High winds, power outages after reported tornadoes

Associated Press

ASHEVILLE May 13, 2008 10:38 am

— Strong winds whipped western North Carolina on Monday and knocked out power to thousands following a severe weather system that spawned seven tornados a day earlier.
Winds were forecast to decrease Monday evening in the west but continue blowing through the night at the coast, where soundside flooding was caused on the northern Outer Banks. The flooding happens when strong winds blow the shallow sound waters onto land.
Jeffrey Taylor of the National Weather Service said the maximum gust was 51 mph at Asheville, where winds of 44 mph were measured over a two-minute period.
“We’ve heard of a lot of trees knocked down but no injuries or fatalities,” Taylor said.
Meteorologist Chris Collins said gale force winds were blowing along the coast, ranging up to 40 mph in many places. A high wind warning was posted until Tuesday morning for the Outer Banks.
The worst affected area appeared to be the town of Black Mountain near Asheville, where Progress Energy reported about 3,400 outages.
Duke Energy and Progress Energy reported about 17,000 customers were affected by power outages Monday afternoon, most in the western part of North Carolina.
A man in Black Mountain was trapped briefly in his house when wind blew a tree onto his roof, said town Fire Chief Steve Jones. No one was injured.
“Some of these trees just uprooted, and there was one tree that went right through a trailer,” Jones told the Asheville Citizen-Times. He said a tree fell on the back of his vehicle while he was driving around 2 a.m. Monday.
“We would clear one road and take out one tree then another tree would fall,” he said.
On Sunday, about 15 people were injured by tornados in the eastern part of the state.
Gov. Mike Easley said Monday nine people were injured in Bertie County and six in Onslow County. Most of the injuries were minor. The weather service confirmed tornados in the counties.
A coastal flood watch and a high surf advisory were in effect until Tuesday afternoon.
The Coast Guard urged caution on coastal waters and a gale warning was posted for Virginia and North Carolina.
The wind was caused by a low-pressure system moving toward the east and high pressure behind it, said meteorologist Doug Outlaw.