High Wind — Surry, North Carolina

2012-10-29 to 2012-10-30 · Surry, North Carolina

Event narrative

High winds blew an oak tree down in the immediate path of a motorist in the 1400 block of Prison Camp Road near New Hope. There was not time for the driver to react and stop, an accident occurred, and the driver died. The winds also brought down two trees across Cross Creek Drive near Salem. Damage values are estimated.

Wider weather episode

Hurricane Sandy moved north off the Atlantic Coast and combined with a complex low pressure system and deepening trough over the eastern part of the U.S., and then turned west northwest and into New Jersey into Pennsylvania, slowing down and then drifting north. It produced an expansive area of high impact weather as it approached the coast and moved inland. Strong winds and heavy snowfall were the biggest impacts on southeastern West Virginia, northwestern North Carolina and extreme southwestern Virginia, lasting for 24-48 hours. One to two feet of snow with significant drifting was observed in the higher elevations, with a sharp reduction to little or no accumulation in the valleys. Winds gusted into the 50-60 mph range, with one gust to 70 mph at the Ashe County Airport in Jefferson, North Carolina.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 417229. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.