NWS checking for tornado damage in central Virginia

Richmond Times-Dispatch
Published: April 21, 2008

Updated 10:00 a.m.

The National Weather Service is sending crews this morning to areas of central Virginia that were hit by violent storms yesterday to determine whether the damage was caused by a tornado or tornados.
The weather service’s Wakefield office said crews should finish their assessment of the damaged areas early this afternoon.

Parts of Hanover, King William and New Kent counties had damage that included roofs torn off houses, sheds destroyed and trees uprooted and twisted.

Click for a slideshow of the damage

Some people reported seeing funnel clouds.

The weather service issued tornado warnings during the height of yesterday afternoon’s storms, but there was no immediately confirmation of a tornado touchdown.

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Path of destruction in Hanover and New Kent counties
By JUAN ANTONIO LIZAMA AND LUZ LAZO
RICHMOND TIMES-DISPATCH

Hanover County authorities tracked a 4-mile path of destruction yesterday as severe thunderstorms passed through the region, damaging homes, downing trees and power lines and making driving hazardous.

Arthur Cauley, who lives on Possum Trot Drive in Hanover, looked up from a computer game to see the wind uprooting oak trees and splitting them in half.

“It was like a typhoon,“ he said. “I was standing there thinking, ‘I’m going to die.‘ I was thinking, ‘Do I go down on the floor?‘ I just stood there. I didn’t know what to do.“

The destructive winds lasted about 20 seconds. He and his mother, who was in the basement, were not hurt. But when Cauley came out, he realized that part of the roof of his house had been blown off. A shed had also been damaged and its contents strewn. Trees around his house were on the ground.

“It’s like a shipwreck,“ he said looking at the debris around his yard. “It’s a mess.“

Cauley said he and his mother were going to stay in a motel for the night.

A record 2.12 inches of rain was recorded for the date at Richmond International Airport yesterday. That tops the previous record of 1.56 inches, set in 1918.

More storms and thunderstorms are expected today, National Weather Service meteorologist Bryan Jackson said.

In New Kent County, Fire Chief Tommy Hicks said a house in the 1900 block of Quaker Road lost half of its roof during the storm and that several trees and power lines were downed. A man who was outdoors during the storm was injured, but he was treated at the scene, Hicks said.

King William County authorities also received reports of roof damage at a house at Acquinton Church and Dunluce roads. The damage there, however, was minimal and residents did not have to be evacuated, officials with the King William Sheriff’s Office said. Several trees also were knocked down in that area, authorities said.

Sgt. Thomas Cunningham of the Virginia State Police said authorities responded to 31 crashes in the Richmond region yesterday between 6 a.m. and 3 p.m., including nine in which people were injured. Most were weather-related, with drivers hydroplaning and striking trees or guardrails or overturning.

State trooper Gloria Moore was treated for minor injuries after a vehicle struck her police cruiser from behind at 11:23 a.m. while she was stopped to assist a crashed vehicle, Cunningham said. The crash tied up traffic on northbound Interstate 95 just south of Parham Road.

In eastern Hanover, at least three homes were severely damaged and about 40 trees were uprooted and twisted, said William E. Jones, battalion chief with Hanover Fire and EMS. One barn was destroyed and two others were damaged, along with a shed, a car and a tractor, he said.

Jones said there were no known injuries. He said two homeowners told him they saw funnel clouds.

Cauley rode in his truck from his home off Westwood Road with a chain saw to clear any trees from the private road to the main road.

He found neighbor Deborah Lindsey, who had returned from visiting her parents to find that trees were blocking the way to her house.

Trees around her house had been knocked down, too. One of them brushed one side of the house, but it didn’t look las if it did much damage.

“It’s trivial,“ she said, adding that it could have been worse. “It’s an inconvenience, but not a tragedy.“

The weather service had issued tornado warnings in the area, but it was unclear last night whether the damage in Hanover or at Quaker Road was the result of a tornado touching down. Weather-service officials said crews will assess the damage today.

Dominion Virginia Power last night reported more than 228 customers without power as of 10 p.m. in the Richmond and Tri-Cities region.

The weather service yesterday issued a flood advisory for parts of central and southeastern Virginia.

Hail the size of pingpong balls pummeled the Halifax County community of Cluster Springs, the weather service said.

Today, there is an 80 percent chance of rain, Jackson said. Temperatures are expected to remain in the lower to mid-60s and in the mid-50s at night. More showers are expected tomorrow morning, he said, and the sun probably will appear Wednesday.

Jackson said the heavier rain will take place south of Petersburg in the next few days and advised drivers to be extra careful.

The precipitation, however, brings major relief to the area, which according to a report from the U.S. Drought Monitor is under severe drought.
Contact Juan Antonio Lizama at (804) 649-6513 or .

Contact Luz Lazo at (804) 649-6058 or