Damaging Wind in New Jersey, June 1, 1998

A squall line of severe thunderstorms caused pockets of wind damage throughout the northwest half of Burlington County. Hardest hit were the riverfront townships. There was a second burst of wind damage inland in Evesham, Medford, Pemberton and Southampton Townships. Pemberton Township declared a local state of emergency as twelve roads within the township were closed and most of the town was without power. A peak wind gust of 74 mph was reported at McGuire Air Force Base. Eight school districts cancelled classes because of power outages. Power outages also affected two of the county's hospitals and cancelled the morning court session in Mount Holly.In Palmyra, numerous trees were knocked down, especially along Morgan Avenue. A porch of one home was damaged by a fallen tree. In Willingboro, a tree crushed a garage and numerous trees were knocked down, especially in the Martin's Beach area. In Burlington Township, at least one vehicle was damaged by fallen trees. The thunderstorm tore a metal roof away and knocked down wires in twenty different locations. In Springfield Township, a barn collapsed after its roof was blown off. Debris was scattered up to 3,000 feet. In Pemberton Township, twelve main roads were blocked by fallen trees. An elderly couple was trapped in their mobile home, several roofs were damaged in the Country Lakes area, the Browns Mills Fire Station was damaged and most of the downtown area was blacked out. Numerous trees were knocked down in the Hoot Owl section of Medford Township. Minor wind damage was also reported in Lumberton and Mount Laurel Townships. About 74,000 Public Service Electric and Gas customers lost power during the height of the storm throughout their service area. Most of the outages though were in Burlington, Camden and Gloucester Counties. There were still 32,500 customers without power the evening of the first. All power was restored the morning of the second.