F3 tornado devastates Maryland

Morgan Newton | April 17, 2017

COLLEGE PARK, Md.- A reported F3 categorized tornado hit parts of College Park at
approximately 8:30 a.m. Several local businesses have been affected and over half of the
community does not have electricity.

The tornado struck some very heavily populated areas that youre probably aware of, said
Mayor Lara. It was Route 1 and Knox Road that really has the most damage that weve seen.

The tornado was given a rating of three on a scale of zero to five according to officials at the
National Weather Service. The high speed winds accompanying the storm contributed to its
high rating, and to the damage the city experienced.

Injured civilians are being transported to Prince Georges Hospital. There are currently two
dozen civilians being treated there. According to emergency services there have been 4 reported
fatalities within the last hour. All overflow of injured civilians are being transported to Holy
Cross and Washington Hospitals.

The National Weather Service believes the cause of the tornado to be a string of thunderstorms
that have been hovering around the area. Though it has already been predicted that the
thunderstorms will continue in the area, officials are working diligently to stay ahead of them
and to keep communities updated.

Emergency services are currently trying to rescue firefighters that are trapped in Mowatt Garage,
a student and faculty parking garage on the College Park campus. With several power lines
down, its been a difficult task for other emergency personnel to rescue them, as well as others
who may be trapped.

Students and other civilians are also having a hard time accessing safe routes to their apartments
in South Campus Commons. The roads are extremely hard to maneuver.

Maryland governor, Larry Hogan has issued a state of emergency for Prince Georges County.
Mayor Lara advises residents of the area to continue to call 911 and to stay away from windows
and off of the streets.

There are no further updates at this time.

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