UPPER SAUCON TWP, Pa. – The National Weather Service blamed dozens of split and uprooted trees in the Center Valley and Saucon Valley areas Monday night on straight-line winds and not tornadoes.
That was the assessment of a survey team that visited the Lehigh Valley on Tuesday. The findings were released Wednesday night as some communities remained in the dark and continued picking up the pieces from 48 hours earlier.
Earlier Wednesday night, the weather service confirmed an EF-1 tornado touched down in the Midway Manor neighborhood of Allentown and crossed briefly into Bethlehem, near Union Boulevard.
- The National Weather Service said straight-line winds were to blame for storm damage in the Afton Village community of Center Valley and near Route 378 in Upper and Lower Saucon townships
- The straight-line winds ranged from 80 to 100 mph
- A tornado was confirmed in the Midway Manor neighborhood in Allentown
Peak winds were 80 to 90 mph off Lanark Road near the Afton Village neighborhood of Upper Saucon, the weather service said. Several trees were downed, particularly along Calvert Place.
Fallen trees dotted the landscape of lawns throughout Afton Village. Several leaned against the side of a two-story home. One smashed a corner window. Branches littered many properties.
In the Saucon Valley area, peak winds hit 90 to 100 mph around Saucon Valley Country Club and uprooted or snapped trees at their trunk, according to the weather service.
That, too, was determined to be straight-line winds and not a twister.
Saucon Valley Road was shut down east of Route 378 in Upper Saucon.
Damage continued into Lower Saucon, where uprooted and damaged trees were found along Bingen Road.
The worst of it lasted about a minute near Lanark Road along a more than half-mile path that measured 600 yards wide, the weather service said.
The Saucon Valley burst of wind lasted longer — about two minutes stretching for 1.63 miles and nearly a mile wide.
Earlier Wednesday, Lower Saucon Township Manager Mark Hudson said all township roads were finally open.
"Our crews are still out fine tuning everything," he said. "We have the roads open but still have to get out to places and do a cleanup. We'll be doing that through (Thursday)."
Damage across the region
In addition to the Lehigh Valley, survey teams fanned out across the Mid-Atlantic region.
A damage survey in Bethlehem Township, New Jersey, confirmed widespread wind damage in several locations.
Peak winds in those areas reached 85 to 95 mph, with a path width of 200 yards and a length of a half-mile. The weather service confirmed an EF-0 tornado with peak winds at 85 mph did touch down in Holland Township, in Hunterdon County, N.J.
In the Lakewood Farm area of Hockessin, Delaware, winds topped out around 110 mph. It snapped 15 to 20 trees and uprooted at least 10 large trees, the weather service said.
