2 more tornadoes spin up in New Jersey on Thursday

⚡ Two more tornadoes Thursday afternoon brings the total for 2023 to 13

⚡ A Tornado Warning was posted because of one of the tornadoes

⚡ More information will be released by late Friday afternoon

This report was updated with details about the tornadoes released by the National Weather Service.

National Weather Service survey teams have determined that two EF-1 tornadoes occurred in New Jersey during thunderstorms that popped up Thursday afternoon.

One storm was confirmed in the Browns Mills section of Pemberton Township in Burlington County and the second one in East Greenwich Township in Gloucester County. The Browns Mills storm promoted a Tornado Warning to be posted around 3:15 p.m. before quickly weakening.

The East Greenwich tornado had a top wind speed of 95 mph and had a path of under a mile. The first damage was noticed along Tomlin Station Road where the top half of a camper was blown off. The storm caused damage in a crop field before heading across a small lake into the next field.

The storm caused damage between Nicole Road and Hazel Court including siding blown off the side of a house and roof damage to a backyard shed.

Several trees were damaged on Maragaret Street in Browns Mill by a tornado with a top wind speed of 95 mph. A security camera caught the condensation funnel of a tornado, a backyard shed was shifted several feet, shingles blown off another building and two trees snapped.

Zarrow said the severe weather risk on Thursday was relatively low, as the potential for heavy rain took the spotlight. But a strong thunderstorm cell had just enough instability (rising motion) and wind shear (twisting motion) to drop these two brief tornadoes.

A fast-moving storm

Photos and video posted to the National Weather Service Facebook from Browns Mill showed trees cut in half and fallen over. A video posted by a Browns Mills resident on the National Weather Service Facebook shows what looks like a small funnel cloud moving on the ground and gusty winds calming down within 30 seconds.

An EF-0 tornado was confirmed in Holland Township Monday afternoon in Hunterdon County with a top wind of 85 mph. It was considered a tornado for about a minute.

"'Surprise spin-up tornadoes remind us all that every thunderstorm has the potential to become dangerous. It is important to stay alert and vigilant whenever stormy weather is in the forecast. And when a warning is issued for your area, you need to seek shelter immediately inside a sturdy building," Zarrow said.

An active year continues

The two storms Thursday bring New Jersey's tally of 2023 tornadoes to 13, tied with 2021 as the second most active year on record since 1950.

"Back in 2021, I lamented what a crazy, active year it was for tornadoes. Yet, here we are again, at 13 confirmed for 2023. And it's only mid-August — we still have more than a month of summer *and* the peak of the Atlantic hurricane season coming up," Zarrow said.

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