STOUGHTON, Mass — A tornado touched down in Stoughton on Friday morning, according to the National Weather Service. The violent twister left stunned residents on Turnpike Street contending with downed trees, dangling powerlines and home damage.
The tornado is estimated to have blown between 70 to 80 miles per hour as it advanced down Eighth Street and Corbett Street.
“My heart’s kind of slowing down it was scary at that time,” Turnpike Street resident Karen Bowie told Boston 25 News.
Her house took a direct hit from a large tree in her yard, leaving one side of the building buried in branches.
Her roof also sustained damage.
And on the inside, Bowie showed Boston 25 News’ Bob Ward how the force of the tree knocked plaster right off the wall of her dining room.
“The post that holds the wall up are all cracked toward the inside of the house,” Bowie described.
Karen said she headed for cover in the basement just as the storm struck.
“You’re running for cover, you’re running to hide the best you can so you’re not swept up. Because I saw everything being swept up into the air,” Bowie said.
Right next door, another huge tree split, its splintered trunk landing close to this home,
Too close for Marie Albaniel, whose mother was home alone.
“She’s 84 years old, so I was scared,” Albaniel said.
At the next house, Justina Malave was working on her computer, when the winds kicked up and destroyed a patio area right next to her home office.
And a split tree crashed right on top of her shed.
“I never thought, I usually see tornados everywhere, I never thought this would happen,” Malave said. “I’m not in shock, I’m just trying to figure out what I’m going to do now.”
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Stoughton was just one of many New England communities rocked by a rare tornado on Friday.
A trail of destruction could be seen in both Mansfield and North Attleboro after a tornado ripped through both communities.
Weymouth also dealt with a tornado that toppled trees and violently tore at roofing equipment.
A Rhode Island tornado lifted a car off an interstate highway Friday morning as severe weather swept already storm-weary New England.
Even communities not hit by a tornado were impacted as powerful storms packing hail, lightning, downpours, and strong wind pushed from south to north across the state.
There have also been confirmed tornados along the Foxboro/Easton line, in Mattapoisett, in North Brookfield, and in Dublin, New Hampshire, this summer.
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