FAYETTE COUNTY, WV (LOOTPRESS) – The National Weather Service in Charleston has confirmed a microburst in Fayette County.
According to the National Weather Service Meteorologist, extensive tree damage occurred along a quarter-mile stretch of Rich Creek Road.
Several mature trees were snapped, with many more uprooted in a roughly 100-yard wide path. The felled trees were pushed downhill with a divergent pattern to the damage indicative of a microburst in Fayette County.
Peak wind speeds in the core of the microburst likely reached up to 110 mph. Access was very limited, so the path width and length of the microburst are estimated based on what can be seen from Rich Creek Road.
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The National Weather Service says a microburst is a localized column of sinking air (downdraft) within a thunderstorm, usually less than or equal to 2.5 miles in diameter. Microbursts can cause extensive damage at the surface and, in some instances, can be life-threatening.
It all starts with the development of a thunderstorm and the water droplets/hailstones being suspended within the updraft. Sometimes, an updraft is so strong it suspends large amounts of these droplets and hailstones in the upper portions of the thunderstorm. Many factors can lead to evaporation cooling (sinking air) and, therefore, weakening of the updraft.
Once this occurs, it can no longer hold the large core of rain/hail up in the thunderstorm. As a result, the core plummets to the ground. As it hits the ground, it spreads out in all directions. The location where the microburst first hits the ground experiences the highest winds and greatest damage.
