Harford Co. Tornado Destroys Barn, Damages Home
DARLINGTON, Md. (WJZ) -- A tornado touches down in Darlington, Harford County. The National Weather Service confirms that a tornado hit a rural area of the county, destroying property and uprooting trees.
Pat Warren reports--the residents there didn't know what hit them.
In seconds, a tornado tore across a farm area, leaving a path of destruction 100 yards wide and less than a mile long. Jose Macias lives a short distance from the strike zone.
"Other than thunder, I didn't think that it was a tornado. But you know, it's only 400 feet from my house where it happened and I didn't hear nothing at all," he said.
"We didn't receive any calls," Bob Thomas of Harford County Emergency Services said. "None from neighbors or the residents in that community."
But the damage is evident. A horse barn, a shed and a corn field flattened. And serious damage to at least one home.
The Harford County Department of Emergency Services says, like Jose Macias, no one seemed to think it was any more than a bad storm.
Macias noticed the damage at daylight.
"When I woke up, came out here and I noticed the roof of the shed where we keep the horses was gone," he said.
Thomas says that in reviewing the data and looking at the scene, the tornado that touched down was only on the ground for less than one minute and covered just under one mile in total distance.
"This is our second or third tornado incident here in the county in the past 12 months," said Thomas. "And we've been having more and more severe weather."
Macias says it is fortunate no one was hurt.
"Nobody. No horses, no people. Everything is fine so far other than just material," he said.
Safety officials say to consider this a wake up call.
If this were your home and a tornado hit, would you know what to do? The time to map out a family disaster plan is now.
Damage from the tornado is estimated at $100,000.
