Washington-Area Commuters Watch as Tornado Crosses Freeway in Front of Them (ContributorNetwork)

Although not unheard of, tornadoes are fairly rare in Virginia, particularly in the Washington metro area. So commuters stuck in the usual traffic jam on Interstate 95 could be forgiven on Thursday if they were caught unawares when one quickly formed and then proceeded to travel right across the freeway in front of them. The tornado was one of two confirmed twisters in the area that day.

Perhaps not surprising was the fact several of those commuters thought to take photos and videos of the phenomena while stuck in their cars. Travel on the expressway had come to a halt in evening rush hour traffic, leaving motorists with nowhere to go in the face of the storm.

Here is some of the information regarding the tornadoes that hit Northern Virginia on Thursday.

* One of the tornadoes hit in the area that was the epicenter of August's earthquake.

* The tornadoes touched down primarily in New Kent County and Louisa County, Va. The New Kent County tornado is thought to have also touched down in Prince William County and Charles City.

* The New Kent funnel at times covered a path estimated to be six miles wide. That twister damaged an elementary school and at least 30 homes. Five of those homes were condemned as total losses on Friday.

* In Louisa County, the tornado endeavored to finish off the destruction of an historic plantation home that had been heavily damaged in the August earthquake. The house, known as Sylvania, was built in 1746.

* The tornadoes came as warnings and watches covered nearby areas including Baltimore and Arundel. Those areas were also under coastal flood warnings until noon on Friday.

* The weather is part of a larger severe-weather system that beat up the area on Thursday and Friday. Residents in both the Washington Metro area and Fairfax County, Virginia, were subjected to very heavy rains in addition to the tornadoes.

* There is the possibility that a third tornado actually touched down in the area as well, but the National Weather Service had yet to confirm those reports as of late Friday.

* Preliminary estimates by the National Weather Service regarding the New Kent County tornado pegged that funnel at approximately 95 miles per hour and 200 yards across. If those estimates prove accurate, that would make the New Kent twister a F1 category tornado according to the Fujita Tornado Scale.

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Maria prompts tropical storm watch in Bermuda (AP)

MIAMI – A tropical storm watch has been issued for Bermuda as Tropical Storm Maria crawls up the Atlantic.

Early Tuesday, Maria has maximum sustained winds near 50 mph (85 kph) with some strengthening forecast during the next two days.

Maria is centered about 340 miles (545 kilometers) east of the southeastern Bahamas and is moving north-northwest near 5 mph (7 kph). The U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami says Maria is expected to pass west of Bermuda on Thursday.

Maria's forecast track shows it curving away from the U.S.

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More rain spurs flash flood watch in battered Northeast (Reuters)

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Still mopping up after tropical storm Irene, Vermont and other Northeastern states were placed under a flash flood watch on Monday as more rain headed their way.

The National Weather Service issued flash flood watches for Monday afternoon lasting through Tuesday for a vast swath of the Northeast, including flooded areas of Vermont and parts of New Hampshire, Maine, Massachusetts and Connecticut down through Pennsylvania, New York and New Jersey.

"This is a potentially dangerous situation" the NWS said in a statement on its website. "Areas hard hit by tropical storm Irene last week will be susceptible to more flash flooding given the already wet and eroded ground. It will not take much rainfall to cause flash flooding in this situation."

The heaviest rain was expected on Monday afternoon.

"Periods of heavy rainfall to persist into Monday evening with localized amounts of 3 inches or greater likely," the weather service said.

"Several rounds of showers and thunderstorms containing torrential downpours will become more numerous today and should continue through tonight."

The areas hardest hit by Irene, including New York's Long Island, northern New Jersey and southern and central Vermont, were advised to be particularly wary of rising waters in rivers and streams that proved deadly in the last storm.

"The combination of today's heavy rainfall along with the ground being saturated from last weekend's rainfall with Irene will increase the threat for flash flooding," the NWS said.

The region also remains on the alert for high winds, with the remnants of Tropical Storm Lee heading northeasterly into the Appalachians by late Tuesday and Hurricane Katia, moving westward in the Atlantic, expected to kick up surf by midweek.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said a tornado touched down in Amsterdam, New York, near Albany, late on Sunday, damaging some structures but causing no serious injuries.

The governor said he called in search and rescue crews who were already in the Albany area due to damage from Irene.

(Reporting by Barbara Goldberg. Editing by Peter Bohan)

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Tornado warning for NYC expires; watch in place (AP)

NEW YORK – The National Weather Service says a tornado warning issued for the New York City boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens has expired, and a watch is in place.

The agency said radar had spotted rotating clouds in a severe thunderstorm approaching the area before 4 a.m. Sunday. The agency says the warning expired at 4:15 a.m. Sunday with a report of a toppled tree in the area but no immediate confirmation of any tornadoes.

Authorities had said that the approaching hurricane might spawn tornadoes. Irene is expected to make landfall in the New York City area at around 10 a.m.

A tornado watch remains in effect until 5 a.m. Sunday for New York City, Long Island and southern Connecticut. A tornado watch means conditions are favorable for tornadoes to form.

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