Regional News
NWS storm survey results from Wednesday evening tornadoes
Published Thursday, June 18, 2009 at 07:41 AM
Photo courtesy of Jeremy Wesely
From National Weather Service Office Hastings. STORM SURVEY TEAMS FROM THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN HASTINGS HAVE COMPLETED THEIR ASSESSMENT OF THE INTENSITY AND TRACKS OF THE TORNADOES ACROSS BUFFALO AND HAMILTON COUNTIES THAT OCCURRED WEDNESDAY EVENING...JUNE 17 2009. HAMILTON COUNTY TORNADO...EF SCALE RATING...EF2 AT MAXIMUM INTENSITY WITH WINDS BETWEEN 111-135 MPH. THIS TORNADO REACHED A MAXIMUM INTENSITY OF EF2 AS IT CROSSED HIGHWAY 34 FOUR MILES WEST OF AURORA...DAMAGING A HOME AND OVERTURNING ABOUT A DOZEN RAIL CARS. THIS TORNADO INITIALLY TOUCHED DOWN AT THE INTERSECTION OF HIGHWAY 34 AND ROAD G AT 859 PM...ABOUT EIGHT MILES DUE WEST OF AURORA...AND TRACKED EAST ALONG HIGHWAY 34 FOR FIVE MILES...LIFTING NEAR HIGHWAY 34 AND ROAD M ABOUT THREE MILES WEST OF AURORA AT 917 PM. THIS TORNADO WAS AT LEAST ONE QUARTER TO ONE HALF MILE WIDE AT TIMES. BUFFALO COUNTY TORNADOES...TWO TORNADO TRACKS WERE CONFIRMED HERE...WITH THE STRONGEST ONE RATED EF1 AT MAXIMUM INTENSITY WITH WINDS BETWEEN 86-100 MPH. THE OTHER TORNADO WAS VERY BRIEF AND RATED EF0. THE STRONGER TORNADO INITIALLY TOUCHED DOWN AT 654 PM ABOUT NINE MILES NORTH AND TWO MILES WEST OF GIBBON. THIS TORNADO HAD A PATH LENGTH OF 1.5 MILES AND A MAXIMUM WIDTH OF 200 YARDS. AT LEAST TWO FARMS WERE DAMAGED. A QUONSET BUILDING WAS LEVELED NEAR POLE LINE ROAD AND MAPLE ROAD. A SECOND FARM WAS DAMAGED NEAR NAVAHO ROAD AND POLE LINE ROAD. IN THIS AREA...THERE ARE INDICATIONS OF A MULTIPLE VORTEX TORNADO. TWO HOUSES WERE LOCATED ON THIS FARMSTEAD...AND A WINDOW WAS BLOWN OUT OF ONE OF THE HOUSES...AND SHINGLE AND OUTBUILDING DAMAGE ALSO OCCURRED. ROUND HAY BALES WERE ROLLED APPROXIMATELY 50 YARDS.
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