National Weather Service United States Department of Commerce
August 4-5, 2010
Several Rounds of Severe Thunderstorms

PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WILMINGTON OH
233 PM EDT TUE AUG 10 2010

...MICROBURST CONFIRMED NEAR JOHNSTOWN IN LICKING COUNTY OHIO...

LOCATION...2 MILES NORTH OF JOHNSTOWN IN LICKING COUNTY OHIO
DATE...AUGUST 4 2010
ESTIMATED TIME...209 PM 
ESTIMATED MAXIMUM WIND SPEED...80 TO 100 MPH
MAXIMUM PATH WIDTH...100 YARDS
PATH LENGTH...200 YARDS
BEGINNING LAT/LON...40.188N 82.696W 
ENDING LAT/LON...40.188N 82.693W
* FATALITIES...2
* INJURIES...4

* THE INFORMATION IN THIS STATEMENT IS PRELIMINARY AND SUBJECT TO
CHANGE PENDING FINAL REVIEW OF THE EVENT(S) AND PUBLICATION IN NWS
STORM DATA.

...SUMMARY...
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN WILMINGTON OH HAS CONFIRMED A
MICROBURST NEAR JOHNSTOWN IN LICKING COUNTY OHIO ON AUGUST 4 2010.

A MICROBURST IS A CONVECTIVE DOWNDRAFT WITH AN AFFECTED OUTFLOW
AREA OF LESS THAN 2 1/2 MILES WIDE AND PEAK WINDS LASTING LESS
THAN 5 MINUTES. MICROBURSTS MAY INDUCE DANGEROUS
HORIZONTAL/VERTICAL WIND SHEARS...WHICH CAN ADVERSELY AFFECT
AIRCRAFT PERFORMANCE AND CAUSE PROPERTY DAMAGE.

A REPRESENTATIVE FROM THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN WILMINGTON
OHIO PERFORMED A DAMAGE SURVEY OF AREAS IN THE PATH OF THE
MICROBURST INCLUDING THE OHIO FRESH EGG FACILITY ON CROTON ROAD
NORTH OF JOHNSTOWN...AND ADJACENT PROPERTIES IN LICKING COUNTY
OHIO. SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS HIT THE EGG FACILITY DURING THE EARLY
AFTERNOON HOURS COLLAPSING 3 LARGE BARNS AND DAMAGING ANOTHER.
THIS RESULTED IN THE FATALITIES OF TWO MEN WORKING IN ONE OF THE
COLLAPSED STRUCTURES.

THE FINDINGS OF THE SURVEY INDICATE THAT A LOCALIZED MICROBURST
WITHIN A LARGER AREA OF STRONG THUNDERSTORM WINDS HIT THE EGG
FACILITY AT APPROXIMATELY 209 PM. THIS RESULTED IN THE TOTAL
COLLAPSE OF THREE OF THE SIXTEEN HEN BARNS AT THE FACILITY...WITH
DAMAGE TO A FOURTH. A LARGE ROOFTOP AIR CONDITIONING UNIT WAS
PUSHED OFF THE ROOF OF AN ADJACENT ADMINISTRATIVE BUILDING. 

DETAILED ANALYSIS OF THE DAMAGED AS WELL AS THE UNDAMAGED HEN BARNS
INDICATED THAT A MICROBURST WITH A MAGNITUDE RANGE OF 80 TO 100
MPH FROM THE WEST...HIT THE NORTH-SOUTH ORIENTED HEN BARNS. 

A PIECE OF METAL ROOFING MATERIAL WAS FOUND ACROSS CROTON ROAD IN
A CORN FIELD...AND A LARGE WHEELED FIELD-TILE HOSE REEL HAD BEEN
ROLLED INTO A DITCH IN FRONT OF THE FACILITY AS WELL.
OTHERWISE...THERE WAS VERY LITTLE ADDITIONAL DAMAGE OUTSIDE OF
ROOFING MATERIAL AND MASONRY NEAR THE RESPECTIVE COLLAPSE POINTS.

NO SIGNIFICANT DAMAGE WAS SEEN IN NEARBY CORN AND SOYBEAN FIELDS
IMMEDIATELY ADJACENT TO THE COLLAPSED STRUCTURES IN ALL FOUR
DIRECTIONS. A SURVEY OF NEARBY PROPERTIES WITHIN SEVERAL MILES OF
THE FACILITY ON WOODHAVEN ROAD/TOWNSHIP HIGHWAY 57 INDICATED
SCATTERED TO NUMEROUS BROKEN LIMBS AND DOWNED TREES...SUPPORTING
THE MORE WIDESPREAD STRONG WIND EVENT THIS MICROBURST WAS
CONTAINED WITHIN.

$$

BINAU