Chris Gloninger

Record Warmth Ends in River Flooding and Confirmed Tornado

Our record breaking warmth ended with powerful thunderstorms Saturday night. Shortly after 6:30 p.m. strong thunderstorms moved out of Columbia County in New York and into southern Berkshire County in Massachusetts. An hour later that storm caused significant damage across Franklin and northern Hampshire counties. There is evidence that suggests the thunderstorm had strong rotation on radar and a possible debris signature as it passed through Conway, Massachusetts. As the storm moved into southern New Hampshire it took on a bowing structure (high wind threat) and produced damage in Hancock and Hillsborough.

Survey teams have been in north-central Massachusetts surveying the damage. In the small municipality of Conway, officials say several homes were either damaged or destroyed and thousands of trees were snapped or uprooted. 

0226 Weather Blog Tornado Confirmation

As of now, 4:15 p.m. on Sunday, 277 customers were without power, which is approximately 31% of Conway.

0226 Weather Blog Eversource
Eversource MA

Another issue, especially up north – ice jams. The Pemigewasset River in Holderness experienced some minor flooding. An ice jam several miles long between Plymouth and Ashland blocked the flow of the river.

0226 Weather Blog Ice Jam
Getty Images

As of this post, the river has crested, but not before submerging dozens of cars near the Holderness section of Plymouth State University. As temperatures fluctuate over the next week, the threat for ice jams continues. If you live near an ice covered river in New Hampshire, Vermont or Maine – stay vigilant!

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