Thunderstorm Wind in Erie County, New York

Large tree downed at intersection of West Avenue and Bird Avenue.

A strong upper-level trough and mesoscale convective vortex (MCV) crossed western and central New York during the afternoon on July 15, 2024. Timing with the MCV corresponded with favorable daytime heating and partly to mostly sunny skies ahead of the system. This resulted in more than 2,000 J/kg of CAPE across much of the region south & southeast of Lake Ontario. Combined with the dynamic nature and the shear associated with the MCV itself, severe thunderstorms developed and moved across the area.

For the Buffalo forecast area, most of the damage was confined to western New York and the northern Finger Lakes. The thunderstorms resulted in two confirmed tornadoes, flash flooding, tennis ball sized hail (2.5) and numerous trees and wires downed.