Massachusetts, 2001

Damaging Winds in Massachusetts, July 1, 2001

July 1, 2001 · NWS ALY · 4 events in 1 county or zone

A powerful cold front, combined with a strong upper level disturbance to produce widespread thunderstorms across Berkshire County during the afternoon of July 1. One of the storms became severe as winds from it blew down trees in Cheshire, Savoy and North Adams.

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
$131,000
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
4

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 ALY wrote it up.

A powerful cold front, combined with a strong upper level disturbance to produce widespread thunderstorms across Berkshire County during the afternoon of July 1. One of the storms became severe as winds from it blew down trees in Cheshire, Savoy and North Adams. A possible mircroburst hit the town of Adams with a concentrated area of damage centered around a home on Burlingame Hill Road. At one residence, the wind destroyed a carport, flattening a garage which crushed a car parked inside. Debris from the carport was blown up to 270 yards away. In addition, an aluminum and glass greenhouse was shattered and strewn about. The storms knocked out power to about 2,500 customers in Berkshire County.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Albany, NY wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jul 1, 10:15 AM EST, 3 hours 39 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 1, 10:15 AM EST, 3 hours 39 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ALBANY NY
1115 AM EDT SUN JUL 1 2001

ANOTHER QUICK UPDT TO ADD WW 486 TO BAL OF DIST XCP
EXTRM SRN...WITH SMALL OVERLAP. SCT TSTMS ALG 20NNW KRUT-
KN66 ATTM...MORE CONVECTION INVOF CDFNT ALG LK ERIE.

.ALY...NY ERN...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH UNTIL 200 PM EDT
                ZONES 32 33 38 42
                SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH UNTIL 400 PM EDT
                ZONES 39>43  47>54 58>61
 VT EXTRM SRN...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH TIL 4 PM ZONES 13 14
 MA EXTRM WRN...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH TIL 4 PM ZONE 1
        CT NW...NONE.

In the hours before

Local storm report, Jul 1, 11:15 AM EST, 2 hours 39 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ALBANY NY
1215 PM EDT SUN JUL 01 2001

TIME(EDT)  .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE  ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

1211 PM    SPEIGLETOWN               NY   .88 INCH HAIL
07/01/01   RENSSELAER
Local storm report, Jul 1, 11:38 AM EST, 2 hours 16 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ALBANY NY
1238 PM EDT SUN JUL 01 2001

TIME(EDT)  .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE  ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....
 t
1200 PM    LATHAM                    NY   WIND DAMAGE
07/01/01   ALBANY                         SEVERAL TREES DOWN
Local storm report, Jul 1, 1:07 PM EST, 47 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ALBANY NY
207 PM EDT SUN JUL 01 2001

TIME(EDT)  .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE  ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

1200 PM    LATHAM                    NY   WIND DAMAGE
07/01/01   ALBANY                         SEVERAL TREES DOWN

1211 PM    SPEIGLETOWN               NY   .88 INCH HAIL
07/01/01   RENSSELAER

1211 PM    SPEIGLETOWN               NY   .75 INCH HAIL
07/01/01   RENSSELAER

0151 PM    WEST SAND LAKE            NY   1 INCH HAIL
07/01/01   RENSSELAER

0151 PM    AVERILL PARK              NY   .75 INCH HAIL
07/01/01   RENSSELAER

0153 PM    POESTENKILL               NY   1 INCH HAIL
07/01/01   RENSSELAER

0200 PM    AVERILL PARK              NY   2 INCH HAIL
07/01/01   RENSSELAER
Local storm report, Jul 1, 1:09 PM EST, 45 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ALBANY NY
209 PM EDT SUN JUL 01 2001

TIME(EDT)  .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE  ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

1200 PM    LATHAM                    NY   WIND DAMAGE
07/01/01   ALBANY                         SEVERAL TREES DOWN

1211 PM    SPEIGLETOWN               NY   .88 INCH HAIL
07/01/01   RENSSELAER

1211 PM    SPEIGLETOWN               NY   .75 INCH HAIL
07/01/01   RENSSELAER

0151 PM    WEST SAND LAKE            NY   1 INCH HAIL
07/01/01   RENSSELAER

0151 PM    AVERILL PARK              NY   .75 INCH HAIL
07/01/01   RENSSELAER

0153 PM    POESTENKILL               NY   1 INCH HAIL
07/01/01   RENSSELAER

0200 PM    AVERILL PARK              NY   2 INCH HAIL
07/01/01   RENSSELAER
Local storm report, Jul 1, 1:37 PM EST, 17 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ALBANY NY
237 PM EDT SUN JUL 01 2001

TIME(EDT)  .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE  ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

0225 PM    GUILDERLAND CENTER        NY   WIND DAMAGE
07/01/01   ALBANY                         TREES DOWN AND QUARTER
                                          HAIL

The radar

The Albany radar (KENX), 74 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 18:56 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

4 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Berkshire

When
July 1, 1:54 PM EST
Where
Berkshire County, Cheshire
Property damage
$13,000
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
42.567, -73.167

Thunderstorm Wind, Berkshire

When
July 1, 1:55 PM EST
Where
Berkshire County, Adams
Property damage
$90,000
Reported by
NEWSPAPER
Coordinates
42.633, -73.117

Thunderstorm Wind, Berkshire

When
July 1, 1:55 PM EST
Where
Berkshire County, North Adams
Property damage
$10,000
Reported by
NEWSPAPER
Coordinates
42.700, -73.100

Thunderstorm Wind, Berkshire

When
July 1, 2:00 PM EST
Where
Berkshire County, Savoy
Property damage
$18,000
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
42.567, -73.033

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 Massachusetts in 2001Every state in 2001This day in weather historyWarnings in Massachusetts, July 2001

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: 5257944, 5257946, 5257947, 5257945.