Strong Wind — Southeast Pocahontas, West Virginia

2019-02-24 · Southeast Pocahontas, West Virginia

Wider weather episode

A warm front lifted northward into West Virginia on the evening of the 23rd, promoting widespread showers and a few isolated thunderstorms due to the close proximity of an approaching cold front. Generally, 1 to 1.75 inches of rain fell between the evening of the 23rd and the morning of the 24th. This led to flooding across southern and western portions of the state.

Behind the cold front, very gusty winds developed with most areas seeing gusts of 40 to 45 knots. Stronger gusts were measured across the higher terrain of the northern mountainous counties. The ASOS at Elkins measured a 51 knot gust, and on the top of Snowshoe mountain, gusts of 60 to 75 knots were measured. Combined with the soggy ground, these winds led to widespread power outages due to downed trees and power lines. Tens of thousands of power customers lost power, and it took a couple days for all service to be restored.

In addition to the downed trees, more noteworthy damage occurred in Huntington, where some windows were broken in the Prichard Building, which stands 13 stories tall. Glass fell onto the road below, which was closed while crew cleaned up the glass.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 799840. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.