Community Corner

What is a Derecho?

A look at the derecho that hit much of the Baltimore area in 2012, with time lapse video.

The storm set to hit the Greenbelt area Thursday is drawing comparisons to the derecho that hit the mid-Atlantic in June 2012, causing widespread power outages and damage.

What is a derecho? A derecho is a long-lived, widespread windstorm that can produce damage similar to that seen in the aftermath of a tornado, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The windstorm comes with a fast-moving band of thunderstorms and often causes damage in a wide, straight path. 

The 2012 derecho originated in the Chicago area and raced east towards Washington, D.C. It left a large path of destruction in its wake. The National Weather Service compiled a list of over 800 weather damage reports from this storm. Click here to see an interactive map of the weather damage reports from the 2012 derecho.

Find out what's happening in Greenbeltwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The storm had wind gusts clocked at 91 mph at Fort Wayne International Airport in Indiana, 64 mph in Atlantic City, N.J. and 66 mph at Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport

Derechos have produced even stronger wind gusts. A May 1998 derecho created a 128 mph wind gust in eastern Wisconsin, according to NOAA. Derechos are more common in the late spring and summer. However, it's not yet clear if this storm will be one.

Find out what's happening in Greenbeltwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

"If the [2012] derecho was a 10, this event is going to be a nine," Rich Foot, a Dundalk resident and founder of Foot's Forecast, told Patch.

Read Baltimore-area Patch coverage of the 2012 storm and its aftermath.

Tyler Waldman contributed to this report.


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