Severe storms bring large hail and lightning

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Thunderstorms are currently moving through the Charlotte area, bringing heavy rain and lightning. 

Iredell and Rowan counties have severe thunderstorm warnings in effect until 10:45 p.m.

Severe thunderstorm watch warnings are in effect for Alexander, Cabarrus, Cleveland, Catawba, Gaston, Iredell, Lincoln, Mecklenburg, Rowan, Union, Chester, Union, and York counties until 11 p.m.

These thunderstorms are bringing damage to some residents as they move through the Charlotte area.

In Rowan County, a tree was reported to have fallen on a house on E 16th Street in Salisbury. 

In Chesterfield County, trees and powerlines have been reported down near Powhite Parkway.

Golf ball-sized hall fell Monday as a severe thunderstorm moved through several counties, including Mecklenburg County in North Carolina. The thunderstorm brought the 1.75″ size hail to Yadkin and Davie counties. 

In Mecklenburg County, one-inch hail was reported in north Charlotte near David Cox Road around 9:30 p.m.

In Iredell County thus far, the largest hail confirmed was about one inch. Given the variety of photos and videos shared with the WCNC Charlotte Weather Center Monday, larger hail still could have fallen throughout the county.

The same severe storm toppled trees and power lines in Harmony and Union Grove, where fire department officials said at least 20 trees fell.

Radar estimates indicate the storm, at its peak around 6 p.m., had winds of at least 60 mph.

A Severe Thunderstorm Watch is in effect for Charlotte and the surrounding Carolinas until 11 p.m. because of the threat of severe weather Monday evening.

Severe storms Monday evening could produce hail, damaging winds and isolated tornadoes in the Charlotte area and across North Carolina and South Carolina, chief meteorologist Brad Panovich said. 

Some of these storms could produce wind gusts in excess of 60 mph, which is strong enough to bring down trees and power lines. That’s why the WCNC Charlotte Weather Team wants everyone to be Weather Aware Monday. 

The Severe Thunderstorm Watch is in effect for counties including:

Alexander, Cabarrus, Catawba, Cleveland, Davie, Gaston, Iredell, Lincoln, Mecklenburg, Rowan, Union, Burke, Caldwell, McDowell, Polk, Rutherford, Cherokee, Chester, Spartanburg, and York.

Panovich said the hot, humid weather is why we’ll be at risk for severe weather. 

“The sun comes out, bakes everything up,” Panovich said. “We could be close to the low 90s today with dew points in the 70s. That’s going to yield a lot of thunderstorm fuel, really high CAPE, we call it.” 

RAISE YOUR WEATHER IQ: Understanding wind speed 

In most of Charlotte and the surrounding portions of the Carolinas, the greatest threat from these storms is damaging wind. Panovich is forecasting a medium threat for strong winds across the Charlotte area. 

The caveat, though, is there won’t be widespread storms. They will be isolated, but the ones that do pop up could be severe. 

“These will not be widespread,” Panovich said in his forecast vlog on the WCNC Charlotte Weather IQ YouTube channel. “These are going to be more of the isolated storms, but the ones that we could get are going to be really, really strong.”

🌩️ If you like weather, watch Brad Panovich and the WCNC Charlotte Weather Team on their Emmy Award-winning Weather IQ YouTube channel. 🎥

Locations likely to see these strong winds include Charlotte, Fort Mill, Rock Hill, Monroe, Gastonia, Hickory, Concord, Kannapolis, Salisbury, Statesville and Hickory. The threat is slightly lower in the western North Carolina mountains, such as Boone and Blowing Rock, because the temperature is forecast to be slightly cooler there.

Panovich said this type of storm setup usually isn’t found during summer, but it is common during the spring. He said the summer heat and humidity will combine with wind shear to meet really cool, dry air high in the atmosphere. This increases the risk of hail for the Carolinas. 

“Hail is a high risk today,” Panovich said. “Not because there’s going to be a ton of hail, but the hail that develops could be big. So we call that a significant risk.”

Panovich said we could see golf ball-sized hail up to 2 inches in diameter. That kind of hail normally causes damage to roofs and cars. If you have a garage, you should park inside as a precaution Monday. 

The tornado threat remains around 2% for the Charlotte area, while locations east and southeast of Charlotte are at a higher risk of damaging winds and tornadoes. 

RAISE YOUR WEATHER IQ: Supercell thunderstorms

“If there’s an isolated cell or two that develops into what we call supercell, then we could see some small rotation, but remember, supercells also produce big hail.”

The threat of damaging winds and hail is approximately 15% to 20%, Panovich said. 

The risk of damaging wind and hail rises to over 30% in North Carolina cities such as Greensboro, High Point, Winston-Salem, Raleigh, Cary, and Durham.

“I had to heighten the flood risk a little bit just because we had so much rain last week,” Panovich explained. “If we do see some training or a couple of storms in the same spot again and again, that could lead to some flash flooding.”

RAISE YOUR WEATHER IQ: Understanding flash flooding

The timing is key, Panovich warned in his video analysis.

“This is a pretty potent storm system,” Panovich said.

It’s almost-certain storms will move along the Interstate 40 corridor, including Hickory and Statesville, before entering the Triad on Monday. There remains some uncertainty regarding the atmospheric instability in Charlotte and to the south of the Queen City.

“The Charlotte metro may skip some of the most severe weather,” Sprinkle said. “It’s really going to be east of I-77 when that line of strong and possibly severe thunderstorms pops.”

RAISE YOUR WEATHER IQ: How thunderstorm fuel helps forecast thunderstorms

Severe storms thrive in an unstable atmosphere where there is plenty of thunderstorm fuel called “CAPE.” A hot afternoon full of clear skies and lots of sunshine is key to producing instability in the atmosphere. 

Stay informed of severe weather by downloading the WCNC Charlotte app and enabling weather alerts for your location.

Severe weather warnings will also scroll across WCNC Charlotte television throughout the day as the alerts are issued by the National Weather Service.

WCNC Charlotte’s Weather Team will have updates throughout the day on television. The team will also provide extended severe weather coverage streaming on WCNC+, the station’s free streaming channel available on WCNC.com and the WCNC apps for phones, Roku, and Amazon Fire.  

If the National Weather Service issues a Severe Thunderstorm Warning or a Tornado Warning for your location, you should head to your safe place.

RAISE YOUR WEATHER IQ: What defines a “Severe Thunderstorm Warning”

A safe place is a sturdy structure with as many walls between you and the outside as possible. The ideal location is on the lowest level of that structure and in the most interior room. You should avoid windows and doors that lead to the outside.

RAISE YOUR WEATHER IQ: Find your safe place

And remember… a “warning” means severe weather is imminent or already occurred.  A “watch” means ingredients are possible for storm development in the minutes and hours ahead. Whenever a “watch” is issued, you should stay Weather Aware for the potential a “warning” could be issued.

WCNC Charlotte’s Weather IQ YouTube channel gives detailed explainers from the WCNC Charlotte meteorologists to help you learn and understand weather, climate and science. Watch previous stories where you can raise your Weather IQ in the YouTube playlist below and subscribe to get updated when new videos are uploaded.