Tornado in Sussex Confirmed

(Smyrna) – A team of meteorologists from the National Weather Service (NWS) office in Mount Holly, New Jersey along with personnel from the Delaware Emergency Management Agency (DEMA), and Sussex County Emergency Operations conducted a site assessment this morning, where it was confirmed that a tornado touched down last evening in the Greenwood, Delaware area. There were no reports of injury, however some damage was reported.

A storage building at the Delaware Electric Cooperative site on U.S. Route 13 in Greenwood sustained some damage. Four structures on the northwest side of the intersection of Sugar Hill and St. Johnstown Roads were also damaged. Most of the damage affected farm buildings; however one nearby home had damage to its porch.

National Weather Service officials say that visual evidence, along with radar data received during the storm, helped to confirm their finding of a tornado that impacted a specific area of western Sussex County. The visual examination was enhanced by a DEMA aerial drone, which provided an overhead view of wooded areas that would have been difficult to examine from ground level.

NWS officials report other nearby damage was the result of straight-line winds, some in excess of 90 MPH. The National Weather Service will issue more specifics related to the storm at a later time.