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Tornado west of Utica confirmed by National Weather Service

The home where 6 year-old twin sisters died during the storm in Clark Mills.
Holliday Moore / WAER News
The home where 6 year-old twin sisters died during the storm in Clark Mills.

The National Weather Service in Binghamton has confirmed an EF1 tornado touched down in a Central New York hamlet just west of Utica early Sunday, killing three people. The tornado tore through Clark Mills with estimated winds of 105 miles per hour; as strong as a category 2 hurricane. The width of the tornado was the size of a football field. Six year-old twin girls were killed when a tree fell on the family’s home as they slept in the living room. A woman in a nearby home was also killed under similar circumstances.

The storms caused downed trees, power outages, and structural damage across Central New York, Southern Tier, and the Capital District.

Governor Kathy Hochul declared a State of Emergency in 32 counties following severe thunderstorms and forecasted extreme heat.

One of the many uprooted trees in the tornado's aftermath seen here in Kirkland.
Alex Past
One of the many uprooted trees in the tornado's aftermath seen here in Kirkland.

John Smith has been waking up WAER listeners for a long time as our Local Co-Host of Morning Edition with timely news and information, working alongside student Sportscasters from the Newhouse School.