High winds create havoc as storm passes
A fast-hitting, short-lived line of storms tore through Scott County Wednesday afternoon, disrupting power for thousands and leaving behind widespread but mostly minor damage in its wake.
The storms — part of what meteorologists refer to as a “squall line” associated with an approaching cold front — came and were gone in a matter of minutes, but featured wind gusts in excess of 70 miles per hour in spots after a day that had already featured wind gusts up to 50 MPH.
The hardest-hit area of the county was Oneida and Winfield, with much of the damage generally concentrated between the Oak Grove area of Oneida north to the Pine Grove area of Winfield. That line of the storms had earlier produced tornadic conditions in Fentress County. The National Weather Service confirmed on Thursday that an EF-1 tornado, with estimated winds of around 90 MPH, had touched down briefly near Clarkrange in southern Fentress County.
According to National Weather Service records, it was the first confirmed tornado touchdown in Fentress County since March 2003, and the strongest tornado to touch down there since 1984.
While the Fentress County twister — which was on the ground for less than a minute, according to the NWS — was the only tornado touchdown in the state, the squall line had prompted several tornado warnings as it progressed across the mid-state. The NWS had also issued a high wind warning for Scott, Morgan and Campbell counties, prompting the Scott County School System to dismiss classes at 1:30 p.m.
When the storms passed through Oneida Wednesday afternoon, power was disrupted to several thousand. According to Plateau Electric Cooperative spokesperson Linda Lay, nearly 5,000 customers in Scott County and another 1,500 in Morgan County were without power for at least a period of time.
Many of the customers in Scott County were serviced by a TVA transmission line to PEC’s Oneida substation. Service there was quickly restored, but much of the “Four-Lane” area of Oneida — including Oneida Plaza and Northtown Plaza — was without power for several hours, prompting some businesses to close their doors.
Lay said that PEC crews replaced 18 utility poles that were broken in the storms. Crews continued working through the day on Thursday to repair damage.
A number of residences and some businesses also experienced roof damage. At Tobe’s Motel in Oneida, a gazebo was heavily damaged by several fallen pine trees. Damage was also reported at the Oneida Public Library and the Scott County School Bus Garage in Huntsville. A metal roof was ripped from a structure on Grave Hill Road near the Oak Grove area, while a residence on Sandcut Road experienced heavy roof damage.
A number of roads in Oneida and Winfield were blocked by fallen trees, but street departments in both towns — along with the fire department in Winfield — worked quickly to clear those roads. Fire departments also dispatched crews in Huntsville and Pine Hill to assist in the storm’s aftermath.