000 NOUS41 KBOX 282249 CCA PNSBOX CTZ002>004-MAZ002>024-026-NHZ011-012-015-RIZ001>008-291500- PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAUNTON MA 649 PM EDT MON MAY 28 2007 ...A WEAK TYPE OF TORNADO KNOWN COLLOQUIALLY AS A LANDSPOUT TOUCHED DOWN IN SOMERS CONNECTICUT THIS AFTERNOON... AT APPROXIMATELY 1 PM EDT THIS AFTERNOON...A LANDSPOUT OCCURRED OVER SOMERS CONNECTICUT...CAUSING DAMAGE TO A LARGE COMMERCIAL BARN. THIS OCCURRED AT THE INTERSECTION OF HALL HILL ROAD AND BRACE ROAD. NO INJURIES WERE REPORTED. A VOLUNTEER AMATEUR RADIO COORDINATOR FROM THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE/S SKYWARN PROGRAM...WITH MANY YEARS EXPERIENCE AT DAMAGE ASSESSMENT...WAS ABLE TO DETAIL THE DAMAGE FOR US. BASED ON HIS DESCRIPTION AND PHOTOS SENT TO US...AS WELL AS VIDEO IMAGERY FROM A LOCAL TELEVISION STATION...THIS WILL BE CALLED AN EF0 ON THE NEW ENHANCED FUJITA SCALE. WIND SPEEDS WERE APPROXIMATELY 70 MPH. THE PATH LENGTH WAS 650 FEET AND PATH WIDTH WAS 60 FEET. WIND SPEEDS IN THE EF0 SCALE RANGE FROM 65 TO 85 MPH. DURATION WAS A MINUTE OR LESS. TECHINCALLY IT IS CALLED A TORNADO BECAUSE IT IS A ROTATING COLUMN OF AIR THAT IS IN CONTACT WITH BOTH THE GROUND AND A CUMULIFORM CONVECTIVE CLOUD. THE MIDDLE PORTION OF THE ROOF OF THE BARN WAS LIFTED UPWARD ACCORDING TO EYEWITNESSES...THEN PEELED OFF. ACCORDING TO A STRUCTURAL ENGINEER AT THE SCENE...THE METAL BRACES ATTACHED TO THE ROOF ARE RATED AT BEING ABLE TO WITHSTAND 95 MPH WINDS...BUT THEY REMAINED WELL INTACT. DEBRIS COMPRISED MAINLY OF PIECES OF THE TIN ROOF AND FOAMY INSULATION FROM INSIDE THE BUILDING WAS LIFTED UP AND CARRIED DOWNWIND IN A RELATIVELY NARROW PATH. A FEW WOODEN HURDLES ALONG A HORSE EXERCISING TRACK WERE TIPPED OVER IN A CONVERGING PATTERN. MOST IMPORTANTLY...THERE WERE FOUR EYEWITNESSES AT THE SCENE WHO SAW DIRT SWIRLING UPWARD INTO THE AIR. THAT IS WHEN THE FUNNEL BECAME VISIBLE TO THEM. LANDSPOUTS FORM DURING THE GROWTH STAGE OF CONVECTIVE CLOUDS AND OCCUR IN RELATIVELY DRIER ATMOSPHERES. TODAY...A LINE OF CUMULUS CLOUDS ALONG A COLD FRONT WAS VISIBLE ON SATELLITE IMAGERY AT THE TIME...BUT THAT WAS THE ONLY MARKER FOR THIS EVENT. THERE WAS NO PRECIPITATION ON RADAR AT THE TIME. IN ORDER FOR A LANDSPOUT TO FORM...THERE HAS TO BE JUST THE RIGHT AMOUNT OF ROTATION IN THE BOUNDARY LAYER JUST ABOVE THE SURFACE...THE RIGHT AMOUNT OF LOW-LEVEL INSTABILITY...AND ADDED CONVERGENCE SUCH AS WHAT THE COLD FRONT PROVIDED. NOT ALL LANDSPOUTS ARE VISIBLE...AND MANY ARE SIGHTED AS DEBRIS SWIRLING AT THE SURFACE BEFORE EVENTUALLY FILLING IN WITH DEBRIS. A VERY SIMILAR EVENT TO THIS OCCURRED ON AUGUST 16 2000 IN ELLINGTON CONNECTICUT. A F1 TORNADO TOUCHED DOWN AND ACTUALLY LIFTED UP SMALL HORSE TRAILERS AND DRAGGED THEM IN CIRCULAR PATHS. THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE THANKS OUR AMATEUR RADIO PARTNER AS WELL AS THOSE AT THE SCENE WHO SPOKE WITH HIM. $$ FIELD 000 NWUS51 KBOX 282235 LSRBOX PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAUNTON MA 635 PM EDT MON MAY 28 2007 ..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON... ..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE.... ..REMARKS.. 0100 PM TORNADO SOMERS 41.98N 72.45W 05/28/2007 TOLLAND CT FIRE DEPT/RESCUE A LANDSPOUT...TECHNICALLY A TORNADO BECAUSE IT WAS A ROTATING COLUMN OF AIR IN CONTACT WITH BOTH THE GROUND AND A CUMULIFORM CLOUD...CAUSED DAMAGE TO A COMMERCIAL BARN AT THE INTERSECTION OF HALL HILL ROAD AND BRACE ROAD. NO INJURIES WERE REPORTED. THE RATING IS EF0 ON THE NEW ENHANCED FUJITA SCALE...WITH WINDS OF 70 MPH. PATH LENGTH 650 FT..PATH WIDTH 60 FEET. DURATION 1 MIN OR LESS. NO PRECIPITATION ON RADAR. 4 PEOPLE SAW DEBRIS FUNNEL. && $$ GFIELD