Dumfries hit hard by wind storm

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Martin Mooney had the fortune of having his neighbors help him cut up and clear away limbs from a large tree that fell in his yard Tuesday night.

A large storm moved through Dumfries about 7:30 p.m.

“I was inside my house watching the radar on the computer and I saw a bright red spot on the map. Then I went and looked outside and saw the wind blowing everything around, and then I heard a loud metallic bang,” said Mooney.

The top of a large maple tree and several other smaller limbs crashed down into Mooney’s front year. When it did, it took down a utility line connected to the side of the house.

About 11:30 a.m. today, the sound of chainsaws could be heard throughout what’s considered Dumfries’ historic district, and homes in the street grid of Virginia’s oldest town. Tree limbs snapped in two limbs, large tree trunks uprooted, and small branches strewn about streets and sidewalk could be seen from Dumfries to Quantico.

National Weather Service Forecaster James E. “Jim” Lee said radar did not indicate a tornado in the area. It was more like a case of strong, straight-line winds that wreaked havoc on the town.

No one was injured, but take a look this list from Dumfries Town Manager Daniel Taber noting streets and neighborhoods where property damage had been reported:

Main Street at Quantico Creek – Several large trees came down blocking the roadway and taking down what was later determined to be a cable line. The roadway was totally blocked for several hours and traffic had to be rerouted. At one point fire and rescue had to go southbound against traffic flow on Fraley while responding to fire and rescue calls. Main Street has been cleared earlier this morning, but here is an issue of two large trees that have fallen into Quantico Creek and are partially blocking the creek. It appears as if the property owner owns to the midpoint of the creek and that they have responsibility for the tree removal but we are still trying to contact the property owner and get insurance information and verify responsibility. Heavy equipment will be needed to facilitate the tree removal from the creek and costs for the removal could be between $7,000 – $10,000.

Cameron Street area – Fallen tree limbs blocked half the roadway just south of the Elementary school. Significant tree damage occurred at 4012, 4009, and 3839 Cameron Street. At least one vehicle was damaged by falling limbs. There does not appear to be any damage to houses in these areas.

Dumfries Cemetery – Minor tree damage with a roadway partially blocked.

Merchant Park – Several large tree limbs are down throughout the park. They will be cleared only after all roads and rights of way have been cleared.

Fairfax Street – Properties on Fairfax Street that back up to the impacted properties on Cameron Street suffered various degrees of tree damage in the back yard areas. Locations on Fairfax include 3921, 3957, and 3980.

Mine Road at Main Street – Partial road blockage and several larger trees in the wooded lot there were damaged as well..

Duke Street – Impacted properties with significant tree damage are located at 17626, 17664, 17695, and 17705.

Ginn Park – A tree near the northeast corner fell onto property in the Port of Dumfries subdivision. I spoke to the HOA president concerning this.

Port of Dumfries – Several large branches fell on or along Olde Port Lane. In addition, there were several large limbs that fell on HOA controlled property, one of which dented the roof of a jeep parked there.

Williamstown – Several smaller branches fell throughout the subdivision.

Prince William Estates – Only a few branches down on private property.

Possum Point Road – One lane blocked about 100 yards from the PWC line.

Knolls – Main road had a small limb partially blocking.

Taber on Wednesday morning called in the help of constracotrs to begin clearing streets of debris. Private tree services also rolled into town knocking on doors and offering their services to those affected by the storm.

Aside from a fence at Dumfries’ Ginn Park on Graham Park Road, no public buildings were damaged in the wind storm, said Taber. The cost to clean up the debris from the storm won’t be known at least until Monday, and it could be several thousands of dollars, said Taber.

A large tree just inside the main gate at Quantico Marine Corps Base was uprooted. Another large tree on Route 1 near the National Museum of the Marine Corps also fell during the storm.

This latest round of violent summer weather comes after a small tornado struck portions of Bristow and Manassas over the weekend. The tornado cut a path of destruction from Linton Hall Road, where a church parking lot was damaged, to the intersection of Route 28 and Godwin Drive in Manassas where little league baseball fields were damaged.

Thunderstorms are back in the forecast for Friday. We could see rain on Saturday and Sunday, according to the weather service.