FRANKFORD, Del. - A survey team from the National Weather Service in Mount Holly, N.J. assigned an EF-0 rating to the June 30 Frankford tornado in its first report Wednesday afternoon.
Data from the survey report on the June 30 Frankford tornado.
The tornado touched down at 1:16 p.m. Monday, carving a one-half mile path in a wooded area along Omar Rd. just east of Frankford. At its peak, the tornado was 100 yards wide.
No one was reported hurt in the storm.
In the report, the survey team observed large tree limbs were broken along and near Omar Rd. The tornado could have caused more tree damage as it crossed a wooded area that the survey team could not access. No structural damage was noted in the report.
Photo: Zachary Windsor
The tornado occurred during a period where a malfunction in the Dover radar (KDOX) caused unusable velocity data. Forecasters had to rely on more distant radar sites such as at Fort Dix, N.J. (KDIX) and Sterling, Va. (KLWX) to analyze Monday's thunderstorms.
Velocity data is one of the primary tools meteorologists use to find rotations in thunderstorms that indicate tornado development.
EF-0 is the weakest tornado rating on the Enhanced Fujita Scale, with winds ranging from 65 to 85 mph. The survey reported 65 mph winds in Monday's tornado. Survey teams analyze damage to estimate a tornado's winds.
Sussex County Emergency Management assisted the NWS in its survey.
The report is preliminary and may be updated in the future.