A total of seven tornadoes struck in the Washington region on a fiercely stormy day earlier this month, the National Weather Service has determined.
In addition to the three April 6 tornadoes already confirmed in the District and adjacent suburbs, the Weather Service said last week that it has established that four others touched down in Virginia’s Fauquier and Orange counties.
Of those four, it appeared that one of the most dramatic in its effects occurred along Route 522 in Orange County, where metal roofing and siding were stripped from a business, and some of the material was carried aloft, landing about 2,000 feet away.
Two people who witnessed the twister saw debris flung into the air and swirling around.
In all four of the newly reported tornadoes, maximum winds were estimated at 80 or 85 mph, 10 or 15 mph stronger than in the three reported earlier.
Near New Baltimore, in Fauquier County, one tornado left many trees either snapped, topped or uprooted. Fences blew down, and a roof was partially torn from a barn over a mile-long path.
Most homes on the path had damage to shingles, gutters and siding, and several sheds were either destroyed or severely damaged, the Weather Service said.
Another of the Fauquier tornadoes snapped trees near Airlie, on Airline Road. It snapped and uprooted trees “all along Blantyre Road,” the Weather Service said.
It said the continuous path of damaged trees halted just before the storm reached Interstate 66.
One of the three twisters confirmed earlier struck in both Arlington and the District. Another touched down near Joint Base Bolling-Anacostia in the District, and a third in the Herndon and Sterling Park areas.
