Tornado rips into Maryland: What we know on trapped residents

Multiple residents on Wednesday night were injured during severe storms in Maryland as a tornado struck just north of Washington, D.C.

The National Weather Service (NWS) posted at 7:37 p.m. EST to its social media accounts that a “spotter confirmed tornado” was seen in Montgomery County over the city of Poolesville, just under 30 miles northwest of the nation’s capital. The post encouraged residents near Gaithersburg, Olney and Brookeville to “take cover immediately.”

Montgomery County’s Office of Emergency Management and Homeland Security also confirmed in a post to social media, at 7:41 p.m., that a tornado had been detected over Gaithersburg, just west of Poolesville. At the time, a tornado warning was active for the county until 8:15 p.m.

According to local reports, one home in Gaithersburg was crushed by a large tree as the storm passed through, trapping five people inside the residence. A spokesperson with Montgomery County told Newsweek that officials have received reports of three homes damaged by fallen trees and of five individuals transported to local hospitals with “non-life-threatening injuries” in connection to the twister.

The Context

The NWS said in a forecast discussion Wednesday morning that “unsettled weather” was expected for the Baltimore-Washington, D.C., area into Thursday, delivering heavy rainfall and thunderstorms possible of producing damaging wind gusts. The storms also posed the possibility of a flash-flood threat, specifically in the Shenandoah Valley in northern Virginia and around the Allegheny Mountains in northwestern Maryland.

By 7:28 p.m., forecasters warned of a “particularly dangerous situation” in central Montgomery County due to a “damaging” tornado that had been spotted swirling east at 25 mph.

At 9:47 p.m., forecasters said that a severe thunderstorm “capable of producing a tornado” was seen near Betterton, Maryland, west of Baltimore, and was creeping eastward at 20 mph. A tornado warning for the Baltimore-D.C. area remained in effect until 10:15 p.m.

What We Know

Videos were shared to social media Wednesday night of the tempest and subsequent wreckage in Montgomery County. WTTG anchor Steve Chenevey posted footage of the twister forming over Gaithersburg, which was captured by the network’s SkyCam.

Peter Piringer, chief spokesperson for the Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service, shared a video and images of a tornado near Poolesville, Boyds and Germantown, all in Maryland, to X.

WTOP correspondent Dick Uliano shared a video at 9:21 p.m. of an “enormous hardwood tree” that had toppled onto a home in Gaithersburg and reportedly “trapped” five people inside. Montgomery County Fire and Rescue told CNN that one person was taken to the hospital after sustaining “traumatic” injuries. The other four were also treated at hospitals, with non-life-threatening injuries, according to county officials who spoke with Newsweek.

Mara Parker, Climate Adaptation Program manager for Montgomery County’s emergency services, said via email Wednesday night that the twister downed several trees and power lines “particularly in the Poolesville and Gaithersburg areas. No reports of critical infrastructure damages at this point.”

Parker added that the NWS is working with Montgomery County’s Office of Emergency Management and Homeland Security to confirm where a tornado touched down in the county. Maryland Route 118 is closed in both directions at Black Rock Road due to storm damage. There was no estimated time given for the highway’s reopening.

What’s Next

The violent storms are expected to move out of Maryland on Thursday, according to NWS forecasts. There’s a chance of rain showers continuing in southeast Maryland into the weekend, which could accompany strong winds and lightning. A moderate rip current risk is in effect for the area until 8 p.m. Thursday.