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3 <br /> 1992 SEVERE WEATHER IN NORTH CAROLINA <br /> TORNADOES <br /> Twenty-eight tornadoes struck North Carolina in 1992 . This is <br /> thirteen more than the annual average of 15 using the last 33 <br /> years or record (since 1960) . The tornadoes came on 12 days <br /> during 1992 , but 16 of the 28 came on 3 days in November. This <br /> is unusual since most tornadoes in North Carolina occur in the <br /> Spring, March through June. <br /> Three people were killed by tornadoes, two near Hillsborough on <br /> November 23rd, and one in Charlotte on March 10th. Another 93 <br /> North Carolinians were injured. <br /> Tornado occurrence was most frequent over two broad areas of the <br /> state: the western Piedmont, from Cleveland and Mecklenburg <br /> Counties in the south to Stokes County in the north, and the <br /> Sandhills, central Coastal Plain, and northern Coastal Area, from <br /> around the Fort Bragg area northeast to Currituck County. This <br /> does not include waterspouts over the coastal waters and sounds <br /> of North Carolina. The longest tornado damage path on record <br /> occurred November 23rd when a tornado touched down near Coats in <br /> Harnett County and continued for 3 hours and 15 minutes across <br /> 160 miles northeastward to around Elizabeth City. (See tornado <br /> statistics in the summary table attached. ) <br /> HAIL <br /> On twenty-nine days in 1992 , we had 121 instances of large hail, <br /> hail of dime-size or larger, in North Carolina. Most of the <br /> large hail occurred in June, July, and August, causing damage in <br /> the millions to crops, automobiles, and other property. The <br /> largest hail reported was tennis ball-size (2 . 5-inch diameter) in <br /> Duplin and Onslow Counties on June 21st, and near tennis ball- <br /> size in Cleveland County on March 7th. <br /> LIGHTNING <br /> There were twenty-four instances of lightning causing harm to <br /> people or structures during 1992 . One child in McDowell County <br /> was killed when lightning struck near a large oak tree September <br /> 19th. Five other people were injured by lightning during 1992 . <br /> DOWNBURSTS <br /> On forty-eight days during the year, downburst winds from severe <br /> thunderstorms caused 186 instances of damage or injury in North <br /> Carolina. There were no deaths attributed to downbursts, but <br /> four people were injured. Damaging downburst winds were most <br /> frequent during June, July; and August. <br />