Thumbnail photo credit: Amy and Daniel Somers
The event took place last Thursday evening. Under the amazed gaze of several witnesses, some of whom were able to capture the phenomenon in images, a waterspout touched down.
DRAMATIC video of a resident narrowly escaping the Smith Island tornado, while a house next door takes a direct hit. (language warning). Video from Kathy Taylor-Donaway. Last loop is in slow motion #mdwx #smithislandmd pic.twitter.com/R2da1K5VRu
DRAMATIC video of a resident narrowly escaping the Smith Island tornado, while a house next door takes a direct hit. (language warning). Video from Kathy Taylor-Donaway.
Last loop is in slow motion Rich Wirdzek on Twitter: “DRAMATIC video of a resident narrowly escaping the Smith Island tornado, while a house next door takes a direct hit. (language warning). Video from Kathy Taylor-Donaway. Last loop is in slow motion #mdwx #smithislandmd pic.twitter.com/R2da1K5VRu / Twitter” Rich Wirdzek on Twitter: “DRAMATIC video of a resident narrowly escaping the Smith Island tornado, while a house next door takes a direct hit. (language warning). Video from Kathy Taylor-Donaway. Last loop is in slow motion #mdwx #smithislandmd pic.twitter.com/R2da1K5VRu / Twitter” Rich Wirdzek on Twitter: “DRAMATIC video of a resident narrowly escaping the Smith Island tornado, while a house next door takes a direct hit. (language warning). Video from Kathy Taylor-Donaway. Last loop is in slow motion #mdwx #smithislandmd pic.twitter.com/R2da1K5VRu / Twitter”
— Rich Wirdzek (@RichWirdzekWx) Rich Wirdzek on Twitter: “DRAMATIC video of a resident narrowly escaping the Smith Island tornado, while a house next door takes a direct hit. (language warning). Video from Kathy Taylor-Donaway. Last loop is in slow motion #mdwx #smithislandmd pic.twitter.com/R2da1K5VRu / Twitter”
Significant damage
It continued its course on the island, damaging nearby buildings. In particular, roofs were torn off, at least one house was demolished and trees also paid the price for the phenomenon. According to a resident, boats were also thrown. The waterspout also challenged the power grid as numerous power outages were reported. Authorities were still assessing the extent of the damage Friday morning.
Severe weather aftermath
The waterspout formed off Smith Island, home to about 260 islanders, early Thursday evening. The coasts of Maryland were then hit by violent storms, providing the ideal context for the creation of such a phenomenon. The National Weather Service had even indicated, earlier in the day, that gusts of more than 70 km / h and hail were possible for this region.
What is a waterspout?
It exists two types of waterspouts : those emanating from cumulus clouds and those called tornado type. Waterspouts of the first category infrequently reach the shore and dissipate very quickly, when they do.
On the other hand, tornado-type waterspouts display the same characteristics as terrestrial tornadoes. As a result, they can cause enormous damage, as was the case on Smith Island.