News

Storm glance: Impact felt from Maine to the Keys

By Bill Moss, Published: March 13, 2013

The "Storm of the Century" struck the eastern seaboard March 12-15, 1993.

A report issued by the National Climatic Data Center in Asheville included many highlights of the storm and its impact in the Blue Ridge Mountains and across the U.S.:
• The death toll was 310, counting 50 people lost at sea. The death toll in North Carolina was 19. Pennsylvania had the most, 49. Florida had 44. The number of people that perished was more than triple the combined death toll in hurricanes Hugo and Andrew.
• Record snowfall stranded thousands of people up and down the East Coast. More than 200 hikers were rescued in the N.C. and Tennessee mountains. More than 160 people were rescued at sea.
• For the first time, every airport on the East Coast was closed at one time or another during the storm. The Asheville Regional Airport was closed for three days. "Generally, all interstate highways from Atlanta northward were closed," the NCDC report said.
• Generally, the southern Appalachian mountains received 2 feet of snow, with drifts much higher.
• The heavy wet snow caused the collapse of thousands of roofs. The heavy snow and high winds caused widespread outages here and up and down the coast. More than 3 million customers lost power because of the storm. At one point 99 percent of households and businesses in Polk County were without power.
• The storm spawned 15 tornadoes in Florida. Those and other weather conditions killed 44 people in that state; a 12-foot storm surge in Taylor County caused at least seven deaths.
• Highest reported wind gusts included 144 mph at Mount Washington, N.H., 101 mph at Flattop Mountain, N.C., and 90 mph at Myrtle Beach, S.C.
• Highest snowfall totals included 56 inches on Mount LeConte, Tenn., 50 inches on Mount Mitchell, with 14-foot drifts, 36 inches in Latrobe, Pa., with 10-foot drifts, 19 inches in Asheville.
• Record low temperatures included -12 degrees in Vermont and Maine, -11 in Syracuse, N.Y., -4 in Waynesville, 2 in Asheville, 8 in Greensboro, 17 in Montgomery, Ala., 25 in Pensacola, Fla., and 31 in Daytona Beach, Fla.
• The snow had an unusually high water content, giving many areas the equivalent of 4-5 inches of rainfall. It also caused more trees to come down and roofs to collapse.
Source: "The Big One! A Review of the March 12-14 'Storm of the Century,'" Neal Lott, physical scientist, National Climatic Data Center, Asheville, May 14, 1993.