An EF-1 Tornado struck Baltimore/Dundalk MD Friday May 16th, 2025.

Link to NWS GIS Damage Assessment Toolkit viewer with surveyed damage points and pictures.

Link to all storm damage reported May 16th, 2025.

Public Information Statement
National Weather Service Baltimore MD/Washington DC
1246 PM EDT Mon May 19 2025

..NWS Damage Survey for 05/16/25 Tornado Event... 

On the afternoon of Friday, May 16, 2025, a line of severe 
thunderstorms fueled by unseasonably warm and humid air, moved 
from eastern West Virginia to the Atlantic. A boundary from early 
morning storms provided extra wind shear across northeastern 
Maryland, which helped allow a tornado to form in Baltimore. 

.Baltimore City MD to Dundalk MD Tornado...

Rating:                 EF-1
Estimated Peak Wind:    110 mph
Path Length /statute/:  5.8 miles
Path Width /maximum/:   75 yards
Fatalities:             0
Injuries:               0

Start Date:             May 16 2025 
Start Time:             5:51 PM EDT
Start Location:         Baltimore, MD 
Start Lat/Lon:          39.2796 / -76.6096

End Date:               May 16 2025 
End Time:               6:01 PM EDT 
End Location:           Dundalk, MD
End Lat/Lon:            39.2624 / -76.5043

National Weather Service Baltimore/Washington Weather Forecast 
Office staff conducted a ground survey of storm damage that occurred 
in the City of Baltimore and southeastern Baltimore County on the 
evening of Friday, May 16, 2025.

During the mid-afternoon, a line of severe thunderstorms developed 
across eastern West Virginia and Western Maryland and quickly moved 
east into the early evening hours. Radar showed a significant 
increase in organization of this line of storms as it moved from 
Frederick and western Montgomery counties into Carroll and Howard 
Counties in Maryland. 
  
The first area of concentrated damage was located in Federal Hill 
Park in the City of Baltimore, where on that hill there were a few 
uprooted trees and snapped large branches in a linear path heading 
east towards the Patapsco River. This is where the tornado touched 
down at 5:51 PM EDT according to weather radar, and then moved 
across the river south of Fells Point towards the Canton area. A 
path of uprooted trees and snapped branches was then noted in Canton 
Waterfront Park, from the shoreline through the park.

After this, the tornado moved east towards The Shops at Canton 
Crossing. This is where the tornado punched a hole near the roofline 
of the west facing wall of a fitness facility. Once wind entered the 
building, it lifted off part of the east roof and blew it to the 
east-southeast. Areas east of the shopping mall consist of rail 
yards and industrial facilities, where no damage was noted by survey 
or reported. 

From Canton Crossing, the storm turned slightly right to the east-
southeast, towards Dundalk. The FAA’s Terminal Doppler Weather Radar 
at Thurgood Marshall Baltimore/Washington International Airport 
noted the strongest circulation being from this location onward 
through the end of the life cycle of the tornado. The tornado moved 
across Interstates 95 and 895 and then through the Holabird 
Industrial Park, where it did some significant damage to several 
warehouses. There was also one eyewitness report of seeing the swirl 
of the tornado while at work during this time. Much of the warehouse 
damage was due to the wind gaining access into the structures 
through large garage or bay doors, which then caused uplift and 
removal of large sections of roofing as well as some damage to 
walls. One warehouse had a large portion of its structural metal and 
wood awning damaged. While much of the damage was blown from west to 
east, convergent tree damage was noted, and at an Amazon warehouse 
on Holabird Avenue some damage was blown to the north. Two 18-wheel 
tractor-trailer trucks were blown over at the Amazon facility.

The tornado then moved through northern portions of the Dundalk 
Historic District, causing significant roof and siding damage to 
several homes and apartments. One of the more significant damage 
points in this area was a large portion of roofing that was removed 
from a row of apartments and thrown towards the east-southeast into 
the next row of apartments. 

The tornado then continued towards the east-southeast towards 
Merritt Blvd. The neighborhood just west of Merritt Blvd. received 
extensive damage, both structurally and to trees. Many of the trees 
had their middle and upper branches snapped off. The most 
significant damage in this neighborhood was to a home’s roof that 
was lofted from the west side of Sunberry Rd. onto Merritt Blvd. The 
homeowner noted that he witnessed debris being carried through the 
air right before his roof was removed. Beyond this point, the 
tornado continued briefly towards the east-southeast towards 
Stansbury Park. There was some damage in the neighborhood east of 
Merritt Blvd. that remained consistent with a tornado, particularly 
a wooden utility pole that had been bent over, but not snapped. 
Damage beyond this point became uni-directional, providing evidence 
that the tornado likely lifted around Stansbury Park at 6:01 PM EDT, 
as the rear-flank downdraft winds undercut the circulation leading 
to straight-line wind damage towards the east. 

The National Weather Service Baltimore/Washington Weather Forecast 
Office thanks the Baltimore County Office of Homeland Security and 
Emergency Management, and the Baltimore City Office of Emergency 
Management for their assistance in conducting and providing 
information for this storm survey.


EF Scale: The Enhanced Fujita Scale classifies tornadoes into the
following categories:

EF0.........65 to 85 mph
EF1.........86 to 110 mph
EF2.........111 to 135 mph
EF3.........136 to 165 mph
EF4.........166 to 200 mph
EF5.........>200 mph