MATTAPOISETT, Mass. — The town of Mattapoisett was struck by an EF-1 tornado on Tuesday morning as a line of strong storms hammered the region with damaging wind gusts, torrential rain, and lightning strikes.
“A survey team confirmed a tornado in Mattapoisett around 11:30 a.m.,” the National Weather Service said in a tweet. “The survey team is still investigating the damage, and a more detailed statement on EF-rating, start & end times will be sent later today upon damage survey completion.”
Wind speeds are estimated to have hit 95 miles per hour while the tornado stayed on the ground for three minutes, picking up tree limbs and debris as it carved a nearly mile-long path through the town.
The tornado is estimated to have touched down at the intersection of Achusnet Street and Hereford Hill Road around 11:20 a.m., growing around 300 yards wide.
The NWS reports several large pines and Maple Trees were uprooted by the gusting winds, and some pines were snapped in half between 10 and 20 yards from their base.
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“Very loud, very clear,” said Cheryl Mcguire of Mattapoisett.
Mcguire was working at home on Tinkham Lane. The pounding rain is what she noticed first, but then came a deafening roar.
“It sounded like a freight train was coming and I said ‘uh oh,’” she said.
Then she saw it. “I looked out the window and there was like a white cloud spinning,” said Mcguire.
She took her two dogs and ran for the basement as the twister ripped up more than a dozen big trees in her front yard.
“The trees were cracking and snapping. I have some big trees in my yard but they’re gone. You could hear them hitting the ground,” said Mcguire.
Video taken in the area of El Dorado Road, Hereford Hill Road, and Stoney Hill showed severe tree damage, branches littering the roadways, and damage to cars and homes.
Most of the damage was found along El Dorado Road by Graneda Court, the NWS says.
The line of storms led to multiple tornado warnings on Tuesday morning, including one with immense rotation in Bristol and Plymouth counties that ultimately lead to a tornado touchdown.
[Confirmed Tornado in Mattapoisett] A survey team has confirmed a tornado in Mattapoisett, MA around 1130 AM. The survey team is still investigating damage, and a more detailed statement on EF-rating, start & end times will be sent later today upon damage survey completion.
— NWS Boston (@NWSBoston) August 8, 2023
No one was injured by the
This comes after a confirmed tornado touched down along the Foxboro/Easton line in late July. Just days earlier, a tornado touched down in Dublin, New Hampshire, with maximum winds of 90-95 mph.
In mid-July, North Brookfield was also hit by a tornado that caused a quick burst of damage before dissipating.
“It’s just devastating to be honest. We are fortunate we cleared trees and got the bad ones out. It’s unimaginable to think it would happen here,” said Rochelle Correia, who lives two doors down the street from Mcguire.
Across town, residents were frightened as the tornado blew through Mattapoisett.
“I’m looking out my back windows as I’m going to my basement and I see things flying like really, really windy like scary windy,” said Marcia DuPont of Mattapoisett.
Mcguire says given the damage to all the trees she believes her late husband was watching over the neighborhood.
“Yeah, he passed away a year ago and I think he was looking down on us in the neighborhood and taking care of us. That’s what I like to think anyway because we were very lucky,” said Mcguire.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
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