PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — "This is a life and death situation. Please listen to this warning. This is a large and extremely dangerous and potentially deadly tornado."
NBC10 Meteorologist Steven Sosna did not mince words on KYW Newsradio, minutes after the National Weather Service informed him that a tornado was spotted on the ground in Bucks County near New Hope, just before 6 p.m. Thursday.
Another tornado was spotted later at 7:15 p.m. near Neshaminy Mall, with numerous reports of buildings severely damaged and collapsed, including at least one car dealership in Trevose. Five people were hurt, but none with life-threatening injuries.
"These are literally the type of winds that can take your car and make it airborne," Sosna said.
Buildings were destroyed and damaged in Bucks and Northampton County due to the storm that came through. Numerous trees and wires were downed in Bucks County as well, along with damaged buses and other vehicles in that area.
Hundreds of cloud to ground lightning strikes were also spotted, along with hail the size of ping-pong balls. Flash Flood Warnings were also issued.
Traffic was also severely delayed in many areas due to storm damage. Countless roads were closed in and near the Bensalem area.
As of 9 p.m., about 7,200 PECO customers were also without power.
Stay tuned to KYW Newsradio for the latest.