DAUPHIN COUNTY, Pa. — The National Weather Service has performed a damage survey in Dauphin County and determined a tornado touched down on Friday morning.
The tornado was rated an EF1 with estimated peak wind speeds of 105 mph. The tornado reportedly touched down at 4:33 a.m. and ended at 4:40 a.m.
According to the NWS, the tornado's path stretched 3.48 miles and was a width of 300 yards. It began along Gibson Avenue where it blew in a set of overhead doors at a warehouse on the coroner of Bobali Drive. As the tornado moved north, it produced sporadic tree damage which caused significant damage to the roof of Brethren in Christ Church on Derry Street.
Some of the most significant damage from the tornado occurred in Bellevue Park where a few dozen trees were uprooted or snapped off. A couple of houses reportedly sustained significant roof and structural damage as a result of trees falling on them in the area of Midland, Bellevue and Pentwater Roads.
Kent Hurst, a resident of Bellevue Park, said, "I was looking out the window and then the roof came down on me. I was to the side buried by wood and insulation and other debris." Hurst and his family escaped with minor injuries, but he says their house is now unlivable.
Another resident, Dan Deibler said the neighborhood's landscape has been changed forever, stating, "When you look from my house you would look and see treetops. Well now you look out and you see houses that you couldn’t see before because all those treetops have been wiped out.”
In an area known for its variety of trees residents are stunned by the massive impact of the tornado, saying the damage isn't just to their property. “Bellevue Park has taken an enormous hit…One of the key things that we are known for is our forest and a lot of that is gone now, and this is going to have generational impacts," said Hurst.
Central Pennsylvania was impacted by the remnants of Tropical Storm Debby, and Adams, Cumberland, Dauphin, Lancaster, Lebanon, Perry and York Counties were under a tornado watch from around 6:30 a.m. until 2:00 p.m.
As storms with heavy winds and rain hit the area, many trees were uprooted and several buildings sustained damage.