Planes damaged as tornado touches down near Aurora, Oregon
CANBY, Ore. (KOMO) -- A tornado touched down in Clackamas County Thursday afternoon, damaging two small aircraft and a nearby nursery but no one was hurt.
Reports firsts came in from the town of Aurora -- including spotters at the Aurora Airport, at 3:39 p.m., the National Weather Service reports. A rare Tornado Warning was issued for the area, which has since expired.
The tornado was rated an EF-0 on the Enhanced Fujita Scale -- the lowest rung on the scale -- with estimated winds of 65-70 mph, the National Weather Service said.
Video from the airport in Aurora showed at least two planes flipped over in the strong winds. An airport employee told KATU-TV there was a heavy rain squall that came through and wind so strong it was shaking their building. No one was hurt there.
There have also been reports of wires and some trees down, but no homes were damaged. More damage was reported at Smith Gardens, where multiple glass greenhouses and their main office were damaged.
A team with the National Weather Service is on its way to the area to survey the damage and will have more details on the tornado this evening.
The storm comes on the 55th anniversary of the great Columbus Day Storm that brought triple-digit wind gusts to Northern Oregon.
Oregon averages about 1-2 tornadoes a year.
Updates to follow.
