Jul 8, 2009 6:48 pm US/Eastern
Hopkinton Takes Brunt Of Fierce Storms
Storm Brings Large Hail, Heavy Rain
HOPKINTON (WBZ) ―
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Tree damage in Hopkinton
WBZ
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Hail in Hopkinton Wednesday afternoon.
WBZ
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Torrential downpours flooded streets in Westborough as a severe thunderstorm moved through. This photo was taken at 3:15 p.m.
V. Barnes/WBZ
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The storm brought pounding hail to Hopkinton where a tornado warning was issued for a time.
C. Altamura/WBZ
Hail stones, 2 to 3 inches deep and slightly smaller than marbles, coated yards and roadsides, including a stretch of I-495 south of the Mass Pike after a fierce and sudden storm blew through Hopkinton, home of the Boston Marathon starting line, between 3:30 a.m. and 3:45 a.m. Wednesday.
The town was under a Tornado Warning when the storm uprooted trees, downed power lines in at least one location, shredded and pasted leaves against house siding. WBZ's Ron Sanders and photographer Terry McNamara were on scene minutes after it hit.
Street flooding was widespread as we drove into Hopkinton. High up on Saddle Hill Road, hail in some of the yards made it look, from a distance, as though a snow storm had blown through. You could scoop up large handfuls of the hail three hours after the storm had passed.
Richard Temple, who lives near the corner of Saddle Hill and Edge Hill Roads, told Ron he took his children into the basement of their home as the hail pounded his yard and house, the wind uprooted a couple of trees in his front yard and crushed a post lamp near the front walk of the place.
Traffic on Route 495 south was backed up by the storm. We found power lines downed by a tree on Proctor Street as Hopkinton Police blocked a couple of intersections to protect people in the area.
In some spots, hail and the warm humid air created an eerie fog in the aftermath of the frightening storm. Some flooding was reported in several buildings around the town center, including Town Hall.
The fire department had no reports of injuries and described the storm's damage as significant, but not severe.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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