Strong Wind — Somerset, Pennsylvania

2024-11-20 · Somerset, Pennsylvania

Event narrative

Gusty winds, estimated near 45 mph, knocked down a tree onto Cumberland Highway near the intersection of Palo Alto Road in Southampton Township. Rainfall close to sunset in an area with no streetlights led to a vehicle running into the tree, killing the driver of the vehicle. There were no other fatalities or injuries from this incident.

Wider weather episode

An approaching area of surface low pressure with an associated warm and cold front allowed for some areas of instability across southern portions of the Laurel Highlands and south-central Pennsylvania during the late afternoon and evening hours of November 20, 2024. This allowed for gusty showers and an occasional thunderstorm that produced isolated instances of tree and wire damage across Cambria County. Winds ahead of and behind the cold front allowed for trees and wires to fall in portions of Somerset County, where one tree fell on a roadway and a driver drove into a tree, resulting in a fatality.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1218436. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.