National Weather Service says severe storm damage in Greenwood Lake was not a tornado or microburst
News 12's Blaise Gomez was in Greenwood Lake where the National Weather Service investigated whether Thursday's damaging storm was a tornado or a microburst.
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The National Weather Service says a severe, fast-moving storm that ripped through the Greenwood Lake area this morning was due to straight-line winds.
“It was terrifying. I’ve never seen anything like this,” says Diane Butfilowski. “Even [Hurricane] Sandy, I don’t think was as strong as this.”
News 12 saw several large trees uprooted along Jersey Avenue and downed trees that fell on homes and power lines.
Officials say a tree fell on a Greenwood Lake elementary school bus with roughly 10 children onboard on East Shore Road during the height of the storm. While no children were injured, the district stopped all elementary school buses from traveling after the incident.
Blaise Gomez's report from 12 p.m.
“It came in very hard and very fast,” says Greenwood Lake Mayor Tom Howley. “The rain subsided and the mayhem began. We realized the impact.”
A Greenwood Lake DPW crew was also trapped while responding to an emergency on Edgemere Avenue after utility wires fell and caught fire, according to the village mayor.
The Orange County Office of Emergency Management set up a staging area at the Greenwood Lake Police Department to respond to storm-related calls and access the damage with local officials.
Residents with storm damage can report it to Orange County Emergency Services by clicking here.
Blaise Gomez's report from 10 a.m.
