EF2 Tornado — Stokes, North Carolina

2017-05-24 · near King, Stokes, North Carolina

Event narrative

A thunderstorm dropped a tornado that impacted portions of western Stokes County. This tornado, which produced a continuous path length of 16.1 miles, touched down just north of the Forsyth and Stokes County Line causing large tree limbs to snap and numerous trees to become uprooted along and near Spainhour Mill Road. The tornado continued to the northeast, producing damage as it crossed US-52, Old Highway 52, and other minor roadways. The tornado reached its maximum strength and width as it impacted areas near and within YMCA Camp Hanes at the base of Sauratown Mountain, where numerous outbuildings, mobile homes, and cabins were damaged. The tornado at this point reached a maximum path width of just under 0.5 miles with a maximum wind speed estimate of 125 MPH. The tornado continued to the northeast for several more miles before coming to an end just north of Highway 89 and just south of North Stokes High School.

Wider weather episode

A warm front extended east across the central Appalachians, allowing cool stable air to the north and warm unstable conditions to the south. The differential heating coupled with ample lift and low level shear provided an environment ripe for rotating thunderstorms. One supercell thunderstorm produced two EF-2 tornadoes that caused damage to hundreds of structures while downing thousands of trees across Stokes and Yadkin Counties. Other storms in the region produced damaging straight-line winds.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (36.2634, -80.4434)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 699428. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.