UPDATE:
National Weather Service seems to have pinpointed the area under a Tornado Watch this evening.
In an update to a previous alert, NWS singled out Schuylkill County as the lone county under a Tornado Watch until 9 p.m.
In a further update, NWS added the following counties to the Tornado Watch: Berks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, and Philadelphia.
PREVIOUS MESSAGE:
Schuylkill County is 1 of 19 Pennsylvania counties under a Tornado Watch until 9 p.m. Friday, April 26.
Earlier Friday, National Weather Service issued a Tornado Watch for Schuylkill and the following counties:
- Adams
- Centre
- Columbia
- Cumberland
- Dauphin
- Juniata
- Lancaster
- Lebanon
- Lycoming
- Mifflin
- Montour
- Northumberland
- Perry
- Schuylkill
- Snyder
- Sullivan
- Union
- York
The following cities are in the path of a line of storms which could touch off tornadoes:
- Berwick
- Bloomsburg
- Carlisle
- Danville
- Gettysburg
- Harrisburg
- Hershey
- Lancaster
- Laporte
- Lebanon
- Lewisburg
- Lewistown
- Lock Haven
- Mifflintown
- Newport
- Pottsville
- Renovo
- Selinsgrove
- Shamokin
- State College
- Sunbury
- Williamsport
- York
What is a Tornado Watch?
Weather authorities issue a Tornado Watch when conditions are favorable for tornado activity. Storms moving through the area are known to cause brief tornadoes that could cause widespread damage. The storms moving through Schuylkill County now could produce some hail and damaging winds, short of a tornado.
If a tornado were likely or imminent, this weather alert would be upgraded to a warning.
In the meantime, NWS encourages people in the Watch area to move to interior rooms or the lowest floor of a building whenever possible.