April 16, 2011 Severe Weather

Heat Wave Expands to the East Coast; Flash Flooding Likely in the Central Plains into the Midwest; Severe Thunderstorms in the Northeast

Dangerous, prolonged heat is ongoing in the Mid-South to Mid-Mississippi Valley and heat expands into the Northeast for a brief period today. Widely scattered instances of flash flooding due to heavy rains are forecast from northeast Kansas to much of Indiana. Scattered strong to severe thunderstorms are possible across parts of New England, northern Mid-Atlantic, and North Dakota. Read More >

LOCATION...1 MI E HUGHESVILLE VA TO LEESBURG VA DATE...APRIL 16 2011 ESTIMATED START TIME...712 PM EDT ESTIMATED END TIME...716 PM EDT MAXIMUM EF-SCALE RATING...EF-0 MAXIMUM WIND SPEED...70 MPH PATH WIDTH...50 YARDS PATH LENGTH...4.2 MILES BEGINNING LAT/LON...39.0979N / 77.6376W ENDING LAT/LON...39.1008N / 79.5616W * 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... RESULTS OF A DAMAGE SURVEY ALONG ROUTE 7...ROUTE 15 AND ADJACENT ROADWAYS SOUTH OF LEESBURG CONFIRMED A TRACK OF AN EF-0 TORNADO. DAMAGE CONSISTED MAINLY OF SPORADIC SNAPPED TREE LIMBS AND A FEW UPROOTED TREES IN THE NEIGHBORHOODS SURROUNDING WESTPARK GOLF COURSE. A ROAD SIGN POST WAS PULLED FROM THE GROUND AND SNAPPED ALONG CLUBHOUSE DRIVE. TOWARD THE START OF THE TRACK ALONG CANBY ROAD...SEVERAL TREES WERE UPROOTED AND LIMBS WERE SNAPPED. SHINGLES ALSO WERE REMOVED FROM A HOME IN THIS VICINITY. A NOAA EMPLOYEE PROVIDED AN EYEWITNESS ACCOUNT OF THE FUNNEL CLOUD FORMING JUST WEST OF CANBY ROAD. A PROPERLY-SITED HOME WEATHER STATION IN THIS LOCATION MEASURED AN UNOFFICIAL WIND GUST OF 65 MPH NEAR THE PATH OF THE DAMAGE. TREE DAMAGE AT SECOND AVENUE AND SOUTH KING STREET LIKELY WAS THE RESULT OF STRAIGHT-LINE THUNDERSTORM WIND. THE TORNADO MOVED EASTWARD AND CROSSED ROUTE 7 AT THE DULLES GREENWAY INTERCHANGE BEFORE DISSIPATING.