The National Weather Service has preliminarily confirmed that a low-grade tornado occurred on Sunday in east-central Centre County.
An EF1 tornado touched down at 3:08 p.m. southeast of Zion, according to a public information statement from the NWS at State College on Thursday. It lasted for about five minutes on a path .62 miles long and 200 yards wide, with an estimated peak wind of 93 mph.
EF1 is the second lowest on the Enhanced Fujita Scale for classifying tornados, which ranges from E0 to E5.
The tornado touched down just east of the end of Ralphs Lane then moved east-northeast, uprooting several large trees, before ascending a ridge dissipating east of Dusty Lane.
“The tornado moved through a generally forested area with the damage toppling large trees,” according to the NWS statement.
No injuries were reported and no structures were damaged.
Prior to touchdown, “sporadic straight-line wind damage” occurred at the intersection of East College Avenue/Route 64 and Stover Road and at a few points further east. East College Avenue was closed between Garbrick Road and Stover Lane for several hours because of downed trees and power lines.
To confirm the tornado, NWS surveyed what it described as a “remote and dangerously sloped area,” that required assistance from residents to access.
NWS confirmed six tornadoes in central and eastern Pennsylvania on Sunday, including two in nearby Union County.
