Thunderstorm Wind — Onondaga, New York

1999-07-03 · near Syracuse, Onondaga, New York

Event narrative

Numerous tents and booths were damaged or blown down at the county Fairgrounds during the "Taste of Syracuse" festival.

Wider weather episode

An upper level disturbance raced east from the Great Lakes during the afternoon and interacted with a very hot and humid airmass already sweltering over central New York. Clusters and lines of thunderstorms developed during the early evening over western New York and pushed into the Finger Lakes and then through the Western Catskills during the mid to late evening hours. These thunderstorms packed strong wind gusts in excess of 60 mph as they raced across the area uprooting trees, damaging homes and knocking out power in many areas. These thunderstorms interrupted several summertime activities and scattered fairgoers in both Cayuga and Onondaga counties. Numerous tents and booths were blown down at the "Taste of Syracuse" festival in the city of Syracuse. Eleven people sustained minor injuries from flying debris at this location. Several boats were overturned in Owasco Lake, and at approximately 8:30 pm a 4 year old girl drowned underneath a capsized pontoon boat which was located on Otisco Lake in Onondaga county.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (43.0700, -76.1700)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 5712760. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.