Thunderstorm Wind — Hampden, Massachusetts

2011-07-26 · near Wilbraham, Hampden, Massachusetts

Event narrative

A microburst occurred near Wilbraham resulting in significant tree damage. Hundreds of trees were downed, some across roads, others into buildings. Ten to twenty roads or portions of roads were closed at any one time, thanks to trees and power lines down across them. The greatest concentration of wind damage was located in Wilbraham along an approximately 2 mile long path that extended from just north of Springfield Street across the Country Club of Wilbraham to just beyond Tinkham Road. Based on tree damage, the strongest winds were estimated to have been between 90 and 100 mph and occurred over a path that averaged 250 yards extending to 600 yards at its widest point along Springfield Road. Outside of this path, wind damage was less significant but still occurred for a half a mile on either side of the strongest wind core.

Wider weather episode

A strong cold front moved across Southern New England, providing enough lift for showers and thunderstorms to develop. A large area of instability ahead of the front was enough for these storms to become severe, producing large hail and damaging winds.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (42.1300, -72.4400)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 336917. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.