Scotia, N.Y. - The first tornado of the year in New York touched down Tuesday in the village of Scotia, about 20 miles northwest of Albany.
The National Weather Service in Albany rated the tornado at EF-0, the lowest of six ratings. The tornado had winds of 80 mph, was just 25 yards wide, and dissipated after a quarter of a mile. It touched down about 2:41 p.m.
Last July's tornado that killed four people in Madison County had winds of 100 to 125 mph. That tornado in the town of Smithfield was ranked as an EF-2, and traveled for 2.5 miles before losing strength.
Tuesday's severe thunderstorm that spawned the Scotia tornado hit with winds of 60 mph and dumped nearly 2 inches of rain in parts of Warren County. A tornado watch had been issued for Central New York on Monday, but no tornadoes developed from those storms.
The Madison County tornado was the strongest of the 12 tornadoes reported in New York last year, and the only fatal one.