NEW JERSEY (PIX11) — A tornado did touch down in Mercer County on Tuesday, meteorologists from the National Weather Service confirmed in a preliminary investigation on Wednesday.
Tuesday’s storm is the fifth February tornado on record for New Jersey and the first since 1999.
The agency sent a survey team out to inspect the damage near West Windsor and Lawrenceville. Footage from AIR11 chopper shows several trees ripped out of the ground and significant damage to homes in Mercer County.
Police Chief Christopher Longo, of the Lawrence Township Police Department, shared footage of the significant damage at the Lawrence Square Village housing development, urging residents who have been displaced to head to a nearby command post for help, according to local media.
Mercer County Executive Brian Hughes said local officials were getting “reports from around the county of wind-related damage, downed trees and building damage.”
In nearby Princeton Junction, photos and videos of damage showed numerous downed trees and power lines and large debris littering neighborhoods. Heavy wind damage was also reported in the area of West Windsor, with parts of roofs torn off homes and buildings, trees uprooted and cars damaged.
Due to the storm damage, U.S. Route 1 was closed in both directions Tuesday afternoon in the area of the Quaker Bridge Mall in Lawrenceville.
