A fast-moving Tuesday-night storm threw parts of the northern Triangle under a brief tornado scare, as residents in northern Orange County and northwestern Durham County were told to seek shelter on short notice.
The trouble started as the storm slid east out of Alamance County, where radar began showing rotation. A tornado warning followed, but the alert did not confirm that a tornado was actually on the ground.
The National Weather Service office in Raleigh issued the warning at about 8:03 p.m. and set it to remain in effect until 8:45 p.m., according to CBS 17. The warned area covered northeastern Alamance, northern Orange and northwestern Durham counties, with the storm near Prospect Hill and moving east at roughly 40 mph. Rougemont, Carr, Lake Michie, Bahama and Schley were among the locations in or near the projected track.
The alert came on the heels of a Tuesday forecast from the National Weather Service Raleigh, which had already flagged a slight risk of severe weather across central North Carolina. Forecasters highlighted damaging straight-line winds as the main threat, with the chance of a brief tornado or large hail also on the table.
As is standard with these radar-indicated warnings, residents were told that a tornado warning does not automatically mean a tornado has touched down. Even so, the guidance was clear: move to an interior room on the lowest floor, stay away from windows and ride it out until the storm passed.
