A tree-sized limb fell out of the oak across the street from us during a thunderstorm on Saturday night. It tore down the power lines and took out a whole side of our Japanese Maple. We got lucky. Somehow it missed three cars and the front of the house by mere feet. They’re saying we’re in for a nasty storm season this year, and after Saturday night, I believe it.

When you say storm season, people assume you mean hurricane season. But in the South, thunderstorm season and hurricane season overlap. Hurricane season kicks off on June 1st and runs through November.

Here in North Carolina, we don’t see many hurricanes in June or July – but thunderstorms are prevalent in the early summer. We get 40-50 thunderstorms per year; 25% of them are considered severe. These storms can throw off hail, cause flash flooding, generate high winds, and produce tornadoes.

There’s really no escaping it. Even Appalachia has its fair share of flooding and high winds this time of year. After experiencing the 2004 flooding in Haywood County, I would argue storms are much scarier in WNC.

Luckily, there’s not a lot of flooding where we live in the Sandhills. Around our neighborhood, the big concern is falling trees. The one we had last weekend served as a wake-up call.

Brandon has been in storm prep mode since the limb fell. He’s already hired a tree service to take down some iffy-looking pines. When he isn’t fretting over the trees, he’s talking about stocking up on batteries, power banks, and looking at generators.

I appreciate his efforts. Lord knows, it’s better to be prepared than not. Especially since it’s not a question of if another storm will hit – but when.