Tornado Confirmed In Paramus

The National Weather Service has confirmed a tornado touched down in Paramus on Monday.

While most of the state only had heavy rain from the line of thunderstorm that crossed the state, parts of north Jersey saw heavy rain and wind that uprooted trees and knocked down utility lines plunging thousands into darkness for several hours.

The tornado that touched down in Paramus was a category 1 on the Enhanced Fujita  (EF) Scale with a maximum wind of 100 MPH that was on the ground for two minutes starting at 3:16 p.m.

It's path had a width of 100 yards. The worst damage was near the Geroge Washington Memorial Park Cemetery near Paramus and Century Roads which is not far from Route 17. Trees were also snapped and uprooted in the Paramus Golf and Ridgewood Country Clubs.

The NWS's New York office says the weak tornado formed when a portion of the thunderstorms accelerated. The tornado was confirmed by observing damage patterns indicating rotation near and at ground levels and talking to eyewitnesses.

The tornado is the third in New Jersey this year following confirmed twisters in Berkeley Heights in Union County and Stafford Township in Ocean County.