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Severe storms slam Cleveland, York, Chester
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Published: June 17, 2009
Severe thunderstorms and at least three reported tornadoes ripped across a three-county area west of Charlotte on Tuesday evening, downing trees, knocking out power to thousands, and blocking a section of Interstate 85.
Hail as big as tennis balls fell in Chester County, and strong winds, possibly from a tornado, destroyed a concrete building about 5 miles west of York.
No injuries were reported, but damage has been widespread in Cleveland County of North Carolina, and in York, Chester and Cherokee counties of South Carolina.
The damage has forced the N.C. Highway Patrol to close the southbound side of Interstate 85 near the N.C.-S.C. border. Troopers say a number of trees were blown down near mile marker 2, so southbound traffic is being forced to get off I-85 at Exit 4. Those motorists are being detoured on U.S. 29 south.
It appears as if two severe thunderstorms were responsible for the damage west of Charlotte.
One storm raked across much of Cleveland County and western York County. That system produced reports of tornadoes in eastern Cleveland County, about 3 miles west of Cherryville, at 6:15 p.m.; and 6 miles northwest of Kings Mountain, about 6:35 p.m.
A second storm formed in southern York County and moved into Chester County. It produced two reports of a tornado on the ground in York County, about 7 p.m. That twister was reported to be on Black Highway, near Beersheeba Road, about 5 miles northwest of York.
Cotton Howell, emergency services director for York County, said there were no reports of major damage. He said most of the damage reports came from the western part of the county.
The hail damaged cars and buildings in the affected counties. There were numerous reports of hail more than 1.5 inches in diameter, including a report of 2.5-inch hail (tennis ball-sized) on U.S. 321 at Cornwell Road, in the Chester County community of Cornwell.
In Cleveland County, the worst damage appeared to be near Kings Mountain. Several roads were blocked by downed trees, including the main road to Kings Mountain State Park. Strong winds, possibly from a tornado, mowed down a row of trees on the east side of Kings Mountain Reservoir.
At 8:45 p.m., Duke Energy reported about 5,100 customers in York County without power, and another 3,800 outages in Cleveland County. Several thousand additional customers served by electric co-operatives in both counties also were reported to be without power.
The number of power outages in Chester County is unknown.
The storm left a range of damanges in southeastern Cleveland County.
"We have trees down. Houses are damaged. Cars are damaged -- just a lot of damage everywhere," said dispatcher with the Cleveland County Sheriff's Department.
He said there were reports of funnel clouds, but no touchdowns were confirmed.
Christopher Stephens, a Rock Hill man, was among many who spotted a funnel cloud in tonight's storms.
"I was traveling from Chester, north towards McConnells, on my way to Rock Hill, and I spotted a funnel cloud in the west," said Stephens, who included a photo that he took from his vehicle.
In western York County, the scene was the same, said Howell, the director of emergency management.
The area received heavy wind and rain and some hail. Trees toppled, one on a house. And a barn collapsed from the wind.
"We had all the makings for a serious storm," Howell said. "All the elements were there; they just didn't come together to give us a real hard storm.
"I sure as the night goes on and people get out to assess the damage, the list of damages will grow. They'll probably find lots of shingles off, and siding blown loose. I don't doubt that we're going to have more damage."
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