make sure to get everyone inside at the first sign of thunder or lightning, and keep them inside until at least 30 minutes after the last sign of thunder or lightning.

Tornadoes are nature’s most violent storms. Spawned from powerful thunderstorms, tornadoes can cause fatalities and devastate a neighborhood in seconds. A tornado appears as a rotating, funnel-shaped cloud that extends from a thunderstorm to the ground with whirling winds that can reach more than 200 miles per hour. Damage paths can be in excess of one mile wide and 50 miles long. North Carolina is at some risk from this hazard. Some tornadoes are clearly visible, while rain or nearby low-hanging clouds obscure others. Occasionally, tornadoes develop so rapidly that little, if any, advance warning is possible. Before a tornado hits, the wind may die down and the air may become very still. A cloud of debris can mark the location of a tornado even if a funnel is not visible. Tornadoes generally occur near the trailing edge of a thunderstorm. It is not uncommon to see clear, sunlit skies behind a tornado.

More information can be found:

NCEM/Tornados

FEMA/Tornados

NOAA/Tornados

NWS/Tornados