The National Weather Service has said that a record-breaking six tornadoes touched down on Long Island during Saturday’s powerful storm, hitting with force as far east as Hampton Bays and North Sea.
While town police said East Hampton was spared the worst of it, at least one family in Springs felt differently after huge trees fell on their house and car, taking down wires that cut phone and internet service. The house was intact, but the car was totaled.
“It was a very frightening situation, especially when you have three kids and a dog in the house and you can’t leave,” Julie Bistrian of Norfolk Drive said this week. “That was the worst part. If I could have thrown everyone in the car, I could have gotten out of there. Everyone’s okay, thank God.”
Ms. Bistrian said her 16-year-old daughter screamed when a tree hit her bedroom window, stopping short of crashing through. “When your child screams, nothing else registers with you.”
The chronically poor cellphone reception in Springs prevented Ms. Bistrian from calling for help while inside, so she stepped into the pouring rain to try. She later realized that hers wasn’t the only property hit. Neighbors reported that trees had damaged fences and a deck, and trees and limbs were blocking streets.
Five of the tornadoes were categorized as EF0, which is the weakest level, but still brought winds between 70 and 85 miles per hour. Another that struck Shirley and Manorville reached EF1, also considered weak but with winds of up to 110 miles per hour.
According to the National Weather Service, the tornado that blew through Remsenburg to Westhampton Beach caused “the most extensive structural damage” at the end of its path, which happened to be a public works salt barn at the south side of Gabreski Airport. “Indications are the roof may have briefly lifted as south-to-southwest winds with the tornadic circulation blasted into the south-facing opening, culminating in the north wall being blown out,” the weather service reported.
The service said no injuries were reported in any of the six confirmed tornadoes. East Hampton Town police records show that on Saturday afternoon during and after the storm, the department received about 10 calls involving road hazards, property damage, and downed wires, mostly concentrated in Springs. The town’s Highway Department had to haul away seven trees from public roads; it doesn’t handle private roads or properties.
“I think up west got the worst of it. . . . It looked bad,” said Stephen Lynch, the town highway superintendent. “It blew pretty hard for half an hour, and the phones started ringing.”
