Confirmed Tornado Causes Damage Amid Severe Storms In Northern VA

TYSONS, VA — Reports of a tornado and damage came amid severe thunderstorms Thursday night in Northern Virginia.

The National Weather Service confirmed that a tornado touched down in Tysons along Chain Bridge Road northwest of Tysons Corner Center around 8:41 p.m. to 8:42 p.m. Estimated peak winds were 85 mph with a path of a quarter mile.

Video of the Tysons tornado emerged on social media from International Drive north of the mall. One person who shared video on Twitter of the twister said, "I'm in the tornado, I'm in the tornado." Warning: the video contains strong language.

Damage was reported at two gas stations at Chain Bridge Road and International Drive. The Sunoco gas station had a partial canopy collapse, causing the canopy's northwest corner to collapse onto the service building, according to the National Weather Service.

At the adjacent Mobil gas station, a garage door was blown 10 to 15 feet from the building, and metal paneling from the roof was damaged and blown from the building. In addition, the National Weather Service said a canopy over the service station entrance was "mangled beyond repair." At least to eight windows shattered at the station.

Another video showed damage at the SameDay Testing site in Tysons, located east of the two damaged gas stations.

A National Weather Service representative told WTOP a piece of ceiling panel that fell onto the tracks at Tysons Corner Metro is also being investigated. A Metro Twitter account noted trains were temporarily single-tracking between the McLean and Tysons Corner stations Thursday night due to "a track obstruction."

The National Weather Service estimated the tornado stopped in the Tysons Corner Center parking lot based on a lack of damage further southeast.

The other report indicated possible tornado activity near Centreville. The doppler radar at Dulles airport "showed a tight couplet of spin between Chantilly and Centreville," according to the Washington Post's Capital Weather Gang. Damage reports were largely limited to Tysons, but that could be re-evaluated, the National Weather Service spokesperson told WTOP.

A tornado warning had been issued for several areas Thursday night. Strong winds and some power outages also occurred from Thursday night's severe storms. The severe weather threat ended overnight as cooler temperatures moved in.