Severe storm brings possible tornado to Millard County, flooding to Emery County

LYNNDYL, Millard County — The National Weather Service was conducting an investigation on Sunday to determine whether a tornado touched down in Lynndyl, Millard County, on Saturday as a series of intense storms struck parts of Utah.

NWS meteorologist Alex DeSmet said it was determined winds in the area reached at least 70 to 90 mph, and potentially even 100 mph.

The storm was strong enough to rip trees out of the ground, break windows and even knocked over 34 train cars, according to Millard County Sheriff Steve O'Camb.

The extremely high winds and large-sized hail also caused significant damage to sidings and roofs of houses in the area, according to DeSmet.

Evidence such as interviews, photos, videos and a map of damaged areas weas taken to help determine whether a tornado did in fact touch down in Lynndyl, DeSmet said.

After seeing the destruction caused by the storm that passed through, DeSmet said the town wouldn't be the same due to the damages investigators were seeing.

"We really saw the small town spirit of Utah, the community coming together as a whole to help one another clean up from the damages as fast as possible," DeSmet said. "We're very impressed with the residents."

Many people told investigators that the storm was the strongest they've seen in the town of Lynndyl, according to DeSmet. Some trees were also reported to have lost their leaves nearby due to less severe wind in Leamington.

Orangeville residents deal with flooding

While Lynndyl dealt with a possible tornado on Saturday, Orangeville is still dealing with the aftermath of floods that hit the area over the weekend.

Parts of Carbon, Emery and Sanpete counties were under flood warnings on Saturday after the National Weather Service received reports of flooded roadways and area creeks "running very high."

The Emery County Sheriff's Office announced that a Red Cross shelter was established at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints meetinghouse in Orangeville for any residents displaced due to flooding.

Related topics