EF2 Tornado — Luzerne, Pennsylvania

2018-06-13 · near Boulevard Manor, Luzerne, Pennsylvania

Event narrative

A severe thunderstorm moved across Luzerne County between 930 and

1030 pm on Wednesday June 13 2018, producing an EF2 tornado in

Wilkes-Barre Township around 1000 pm. The tornado touched down

at Mundy Street and Highland Park Boulevard near the Wyoming

Valley Mall, then traveled across Interstate 81 and up into the woods

on Wilkes-Barre Mountain. Tornado damage continued on a broken

path through the State Game Lands before dissipating near

Llewelyn Corners and Interstate 476. Numerous roofs were destroyed and

windows blown out throughout the shopping center. Some structures

were sheared off near their foundation. Power poles were snapped

with numerous lines down. Several signs were destroyed, and

debris was scattered throughout the region. One piece of sign was

found approximately 7 miles from the mall area. A total of 23 business were damaged, with some suffering major damage. Maximum estimated winds were at 130 mph.

Wider weather episode

A strong area of low pressure moved from northern Ontario to the Saint Lawrence Valley from the day of the 13th into the evening. This low pressure system pushed a cold front into northeast Pennsylvania during the evening of the 13th. This front triggered severe thunderstorms which spawned two EF2 tornadoes, one in Bradford County and the other Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. The E2 tornados knocked down numerous trees, destroyed several homes and damaged up to 24 businesses. There were no deaths and 6 minor injuries.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (41.2436, -75.8467)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 768910. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.