Severe Thunderstorms Bring 70 mph Winds, Downed Trees to Cumberland County

Trees and wires came down around Vineland as severe thunderstorms swept through Cumberland County, with 911 calls flooding dispatch and the National Weather Service issuing warnings that covered Vineland, Millville, and Bridgeton. Wind gusts reached up to 70 mph as the storms moved through the area late in March.

The NWS had warned the day before that "a strong cold front approaches Wednesday" and that "some severe thunderstorms are possible, however this will depend on the timing." Forecasters placed the storm window between 3 p.m. and 11 p.m., with the biggest concerns centered on those destructive gusts and the possibility of quarter-size hail. "The biggest concerns are wind gusts up to 70 mph that could down trees and power lines, and hail the size of a quarter," the forecast stated.

The storms arrived on the heels of an unseasonably warm stretch. High temperatures climbed into the mid to upper 70s ahead of the cold front, with the NWS noting that "near record high temperatures are expected on Wednesday along with rising humidity, which could fuel thunderstorms." The agency noted conditions "will be much cooler along the coast due to a southerly wind off the cold ocean."

Cumberland County fell in the marginal risk zone the NWS designated for parts of southern New Jersey, a step below the slight risk assigned to much of central New Jersey. Forecasters cautioned that if storms organized more tightly before crossing into the state, conditions could deteriorate further.

The system produced the reported 70 mph gusts and the downed trees and wires that triggered the 911 calls in Vineland. Multiple weather services and automated reports confirmed the storm impacts. After the storms cleared, temperatures dropped to around 57 degrees Wednesday night, with Thursday bringing cloudy skies, morning showers, a high near 61, and wind gusts up to 30 mph.

The full extent of damage to trees, infrastructure, and power service across Vineland, Millville, and Bridgeton had not been formally assessed at the time of reporting.