WRAL.com: Raleigh, Durham, Fayetteville

We're not talking about the kind that comes from plumbing, but flood waters that result when too much rain falls in too short a time to be absorbed and channeled away safely by soil and by the drainage system that includes creeks, streams, rivers, and in urban areas, gutters, curb drains, piping and culverts.

An active winter to an active spring? Let's hope not since it is one thing to deal with snow and a completely different situation dealing with springtme thunderstorms that can dish out lightning, hail and even deadly tornadoes. Tornadoes are destructive and deadly, with North Carolina averaging 13 tornadoes per year. Those tornadoes kill two and injure 42 in an average year.

One of my favorite parts of the job of meteorologist is talking to students. I often ask students what they think is the most deadly kind of weather in the US. The number one answer I get is tornadoes, followed by hurricanes and then winter storms. Rarely do I hear flooding and lightning. However, they are the number one and two weather related killers.

Severe thunderstorms are common in central North Carolina. They can happen any time of the year, but we are most likely to see them during our spring and summer months. But, don't let the calendar fool you! Just last month we had an overnight tornado watch and several severe thunderstorm warnings.

This winter has certainly be one to remember, and even though a couple of rounds of snow are still fresh in our memories, it is almost time to begin thinking about another kind of extreme weather: thunderstorms, tornadoes, and severe weather.

The WRAL Weather Center's staff of meteorologists provide expert advice about severe weather threats in North Carolina. Read their blog posts from Severe Weather Week 2009.