(HIGHLANDS RANCH, Colo.) — The tornado that touched down in Highlands Ranch on Thursday, June 22 was estimated to be an EF-1 tornado, according to the preliminary assessment by the National Weather Service (NWS).
“Thursday afternoon, June 22, a tornado touched down just south of CO-470 in Douglas County, west of Lucent Blvd, impacting the city of Highlands Ranch,” wrote the NWS. “The tornado looks to have lifted just west of the intersection of Lincoln Avenue and Lone Tree Parkway.”
The NWS estimated the peak wind speed to be 97 mph, and the tornado path spanned about 6.3 miles, according to the preliminary assessment. The tornado appears to have started between 3:25 p.m. and 3:28 p.m. on Thursday and ended at 3:48 p.m. MDT.
According to the NWS, the Enhanced Fujita Scale classifies tornadoes into the following categories:
EF0…Weak……65 to 85 mph
EF1…Weak……86 to 110 mph
EF2…Strong….111 to 135 mph
EF3…Strong….136 to 165 mph
EF4…Violent…166 to 200 mph
EF5…Violent…>200 mph
The NWS also released a preliminary damage track of the tornado, on Thursday afternoon. It clarified that the added points along the red line were damage reports it had received so far. So far, there are no reports of injuries.
Preliminary Damage Track of tornado by NWS on Thursday, June 22 in Highlands Ranch.
On Thursday, the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office (DC Sheriff) shared photos and videos of the damage, which happened across Highlands Ranch and Parker. Video of damage assessed after the tornado can be viewed in the video player above.
