The Weather Network

Recapping the rare Massachusetts tornadoes that left an inn without its roof

Randi MannDigital Reporter
Published on Jul. 23, 2021, 9:35 AM
Updated on Jul. 23, 2023, 10:15 AM

On this day in weather history, a rare tornado hit Massachusetts.

This Day In Weather History is a daily podcast by Chris Mei from The Weather Network, featuring stories about people, communities and events and how weather impacted them.

--

On Tuesday, July 23, 2019, a tornado hit Cape Cod, Mass. The tornado knocked down trees, power lines, and other damage. Annually, the United States gets around 1,253 tornadoes. On average, Massachusetts gets one twister.

A storm hit the area, producing rain, hailstones, heavy winds, and a tornado.

At around 11:50 a.m., the storm formed a mesocyclone, which is the rotating part of a thunderstorm. A rear flank downdraft caused the mesocyclone to come ashore.

At around noon, the tornado touched down in South Yarmouth. The twister brought winds as strong as 144 km/h. The wind gusts tore the roof off Cape Sands Inn in West Yarmouth.

Content continues below

After touching down in Yarmouth, the tornado hit the town of Harwich. Both of the locations received EF-1 damage.

The damaged power lines knocked out the power for 50,000 people.

Tornadoes in Cape Cod are exceptionally rare. There are only four on record since 1950.

To learn more about the rare Massachusetts tornado, listen to today's episode of "This Day In Weather History."

Subscribe to 'This Day in Weather History': Apple Podcasts | Amazon Alexa | Google Assistant | Spotify | Google Podcasts | iHeartRadio | Overcast'

Thumbnail: Cape Cod, Mass. Courtesy of @EversourceMA/Twitter