Dal Nita Hills had damage from straight line winds

May 31, 2019 Cathy Benson

Winds accompanying the May 29th thunderstorm took down trees and power lines/

On May 29, the Dal Nita Hills subdivision suffered straight line winds from downburst in a thunder storm. A much smaller version of the Deracho of 2012, but devastating to the beautiful neighborhood near Greenfield Sports Complex.

Susan Powers a resident in the subdivision and who sent the photos said she took her dog to the basement and could hear the sunroom door rattling on its hinges. ” It was pretty scary and Klutch the dog barked furiously!”

Here is a definition of straight line winds from Severe Weather 101 of NOAA:

“Damaging winds are often called “straight-line” winds to differentiate the damage they cause from tornado damage. Strong thunderstorm winds can come from a number of different processes. Most thunderstorm winds that cause damage at the ground are a result of outflow generated by a thunderstorm downdraft.”

“Damaging winds are classified as those exceeding 50-60 mph. Are damaging winds really a big deal? Damage from severe thunderstorm winds account for half of all severe reports in the lower 48 states and is more common than damage from tornadoes. Wind speeds can reach up to 100 mph and can produce a damage path extending for hundreds of miles.”

The Bee sent the photos by Twitter to the NWS in Blacksburg and my fav weather guy Kevin Myatt of Weather Journal at The Roanoke Times. CH 7 weighed in, too. Straightline winds the unofficial but likely verdict. Myrt Montgomery on the ridge above the subdivision and off Catawba Road reported a wind speed of 67 mph. on her Facebook page. The Montgomery’s measure wind speed often and report it through out the year.

Electric power was finally restored 24 hours later to the subdivision. After a drive by, witnessed around noon on the 3oth, Appalachain Power Company was hard at work repairing lines. Plenty of broken trees and limbs remained in yards.

Editor’s note:

I reported a tornado on North Mountain in the Spring of 2011 when Jerry Fraley of Eagle Rock took me to the see the damage near Gala in North Botetourt. Tornado paths in my opinion have a different appearance all together. I called in the NWS and they determined it was a 0 on the scale but a tornado nonetheless. Somewhere I still have the photo of a rope tornado that dropped out of the sky near Old Fincastle Road as well. Circulation in clouds is another sign as well as hail, in potential tornado activity.

What to learn from this? Be listening to media when you see the skies grow dark. Heed Tornado and severe thunderstorm warnings. Powers did the right thing. Head to the basement or the bathtub if if you do not have a basement Cover your head!

Botetourt County, be safe!