A strong microburst toppled trees and power-lines in the town of Easthampton, Massachusetts early Wednesday morning. With winds in excess of 100mph, the damage to the area was equivalent to an EF-1 tornado.

According to the National Weather Service in Boston, the powerful storm cut a path of destruction one mile long and a quarter mile wide. No serious injuries have been reported.

A microburst is a powerful, but short-lived, downward moving column of air generated by a thunderstorm. It produces intense straight-line winds – as opposed to the rotating winds of a tornado – that generally impact localized areas less than 2.5 miles wide.

How a mircoburst works.   Credit: NOAA

Damage from microburst in Easthampton, MA.   Credit: MassLive