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From tornadoes to tropical storms: These were the 10 most impactful weather events of 2021 in Charlotte
Every year, the Carolinas experience weather from winter storms to wildfires to hurricanes. Let’s recap some of the most impactful events.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. —
Snow, sleet, and freezing rain create significant threats
Here’s a good reminder that late January and February are historically the worst months for winter precipitation in the Charlotte area. We accumulated snow, sleet, and freezing rain across the region the last weekend in January, the first weekend in February, and again two weeks later.
Totals west of Charlotte during one of these events reached close to 5 inches of snow and sleet. When sleet occurs early in the season, it won’t stick and melts immediately due to warm ground. But when temperatures are consistently cold – such as our average low in January averaging around 32 degrees – it can create significant problems.
Perseverance rover landing
Who can forget the Perseverance Rover landing on Mars? Chief Meteorologist Brad Panovich hosted a virtual watch party on Feb. 18 alongside Candice Jordan of the Schiele Museum of Natural History in Gastonia.
After nearly seven months of traveling through space, Perseverance made the landing after plunging through the thin Martian atmosphere at more than 12,000 mph. Perseverance, the biggest, most advanced rover ever sent by NASA, became the ninth spacecraft to successfully land on Mars, each one from the United States.
Biggars turkey farm tornado
If a tornado touches down and no one knows, did it happen? That’s a question one family was asking after damage on their farm after a nasty day of storms on May 3. But it indeed was a tornado – an EF-1, in fact, with an estimated wind of 110 mph.
This twister only entered the record books after the farmer messaged our Brad Panovich on social media. He had photos of damage from his family’s turkey farm on Highway 55 in York County. Panovich knew it as soon as he saw it – it was a spot that looked suspect on the radar earlier in the day.
There were no human injuries, but the farm suffered significant damage. Unfortunately, over 4,000 turkeys were killed as this storm system moved through.
2021 Rokerthon
On June 21, our very own Larry Sprinkle helped Al Roker break the Guinness World Record for the most people participating in an online weather reporting video relay. This event featured weather forecasters and meteorologists from more than 50 NBC-affiliated stations across the country.
These folks joined Roker live to provide local and live national weather reports with no break between forecasts. Sprinkle was live from Truist Field, giving a forecast of sweet summertime in the Carolinas!
Smoke and wildfires in the west cause air quality issues locally
On July 21, wildfires burning in Canada and the Western United States produced enough smoke to get pulled into the upper atmosphere and the jetstream. The wildfires and smoke made hazy conditions, fiery sunrises and sunsets, and diminished air quality.
This local threat prompted a Code Orange Air Quality Alert to be issued locally. This category is considered “unhealthy for sensitive groups” and advised folks o limit their time outside until it cleared out.
Dust devil at Charlotte Douglas International Airport
No one loves science more than Brad Panovich! That’s why when a viewer spotted a dust devil spinning on the tarmac at CLT on Aug. 12, he was quick to jump in and explain.
That day, the weather in Charlotte featured highs in the 90s, heat indices in the 100s, and eventually thunderstorms. The day’s heating combined with breezy wind and cool air from nearby storms likely helped this spin up. These storms also caused flooding for parts of the Charlotte region, which we are accustomed to during the summertime.
Remnants of Tropical Storm Fred
Arguably the most impactful weather event of 2021, the remnants of Tropical Storm Fred spawned 17 tornadoes across the region, including one confirmed EF-1 tornado in Iredell and Alexander counties.
Thankfully, there were no injuries or fatalities from this twister. However, thousands of people across the Charlotte area lost power due to storms, high wind, and significant flash flooding.
Six people died in North Carolina’s Haywood County when the Pigeon River spilled its banks into towns like Canton.
Hurricane Ida
Although most impacts from Hurricane Ida stayed west of the Charlotte area, North Carolina air workers and organizations such as the American Red Cross and Samaritan’s Purse deployed help to devastated areas in Louisiana.
As a post-tropical cyclone, Ida slammed parts of the New England states on September 2nd, impacting Charlotte Douglas International Airport flights.
Hurricane Ida made landfall at 12:55 p.m. EDT as an extremely dangerous Category 4 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 150 mph. It made landfall near Port Fourchon, Louisiana, about 50 miles west of where Hurricane Katrina made landfall on the 16th anniversary of that catastrophic storm.
Flash flooding in the mountains and foothills
On Oct. 7, heavy rain caused quick-rising water for the mountains and the foothills. Radar estimates showed close to a foot of rain, which caused parks to flood, cars to be stranded in parking lots, and even redrew attention to a massive sinkhole in Morganton.
The sinkhole opened up in November 2020 on the corner of Sanford Drive and North Green Street in Morganton. Sinkholes form when water accumulates and doesn’t drain properly.
End-of-year drought
In late November and early December, a burn ban was in place for the entire state of North Carolina. This was due to drier-than-normal conditions and high fire danger such as gusty wind, dry soil, and low humidity.
These conditions also prompted a large fire at Pilot Mountain that burned over one thousand acres. After the 18th driest autumn, this was no shock to the Carolinas. The burn ban was officially lifted for all of North Carolina on Dec. 13.
As of Dec. 23, 99% of North Carolina and 81% of South Carolina is abnormally dry under the United States drought monitor. The city of Charlotte remains over 7 inches drier than average for 2021.