February 16th-17th 2025 high wind event
On February 16th 2025, a powerful area of low pressure rapidly intensified over Pennsylvania. This resulted in a very tight pressure gradient over the region. In addition, the low level jet intensified to nearly 60 knots, with a deep mixing layer. These two factors combined resulted in the most impactful non thunderstorm wind event since March 2nd, 2018.
There were countless reports of wind damage with many trees being snapped and uprooted. The winds downed many powerlines resulting in more than 145 thousand power outages. Many areas recorded wind gusts of 50-60mph, but a few 70+mph gusts were also recorded. The strongest was a 76mph gust at Camp David in Frederick County.
The long duration of the wind event was also a factor in how widespread the damage was, with nearly 18 hours of winds gusting over 40-50mph in many areas. In addition, a line of thunderstorms spawned a brief tornado in Washington county in the town of Dargan. This tornado snapped dozens of trees and while officially classified as straight line winds, is more consistent with an EF1 tornado based on the pattern of the damage as well as the radar signatures.
