The National Weather Service out of Binghamton says the Monday night destruction in Chenango County was caused by a microburst, and less than 24 hours later, beautiful double rainbows.

Chenango County is suffering from extensive damage as more than 100 healthy trees were uprooted during the microburst Monday night at 8:18 pm. The National Weather Service reports a large squall line of severe thunderstorms moved across the whole
area Monday evening, including Chenango County between 800 PM and 830 PM. The storms caused sporadic damage through much of the area, from Chenango County into Otsego County, but a powerful microburst was contained within the line. It struck around 818 PM near the City of Norwich Reservoir along Route 23. 90 to 100 mph winds accelerated up the valley, and then snapped or uprooted approximately 100 healthy trees on the east side of the reservoir.

What's the difference between a microburst and a tornado? Windows2universe.org says it's the way the wind blows.

A microburst produces straight-line winds. These winds can be greater than 104 mph and as much as 168 mph; the wind speeds can be equal to the winds of small tornadoes. The difference between a microburst and a tornado is that the wind from a microburst is pushed out of the storm. Wind from a tornado flows into the storm. The time duration for a microburst is about 5-15 minutes.

In less than 24 hours after the devastation in Norwich, Oneonta experiences beautiful double rainbows. The meaning of a double rainbow varies, but essentially it suggests transformation and magic are on the way. The Universe is acting on your behalf as long as you're true to yourself. Listen to your intuition and 'trust your vibes.'

Special thanks to Stephen Joseph, Yvonne Wilkens, Heather Sander, Pamela Marble, Jill Morgan-Meek, John Scott Gillespie and Jane Mcintosh-Martin for the photos.


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