EF3 Tornado — Wilson, North Carolina

2024-08-08 · near Black Creek, Wilson, North Carolina

Event narrative

A tornado touched down near Hwy 301 about 2 WNW Black Creek then proceeded NW for approximately 6.5 miles before lifting 4 WNW Lucama. Numerous trees were snapped and several homes were severely damaged along Scott Church Rd. One home has considerable roof damage with roofing covering removed. The tornado continued

NW and did severe damage to Springfield Middle School where several sections of the roof were completely removed and several exterior and load bearing walls were blown out. At this location, wind was estimated to be 140 mph, which puts this tornado at the

EF-3 level on the Enhanced Fujita Scale. The tornado continued moving to the northwest, and along Lloyd Road a two story home completely collapsed after all four walls were blown over. It was here that one fatality occurred. The winds at this location were estimated to be 140 mph. The tornado lifted shortly after crossing Governor Hunt Rd, where a barn was destroyed and numerous trees were snapped and uprooted.

Wider weather episode

Tropical Depression Debby slowly made its way through Florida, off the South Carolina coast, then back inland through the western Piedmont of North Carolina during the evening hours of 8 August 2024. Ahead of the storm, numerous feeder bands brought periods of heavy rain to central North Carolina, resulting in widespread 4-6 inch rainfall amounts across the western Piedmont, with higher amounts to the east. In addition, numerous tornadoes occurred with this event, with one on 7 August and an additional 6 on 8 August including a rare EF-3 tropical cyclone tornado.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (35.6527, -77.9637)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1208443. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.