The National Weather Service on Friday confirmed seven tornado’s spun through the tri-state area on Thursday night.
Survey teams confirmed the last of seven late Friday night with the tornadic events in Bensalem/Trevose area assessed as a *EF3, with peak winds blowing at 140 mph, NWS said.
“Our survey teams are planning to have all the specifics on the surveyed damage areas out by sometime late tomorrow,” a spokesperson for NWS said.
Meanwhile, state, county, and municipal officials toured areas devastated by what’s been described as a “massive” tornado that wreaked havoc on Bensalem.
State and county emergency management officials said there were two homes wrecked, and damaged 22 others, with five businesses also dismantled and six other sustaining serious damage.
Credit: Submitted
Bucks County Emergency Services Director Audrey Kenny praised the efforts of first responders throughout the county, who she said responded to more than 1,600 calls for service during the busiest hours Thursday evening.
“Our emergency responders performed exceptionally during last night’s storms, and we are so proud of the work of all of our 911 staff, police officers, firefighters, paramedics and EMTs,” she said. “They make a difference every day, and our county leaders applaud their bravery and dedication to our community.”
Among the challenging situations first responders faced, Kenny added, were collapsed buildings, people trapped in homes and a broken gas line.
In an mid-morning press conference Bensalem officials updated residents on the storm.
I been doing this for 34 years, and this is the first time I ever seen this kind of devastation up close and personal, Director of Public Safety Fred Harran said.
This is our third storm in 15 days, Haran said, and we’re going to do everything we can to get things back to normal.
I was born and raised here and I’ve never seen anything like this, Mayor Joseph DiGirolamo said.
Harran said as of the presser only six injuries had been reported so far.
If you have major structural damage to your property or business and it hasn’t been reported yet, please call Bensalem Police at (215) 633-3719. Any residents who have been displaced by the storms may call the Red Cross Hotline for assistance with temporary shelter or other urgent humanitarian needs. (215) 299-4000, officials said.
*A link to the Enhanced Fujita Scale used to assess tornadic events.
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