Source: Wind Energy Resource Atlas of the United States
High winds, without the rotation associated with tornadoes, may also be dangerous. On January 24, 2003, five tractor-trailer trucks were flipped onto their sides on Interstate 77 at Fancy Gap. A state trooper who reported to the accident scene said ""The wind just took them over. They were just like those Matchbox trucks."2
When the Blue Ridge is at the edge of high pressure systems from the north in January/February, and low-pressure systems are located to the southeast near the warmer ocean, the winter winds can flow through the gap at speeds up to 120 miles per hour. That's sufficient to rip the doors off of vehicles, overturn trucks, and even lift people into the air. (One state trooper claims he had to hold onto the guardrail to avoid being tossed over the edge of the roadbed carved into the side of the mountain.)
(The winds that bump into the mountains can be so strong that one has even been given a name, Peter's Mountain Roar.)
