Tornado confirmed in Butler County’s Center Township, NWS says
A tornado tore through Butler County’s Center Township Wednesday afternoon, May 21, blowing the roof off a township-owned salt shed in the area of Mahood Road and its intersection with Sunset Drive, according to the National Weather Service of Pittsburgh.
The weather service confirmed the tornado late Wednesday after receiving a submitted video from the Unionville Volunteer Fire Company. The NWS will complete an official survey Thursday to learn more about the storm.
“We were able to see from the video that there was a tornado,” meteorologist Colton Milcarek said Wednesday.
He anticipates a four- to six-hour survey of the area to determine the tornado’s strength, length and intensity.
A Wednesday evening Facebook post from the Unionville Volunteer Fire Company estimates the submitted video was taken at about 4:37 p.m.
“We had some powerful weather move through Unionville this evening,” the post said. “Strong winds blew the roof off of Center Twp's salt shed which is located directly behind our station. This is some footage from our CCTV cameras. Another video and a picture of the aftermath is in the comments.”
In the comments, the NWS of Pittsburgh asks about the video.
“Is there an address and approximate time for this?” the comment said.
Nathan Wulff from the Unionville Volunteer Fire Company said earlier in the evening the damage was isolated. Slight damage to another township-owned building nearby was the only other storm damage around they’ve seen.
Another video on Facebook showed Claytonia Road in Clay Township was completely flooded around 5:30 p.m., with water reaching up to trees in residents’ yards. Fire stations responded to various other incidents of flooding and downed trees.
