First tornado in Puerto Rico in 3 years causes damage in Arecibo
The tornado touched down just after 3 p.m. local time Sunday at the Avenida Industrial buildings in Arecibo.
Rare tornado strikes Puerto Rico
A rare tornado swept across parts of Puerto Rico Sunday, rating the strongest twister to hit the tropical island in at least the last 47 years. (Video: Darwin A Cruz Torres via Storyful)
ARECIBO, Puerto Rico -- A rare tornado swept across parts of Puerto Rico Sunday, rating the strongest twister to hit the tropical island in at least the last 47 years.
The tornado touched down just after 3 p.m. local time Sunday at the Avenida Industrial buildings in Arecibo, according to the National Weather Service in San Juan. The twister lasted about a third of a mile before dissipating.
"The full experience lasted about eight minutes," Darwin A. Cruz Torres told Storyful.
A storm survey team found major damage to a warehouse at Avenida including a partial loss of the building's roof. Numerous trees and power lines were found snapped as well. They estimated the peak wind of the tornado reached 107 mph, rating an EF-1 on the Enhanced Fujita Scale.
It's the first EF-1 tornado in Puerto Rico since an F1 tornado hit the island on Aug. 30, 1974, causing about $250,000 in damage, according to the NOAA storm database. Overall it's the first confirmed tornado on the island since Sept. 30, 2019. It'll rate as the 22nd tornado on record on the island; the other 20 all rated either EF-0 or F0.
There were no injuries reported in Sunday's twister. None of the previous 21 tornadoes in Puerto Rico caused any injuries either.