Edgewater and Annapolis Tornado
Tornado Damage Reported in Multiple Areas Along the South River
A storm survey conducted by the National Weather Service has concluded the tornado that hit the Edgewater on Thursday evening began as an EF-1, then weakened to an EF-O as it made its way along the South River, causing further damage in several Annapolis neighborhoods. The agency said the tornado was on the ground for just over 6 miles and about 10 minutes.
The National Weather Service report states, “tornadic damage began after the storm crossed Beard’s Creek off the South River. Trees were first downed near the intersection of Edgewater Drive and Park Avenue, just north of Lee Airport.
Tornadic damage began after the storm crossed Beard's Creek off the South River. Trees were first downed near the intersection of Edgewater Drive and Park Avenue, just north of Lee Airport. The tornado intensified as it moved east into central Edgewater, and reached its peak EF-1 strength in the area of the community bounded by Solomons Island Road (Route 2), Virginia Avenue, and Ridge Avenue. In this area damage was blown in all directions, siding was torn from the wall of one home, and some roof flashing was damaged on another. A commercial fence was blown down to the North. However, most of the damage was to trees. Most of the trees in this area had at least some large branches ripped from their upper sections. About 10 trees in this wooded community were entirely uprooted or snapped. Some of those trees fell into power lines, and at least 2 power poles were snapped because of this. A few homes and vehicles were damaged from falling trees and branches.
As the tornado crossed Solomons Island Road, it weakened to an EF-0 but continued to cause scattered tree damage with uprooted or snapped trees that were thrown generally left of the tornado track. Damage was noted on both sides of Warehouse Creek along Leeland Road and South River Landing Road.
The tornado continued across South river and into Hillsmere shores. A large tree was uprooted on the Key School soccer field with numerous large branches strung across the 100-yard field to the left of the track. One large branch caused damage to the protective netting and metal framing attached to a scoreboard situated on the west side of the soccer field. The damage path continued east across Hillsmere drive where a half dozen 30-40 foot tall pine trees where (sp) uprooted and criss-crossed in a northeast and southeast fashion.
Further northeast along Sunset Drive, scattered tree damage was observed with several large trees snapped. One large tree was uprooted and puncturing a roof resulting in water intrusion inside the home. Additional scattered tree limb damage was observed immediately to the east northeast with limbs noted thrown to the left of the track.
As the tornado tracked east, scattered tree limb damage was observed along Thomas Point Road and through the Arundel on the Bay community. A few large trees were observed to be snapped and uprooted along Cohasset Ave near Walnut Ave. Tree damage became minor near the shoreline of the bay between Linden Ave and Walnut Ave.
While wind damage from this storm was examined between Crofton, Davidsonville, and Riva, that tree damage was unidirectional, largely oriented from west east, and falling generally in the direction of the storm's motion.”
The Anne Arundel County Office of Emergency Management has opened the damage assessment portal, which is a tool for gathering data on the damages caused by the storm.
Damage assessment is a critical process that occurs after a severe incident or disaster. Preeti Emrick, the Director of the Office of Emergency Management, emphasizes that “data collection helps determine the severity of impact an incident or disaster has on individuals and communities which can help us prepare for future events.”
Residents and businesses can report any damage that was incurred as a result of the severe weather event by filling out the Anne Arundel County Damage Assessment Data Collection form (https://docs.google.com/…/1FAIpQLSd5N...) through September 14, 2020.