A line of storms moved through Western Pennsylvania on Tuesday, dropping rain and hail in some places and spurring a lookout for tornadoes in all but three counties.
The National Weather Service issued warnings for severe thunderstorms and tornadoes until 4:30 p.m. in Armstrong and Indiana counties as the system moved west to east.
3:22 pm: Tornado Warning in effect for eastern Armstrong Co. and Indiana Co. Take cover immediately. #PAwx #wpxistorm pic.twitter.com/qtd22NA8iT
— Danielle Dozier WPXI (@DanielleDozier) May 28, 2019
Tornado Warning including Indiana PA, Homer City PA, Clymer PA until 4:15 PM EDT pic.twitter.com/EhpbggZj0X
— NWS Pittsburgh (@NWSPittsburgh) May 28, 2019
A tornado watch for much of the region is in place through 10 p.m. as conditions remain ripe for severe weather.
A tornado watch means conditions could be favorable for tornadic activity, hail and wind gusts exceeding 70 mph. In the event of radar-indicated rotation or a confirmed touchdown, a tornado warning would be issued.
Parts of Western Pennsylvania could get heavy rain, hail, high winds and tornadoes through early Wednesday morning, the National Weather Service said.
https://twitter.com/NWSPittsburgh/status/1133429583536054277
Only Greene, Crawford and Erie counties are not subject to the tornado watch.
Communities from Pittsburgh and Greensburg north to I-80 are at a “moderate risk” for severe weather.
A designation of “moderate risk” happens in this area a few times a year, NWS meteorologist Shannon Hefferan said.
“We get a few of those over the late spring and early summer time frame, but not a lot,” she said.
The moderate risk is expected to become a slight risk Wednesday, and a marginal risk by Thursday.
“For the next couple days it’s just kind of a washout, and everyone needs to be aware that there’s a risk out there,” Hefferan said.
Some flooding is also possible because of the heavy rain.
There were two confirmed tornadoes in Indiana County on Saturday night. Nobody was hurt.
That makes 18 total tornadoes in Pennsylvania in 2019. That’s already more than the state’s yearly average, according to the Associated Press.
Westmoreland County got hit with five tornadoes last year. The last time one hit in Allegheny County was November 2017, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Nationally, dozens of destructive tornadoes have touched down this year, including one Monday night in Dayton, Ohio, that destroyed dozens of buildings and killed at least one person, according to NPR.
“It’s been a weird year for tornadoes, and unfortunately a lot of them have been hitting cities,” Hefferan said.
