Weather History for July 15

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Western New York Weather History

JULY 15

1970

A tornado was observed at Bemus Point in Chautauqua county where it uprooted trees and tore down some power lines.

1995

A complex of severe thunderstorms raced across the area before sunrise on the 15th. Thunderstorm winds caused widespread damage, downing trees and wires. Hardest hit were the counties of Jefferson and Lewis where states of emergency were declared. Several mobile homes were destroyed. In some cases, these structures were tossed hundreds of feel and debris was scattered over a half mile away. Permanent structures suffered considerable roof damage. Thousands of trees were felled by the violent storms. Power was knocked out in all of Jefferson and Lewis counties for at least twelve hours, and in some cases, for days. The North Country was declared a disaster area by the Governor of New York State.

Across the Finger Lakes, the thunderstorm winds downed trees and power lines. Wind damage was reported in Avon, Caledonia, Bristol, Fair Haven and Newark.

1996

A small tornado touched down in Victor in Ontario county during the early afternoon. The tornado first touched down off Proximity Lane, which is adjacent to a golf course. It ended along route 96 near Atwal Drive. The greatest structural damage was to the roof of a barn located on Brace Road. The roof was lifted from the barn and tossed into an adjacent home. In addition, an electric transformer estimated to weigh over 3000 pounds was pushed off its cement pad and toppled over.

In Oswego county, a weak tornado touched down in the town of Granby. The storm destroyed a mobile home on Phinney Road. There were three people in the trailer at the time. All three suffered minor injuries.

1997

Strong thunderstorms crossed the region during the afternoon hours. The thunderstorm winds downed trees and power lines. Scattered power outages lasting several hours were reported. In Henrietta, a dozen utility poles were downed by the thunderstorm winds leaving nearly 24000 customers in the Rochester area without power for several hours. A wind gust of 71 mph was recorded in Rochester. The thunderstorms dropped several inches of rain over the western southern tier resulting in flooded roads and basements in Jamestown and Ellicottiville. Localized poor drainage flooding was reported in the other affected areas also. Nickel-sized haill fell in Ellicottville.

1998

Thunderstorms developed across the western southern tier during the afternoon hours. In addition to producing large hail, the storms produced damaging winds which downed trees and tree limbs. In Gowanda, an unoccupied automobile was damaged by a falling tree. Three-quarter inch hail fell in Hartfield, Chautauqua county.