One Storm Causes Tornado, Macroburst & Microburst in Two New York Counties
One storm caused three separate weather events - a tornado, a macroburst, and a microburst all touched down in two different areas of New York, leaving behind damage to trees, homes, cars, and power lines.
Tornado Touches Down
The National Weather Service out of Albany confirmed a tornado touched down in Ulster County on Wednesday, July 13, at 8:49 PM. The storm left thousands without power and forced Governor Kathy Hochul to declare a state of emergency.
The EF-1 tornado with 90 mph winds touched down 2 miles west of Kingston, New York.
A tornado touched down near Hurley Avenue (Route 29) between Davis Street and Hillside Drive. The tornado moved southeast to just west of the NY State Thruway crossing a subdivision where it uprooted and snapped trees, displaced a car canopy, and removed some shingles from a house. Many homes were damaged by fallen trees.
Macroburst
9 miles west of Kingston, New York a macroburst was confirmed with 90 mph winds at 8:37 PM.
Wide swaths of downed trees were noted along Lapla Road (and connecting roads) across the hill the road crosses. At least 2 trees fell on cars along Lapla Road. Wind damage consisting of broken snapped and uprooted trees continued southeast across U.S. Route 209.
Microburst in Onondaga County
The National Weather Service out of Binghamton confirmed another weather event a little closer to home. The storm that caused damage in the Hudson Valley also led to a significant microburst just NW of Marcellus between 5: 45 PM and 5:50 PM.
Large healthy trees near the center of the microburst were snapped along with damage to siding and gutters on a couple of houses indicating winds near 90 mph. A barn on the corner of Stump Road and Townline Road had some metal roof sheeting torn off. A structure was destroyed by a fallen tree near the eastern edge of the microburst.
Microburst vs Macroburst
A microburst is a small downburst with an outflow less than 2½ miles in horizontal diameter and lasts for only 2-5 minutes. Despite their small size, microbursts can produce destructive winds up to 168 mph.
A macroburst is larger than a microburst with a horizontal extent of more than 2½ miles in diameter. Also, a macroburst is not quite as strong as a microburst but still can produce winds as high as 130 mph. Damaging winds generally last longer, from 5 to 20 minutes, and produce tornado-like damage up to an EF-3 scale.