PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – The National Weather Service in Pendleton have confirmed straight-line wind as the cause of damage for in Culver, Oregon on Saturday after a powerful round of thunderstorms moved through central Oregon throughout the afternoon and evening.
According to the NWS in Pendleton, “despite the intensity of this damage, a National Weather Service survey team found that the bulk of the damage was blown either from south to north, or southwest to northeast. This indicates the prevalence of divergent straight line wind pattern, rather than the circular convergent pattern associated with a tornado”.
Rounds of large hail, heavy rain, damaging wind, and hundreds of lightning strikes. According to the NWS in Pendleton, there was over 50 local storm reports Saturday from Deschutes county all the way up to Walla Walla in Washington, making it one of the stormiest days since 2006.
Below is a slideshow of photos of the damage from that potential tornado, courtesy of Culver resident Sam N.
We even had a hail report of 2 inches in diameter over in Helix, Oregon — that’s the size of an egg! There was also record-breaking rain for Medford, with nearly 1.5 inches.
This system provided all the ingredients for severe conditions with high levels of moisture, a temperature gradient that was sharp, available energy, and wind.