The Northern Tornadoes Project has confirmed a tornado and a downburst tore through Wheatley on Sept. 3, part of a line of severe storms that also produced a tornado in east Windsor.
The Wheatley tornado was rated EF1, with an estimated maximum wind speed of 145 km/h, a track length of 6.3 kilometres and a maximum path width of 450 metres, the NTP said. The tornado’s start time, 4:48 p.m., was radar estimated, and it moved in from the west.
To the south of the tornado, a downburst also rated EF1 struck the town, with an estimated maximum wind speed of 150 km/h over an area about 5.3 kilometres long and up to 4.7 kilometres wide, according to the NTP.
“Damage to a large barn, trees, two toppled transport trucks and minor roof damage to a home was reported in and around Wheatley after a storm passed through,” the NTP said. “No injuries were reported.”
The organization completed a ground and drone survey of the area on Sept. 4 to document both the tornado and downburst damage.
The same line of storms produced an EF1 tornado in east Windsor, where a home near the Detroit River had its roof thrown 80 metres and trees and large branches were knocked down over a swath more than a kilometre wide, the NTP said. Radar in Detroit indicated a tornado debris signature as debris was lofted into the air.
