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A tornado didn’t touch down in Chester County yesterday, but storms are expected for the July 4th holiday

A meteorologist with the National Weather Service at Mount Holly said the swirling cloud never touched the ground.

Fans await the start of the game following the rain delay during the Philadelphia Phillies game against the Washington Nationals at Citizens Bank Park on Sunday.
Fans await the start of the game following the rain delay during the Philadelphia Phillies game against the Washington Nationals at Citizens Bank Park on Sunday.Read moreMonica Herndon / Staff Photographer
    by Beatrice Forman
    Updated 
    Published 

A tornado did not actually touch down in Chester County on Sunday night, according to the National Weather Service.

Reports of an unconfirmed tornado in New London Township circulated just after 8 p.m., following a spat of severe thunderstorms that briefly interrupted the Phillies afternoon game against the Washington Nationals and canceled Wawa Welcome America’s gospel concert. The concert is rescheduled to take place Monday at 8 p.m., again on Independence Mall.

But that tornado never happened, said Ray Martin, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Mount Holly. Martin said the occurrence was just a funnel cloud, which happens when strong summer storms twist the winds in the atmosphere.

“A funnel cloud hasn’t reached the ground, so it hasn’t caused any damage,” said Martin, who confirmed the NWS received no damage reports from New London Township on Sunday night.

Martin said the risk of a tornado is a lot lower for Monday and Tuesday, but not to rule out another warning.

“The atmosphere has a way of surprising us,” he said.

Martin said to expect thunderstorms and high temperatures for Monday and July Fourth, anticipating temperatures in the upper 80s on both days. Storms are expected to roll in between 3 and 9 p.m. Monday and Tuesday, according to Martin, which could impact fireworks displays.

Fireworks “are a tricky one,” Martin said. “It’s going to depend on how things evolve at the time. Hopefully storms will be done by then, but we can’t say for sure.”