There was a microburst associated with the strong storms that moved their way through Yates County late Wednesday afternoon and night. The National Weather Service confirmed the microburst happened at around 5:40 just east of Penn Yan and lasted only a few minutes.
The National Weather Service damage survey team released the following report regarding their investigation:
“Looking at post in the ground, the mud was soft and waterlogged so it likely did not take as much force to destroy the building so a lower wind estimate was used at 80 miles per hour. Headed west along City Hill Road and there were several medium to large pines that had either been snapped or uprooted also in a 155 to 160-degree direction. Many of the uprooted trees had a shallow root ball and the hole left in the ground was filled with water. Power poles were either tilting or snapped as we headed north along Ridge Road. The power poles were thinner and older so a lower wind estimate was used resulting in the 85 miles per hour rating.
“Multiple pine trees were also snapped or uprooted at several homes along Ridge Road as well, falling in the 155 to 160-degree directions as well. One home had a chimney that toppled over. Talking to a couple of homeowners that were home at the time of the microburst, the stories matched up with strong winds and heavy rain occurring at the same time resulting in whiteout conditions similar to a blizzard. The stories, as well as all the damage and fallen trees leaning in the same direction away from the core of the storm on radar at the time of the damage, means this was likely a microburst. The Penn Yan Mesonet Station from the New York State Mesonet System was on the very edge of the microburst and recorded a gust of 62 miles per hour.”
