by Union Daily Times
Storm clouds look as though they are forming a funnel in this photo taken overlooking Lockhart Schools toward Chester Wednesday afternoon. The storm system that passed through Union County Wednesday spawned a short-lived tornado that touched down in the Neals Shoals Road area damaging two buildings and felling a number of trees. Photo submitted
slideshowThe storm system that brought devastation and death to York County Wednesday afternoon also generated a tornado that touched down briefly in Union County.
Severe thunderstorms formed ahead of a cold front Wednesday and moved through the Upstate including Union County which was placed under a tornado watch at 1:36 p.m. At 4:36 p.m., the watch became a warning which remained in effect until 5:15 p.m. by which time a second tornado warning covering an area that included the eastern part of the county had been issued. That warning was issued at 5:05 p.m. and expired at 5:45 p.m. and it was during that time that the tornado was generated and touched down in the county.
?We?ve confirmed that the damage in the eastern part of Union C0unty was caused by a tornado,? Chris Horne, meteorologist with the National Weather Service (NWS) in Greer, said Friday. ?It touched down six miles east of Union along Neal Shoals Road.?
Horne said a NWS survey team determined the tornado was an EF0 on the Enhanced Fujita Scale which measures tornadoes based on the speed of the winds they generate. The wind speed of an EF0 is 65-85 mph and Horne said the tornado that touched down in Union County had an estimated wind speed of 75 mph. The tornado traveled approximately 200 yards on the ground before it dissipated.
Though the tornado was weak, Horne said it still snapped several large trees in a pasture, damaged some metal roofing on a barn and tore some shingles off a house.
In addition to the damage reported to the NWS, the Union County Communications Department reported that Wednesday?s storms also toppled trees onto Lockhart Highway, the River Road and Neal Shoals Road. The falling trees on the Neal Shoals Road also pulled down power lines.
Broad River Electric reported that seven homes on its system in Union County lost power due to the storm.
The storm system that generated the EF0 tornado in Union County also produced an EF2 tornado in York that killed three people and injured several others as well as causing severe property damage. Horne said the wind speed of an EF2 tornado ranges from 111-135 mph and that the tornado in York generated a wind speed of 135 mph.
Reach Charles Warner at 864-427-1234, ext. 15, or at cwarner@heartlandpublications.com.
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