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Powerful Pacific System Impacting the West; First Significant Snow for Portions of the East

Power Pacific system will continue to bring significant impacts for Pacific Northwest into northern California the remainder of the week. Dangerous coastal affects, heavy rain, flooding, strong winds, and higher elevation mountain snow continues. Meanwhile, a storm across the east is set to bring the first accumulating snow to many higher elevations of the Catskills into the central Appalachians. Read More >

April 16, 2011 Severe Weather
EF-1 TORNADO IN EASTERN FREDERICK AND WESTERN CARROLL COUNTIES MD


LOCATION...2 MI NNE NEW MARKET MD TO 2 MI WNW WINFIELD MD
DATE...APRIL 16 2011 
ESTIMATED START TIME...737 PM EDT 
ESTIMATED END TIME...751 PM EDT
MAXIMUM EF-SCALE RATING...EF-1 
MAXIMUM WIND SPEED...100 MPH 
PATH WIDTH...50-75 YARDS
LENGTH...9.5 MILES 
BEGINNING LAT/LON...39.4050N / 77.2614W 
ENDING LAT/LON...39.4597N / 77.0904W
* FATALITIES...NONE
* INJURIES...NONE
* 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...

AFTER AN ANALYSIS OF THE RESULTS OF A DAMAGE SURVEY AND REVIEW OF
AVAILABLE RADAR DATA...THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE
BALTIMORE/WASHINGTON WEATHER FORECAST OFFICE HAS DETERMINED THAT A
TORNADO RATED EF-1 STRUCK EASTERN FREDERICK AND WESTERN CARROLL
COUNTIES.

DAMAGE IN FREDERICK COUNTY WAS FOUND IN THREE SWATHS. A SHORT
SWATH OF DAMAGE WAS FOUND ALONG NEW LONDON ROAD AND GREEN VALLEY
ROAD. ALONG NEW LONDON ROAD...A DETACHED GARAGE COLLAPSED...
SHINGLES AND SIDING WERE REMOVED FROM A SINGLE-FAMILY HOME...
SOFTWOOD TREES WERE SNAPPED AND LARGE LIMBS WERE BROKEN FROM
HARDWOOD TREES.

THE TORNADO CONTINUED EAST THROUGH FARMLAND...WHERE NUMEROUS
HARDWOOD TREES WERE UPROOTED OR SNAPPED...AND BARNS AND
OUTBUILDINGS WERE DAMAGED OR DESTROYED. DAMAGE IN THIS SWATH WAS
CONSISTENT WITH MAXIMUM WINDS OF 90 TO 100 MPH AND HAS BEEN RATED
EF-1 ON THE ENHANCED FUJITA SCALE.

A SECOND SWATH WAS FOUND ALONG LIME PLANT ROAD. IN THIS VICINITY... 
SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE WAS FOUND TO AN EQUESTRIAN FACILITY...WHERE METAL 
PANELS WERE REMOVED FROM A BARN ROOF...FENCING WAS DESTROYED...A 
SHED WAS DESTROYED AND REMOVED FROM THE PROPERTY...TREES WERE 
SNAPPED AND A POWER POLE BECAME SLANTED OVER. FARTHER EAST...A BARN 
ROOF WAS DESTROYED AND BLOWN DOWNSTREAM AND NUMEROUS TREES WERE 
SNAPPED.

THE TORNADO TRACK CURVED NORTHEASTERLY AT THIS TIME...REMOVED 
ROOFING PANELS FROM A DETACHED GARAGE NEAR DETRICK ROAD AND OLD 
ANNAPOLIS ROAD AND MOVED THROUGH THE LINGANORE WINERY PROPERTY... 
WHERE DAMAGE WAS SUSTAINED TO A WAREHOUSE ROOF...PAVILION ROOF AND 
TREES. SIX OR MORE SOFTWOOD TREES WERE SNAPPED...AND PIECES OF LARGE 
LIMBS AND PLYWOOD WERE IMPALED IN ADJACENT ROOFS. DAMAGE IN THIS 
SWATH WAS CONSISTENT WITH MAXIMUM WINDS OF 90 TO 100 MPH AND HAS 
BEEN RATED EF-1 ON THE ENHANCED FUJITA SCALE.

A DAMAGE SWATH ALSO WAS FOUND BEGINNING NEAR PEDDICORD ROAD AND 
TALBOT RUN ROAD. IN THIS VICINITY...SUBSTANTIAL TREE DAMAGE WAS 
NOTED. A WINDOW WAS BLOWN INTACT INWARD OUT OF ITS FRAME ON A 
SINGLE-FAMILY HOME ALONG CHELSEA ROAD. THE SWATH CONSISTED ALMOST
ENTIRELY OF DAMAGE TO TREES AS THE TORNADO MOVED NORTHEAST JUST
SOUTH OF BUFFALO ROAD AND BLACK ANKLE ROAD. HOWEVER...NEAR THIS
INTERSECTION...PINE TREES WERE SNAPPED AND SIDING AND TRIM WERE
TORN FROM A HOME...WHERE A PORTION OF A PORCH RAILING ALSO WAS
REMOVED. MODEST TREE DAMAGE CONTINUED THROUGH AN EQUESTRIAN SCHOOL
PROPERTY AND INTO CARROLL COUNTY...WHERE PATCHY TREE DAMAGE WAS
FOUND AND A POWER POLE WAS SNAPPED NEAR THE INTERSECTION OF MD-26
AND MD-27. DAMAGE IN THIS THIRD SWATH WAS CONSISTENT WITH MAXIMUM
WINDS OF 90 TO 100 MPH AND WAS RATED EF-1.

IN SUMMARY...THE DAMAGE SWATHS ACROSS EASTERN FREDERICK AND
WESTERN CARROLL COUNTIES IN NORTH CENTRAL MARYLAND WERE CLASSIFIED
PER NWS STANDARDS AS A SINGLE TORNADO...BUT LIKELY WERE CAUSED BY
THREE DISTINCT VORTICES.