A severe storm and a tornado touched down in Broome and Delaware counties, leaving destruction, downed power lines and trees in their wake.
The National Weather Service in Binghamton confirmed that an EF-1 tornado touched down at about 6:12 p.m. on July 18 along Farnham Road near Sanford. It then traveled southeast hitting the Town of Hale Eddy and the Town of Hancock before it weakened and lifted near Peas Eddy Road. The EF-1 tornado reached maximum wind speeds of 95 mph and stretched for over 15 miles.
The Town and Village of Hancock faced the brunt of the storm with high wind speeds, heavy rain and the tornado just outside the village limits, leaving downed trees, debris areas and some damaged houses in the area. NWS also reported that a microburst, a localized downdraft, reached approximately 105 mph in the Hancock area.
Is Hancock in a state of emergency?
On July 18, Town of Hancock Supervisor Jerry Vernold and Town of Hancock Mayor Shaun Shannon declared a state of emergency for both the village and town with an order for no unnecessary travel. The state of emergency was lifted for the village on July 19 but remained in effect for the town as of 11 a.m. on July 20.
Delaware County Emergency Services Director Stephen Hood said on July 20 that the town is looking to lift the state of emergency by the afternoon after crews worked all day and most of the evening on July 19 to clean up debris.
Town officials have brought in private contractors who have been working “hand-in-hand” with NYSEG to make all local roads passable, according to Hood.
How many still without power in Broome
NYSEG has also reported that approximately 4,048 customers remained without power in Broome, Chenango and Tioga counties as of 8 a.m. on July 20. Power for these households is expected to be restored by 11 p.m., according to NYSEG. Hood confirmed that as of 11:30 a.m., there were approximately 700 without power in the Town of Hancock.
In the aftermath, Vernold took to Facebook saying that “everything is being done to get us through this” and there are “a lot of moving pieces” as the town navigates the emergency.
As part of this effort, he said he is working with Shannon, State Sen. Peter Oberacker, Assemblymember Brian Maher, NYSEG, the Hancock Fire Department, the East Branch Fire Department, Delaware County Emergency Services and the Town of Hancock Highway Department.
He said he also requested 50 cases of water and dry ice from NYSEG which would be delivered to the Village of Deposit, which also sustained significant damage.
Where to get water, dry ice
For those still without power, Broome County opened water distribution stations as of noon July 20 at the following locations:
While dry ice was initially planned to be available at the same time, the county later announced dry ice distribution had been delayed until 2 p.m.
(This story has been updated to add new information.)
This article originally appeared on Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin: Thousands still without power after tornado, microburst
Reporting by Jillian McCarthy, Binghamton Press & Sun Bulletin / Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Jillian McCarthy, Binghamton Press & Sun Bulletin | USA TODAY Network
