The National Weather Service has confirmed that a category EF1 tornado did touch down in the Clairmont/East Newton are of Catawba County on Tuesday the 9th. Below is a summary and statistics provided by the NWS.
Survey Summary: The tornado touched down near Yount Rd in Claremont, breaking large tree branches, then moving northeast and uprooting trees from Love Rd to Boggs Rd. It appeared to intensify by the time it reached Hewitt Rd near McLin Creek, before moving into the Fox Hollow neighborhood. There, on Cindi Ln, several trees were uprooted or snapped. In a matter of seconds the tornado moved orth and damaged several manufactured homes along Evening Dr. One of these homes, which was tied down but only in shallow holes, rolled over and was partially torn apart. The one fatality of this event occurred in this home. The walls of another maufactured home in Fox Hollow were torn away from the floor and undercarriage, and two more suffered major roof or wall damage. Four injuries occurred elswhere in Fox Hollow, two of which were serious. One to two minutes after exiting that neighborhood toward the northeast, tree trunks were snapped on Old Catawba Rd, and then along Interstate 40 between the Catawba River and Buffalo Shoals Creek. Peak wind speeds of 110 mph occurred in the vicinity of Fox Hollow.
Rating: EF1 Estimated Peak Wind: 110 mph Path Length /statute/: 9.0793 miles Path Width /maximum/: 250.0 yards Fatalities: 1 Injuries: 4 Start Date/Time: 01/09/24 1227 LT Start Location: 3 E Newton / Catawba County / NC Start Lat/Lon: 35.6571 / -81.1568 End Date/Time: 01/09/24 1233 LT End Location: 4 N Catawba / Iredell County / NC End Lat/Lon: 35.7571 / -81.0543
