EF1 Tornado — Westmoreland, Pennsylvania

2012-06-01 · near Oak Grove, Westmoreland, Pennsylvania

Event narrative

The National Weather Service office in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania confirmed an EF1 tornado touched down near Ligonier in Westmoreland county on June 1st. The tornado initially touched down a quarter mile east of the Borough of Ligonier and traveled northeast causing sporadic damage over a path of approximately 5 miles before lifting east of the Champion Lakes golf course.

The most intense damage occurred to a house on Robb Road, where the entire roof was blown off. The width of the tornado at this location was approximately 100 yards. Another mile or two north, along route 711 and Stanislaw Farms, 10-20 trees were snapped at the truck or uprooted. Three stationary vehicles were moved three to six feet.

Sporadic snapping and uprooting of trees was observed until reaching the Antiochian Village. There, 14 cabins sustained minor damage, mainly from snapped trees landing on roofs. Approximately 27 structures and 2 businesses experienced some level of damage. Insured damages were estimated to be near 3 million dollars.

Wider weather episode

A strong squall line associated with a cold front crossed through western Pennsylvania in the afternoon on the 1st. While most of the line remained sub-severe, a microburst over Neville Island caused the golf dome at Robert Morris University to collapse. In addition, an EF-1 tornado caused damage to parts of Ligonier Borough in Westmoreland county.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (40.2595, -79.2053)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 390625. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.