Connecticut, 1996

Damaging Wind in Connecticut, May 21, 1996

May 21, 1996 · NWS BOX · 1 event in 1 county or zone

A cold front moving into a hot, humid air mass set the stage for severe thunderstorms. A significant bow echo was detected by radar as it developed over Hartford County at about 3:30 PM and moved eastward to Windham County, where it lost its organization.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it. Tap one for its entry below.

  • Tornadoes
  • Tropical storms and surge
  • Floods
  • Wind
  • Hail
  • Winter weather
  • Heat and drought
  • Cold
  • Fire, smoke and dust
  • Marine and coastal
  • Other

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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
1

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

What happened

The episode as NWS BOX wrote it up.

A cold front moving into a hot, humid air mass set the stage for severe thunderstorms. A significant bow echo was detected by radar as it developed over Hartford County at about 3:30 PM and moved eastward to Windham County, where it lost its organization. Wires were downed in Farmington at 313 PM. Trees were reported blown down and a church steeple was blown over in Wethersfield. A peak gust to 62 mph was reported in Hartford at 335 PM. Trees were reported blown down in Glastonbury.

The radar

The Brookhaven radar (KOKX), 101 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 19:33 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Hartford

When
May 21, 2:35 PM EST
Where
Hartford County, Hartford
Measured
54 kt (62 mph)
Coordinates
41.770, -72.720

What these are

Thunderstorm Wind
Winds from a thunderstorm of 50 knots (58 mph) or more, or lower winds that caused damage or casualties. Measured gusts are marked MG, estimated EG.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Connecticut in 1996Every state in 1996This day in weather historyWarnings in Connecticut, May 1996

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5557529.