Thousands lose power in RI as strong storms prompt tornado warnings
PROVIDENCE — A severe and fast-moving thunderstorm swept through Southern New England — including Rhode Island — on Saturday night, with TV newscasters urging residents to take shelter immediately from potential tornadoes.
As of 6 p.m., there had not been any confirmed tornado touchdowns, but the National Weather Service in Norton, Massachusetts, said damage reports from across the region were pouring in.
National Grid reported that 8,296 customers in Rhode Island had no power as of about 7 p.m., with 4,566 homes and businesses without electricity in Westerly alone. Here is the town-by-town breakdown of power outages as of 7 p.m.
National Weather Service meteorologist William Babcock explained the fast-moving and potentially dangerous storm this way:
"Basically, a strong cold front slid through the region. It was fairly narrow, but it had some strong downpours with it ... [and] some strong, gusty winds, and that was enough to create some damage and some hail."
"We have received a bunch of damage reports,'' he said shortly before 6 p.m.
By then, all of the tornado warnings that had been issued across the state had expired.
The first went up at 5:02 p.m., when the storm was still in Connecticut but fast approaching the Rhode Island state line, near Foster. The last of the tornado warnings came down at 5:21 p.m.
This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Severe thunderstorms prompt tornado warnings across RI
