A tornado touched down Monday afternoon in Montgomery County, tearing down trees, limbs and wires, damaging houses and sending two people to a hospital, according to authorities.
The small tornado struck in the Northwood Park neighborhood of Silver Spring as a long line of intense storms sped northeast across the region, bringing strong winds and heavy rain. The National Weather Service confirmed the twister Monday night.
With maximum winds estimated at 70 mph, the tornado tracked through a tree-lined residential neighborhood for about 1,000 feet along a path as wide as 100 feet.
Damage in the area around Dennis and Edgewood Avenues was “pretty significant,” said Pete Piringer, spokesman for the county fire and rescue service. At least one home was left uninhabitable, he said.
The twister touchdown came as the line of storms brought wind gusts of 40 and 50 mph in many places, knocking down trees and cutting power across the area.
At one point, at least 34,000 homes and businesses were without power in the immediate metropolitan area. About 14,000 were in Fairfax County.
by Martin Weil and Justin Wm. Moyer
June 19, 2017
