If it seems like more tornadoes are striking Western Pa. — they are

A spate of tornadoes have spun up in Western Pennsylvania with unprecedented frequency this spring.

The National Weather Service in Moon’s coverage area, which includes Western Pennsylvania, Eastern Ohio and Northern West Virginia, has already seen 14 tornadoes in 2024, which is more than double the annual average of six tornadoes, meteorologists say.

Six of those have been confirmed in May alone in Western Pennsylvania, according to the NWS.

The last time the region experienced such a large onslaught of twisters was in May 1985. There were 11 that month.

On Saturday, three tornadoes were confirmed in Western Pennsylvania: in Finleyville in Washington County, the New Salem area in Fayette County and Fike Run in Fayette County, according to the National Weather Service thread on the social media platform X.

All the surveys are done. Here is the information from the Finleyville tornado that touched down last Saturday in Washington county PA. pic.twitter.com/lAUxHLBwFo

— NWS Pittsburgh (@NWSPittsburgh) May 13, 2024

The twisters in Fayette County were from the same circulation, said Shannon Hefferan, a National Weather Service meteorologist. She said debris could be seen up to 3,000 feet in the air on the radar Saturday.

“It’s been an active season, definitely,” she said. “And we’re not even in the peak season.”

June is the more active period for tornadoes, according to Hefferan. She added that this week is looking quiet, with no severe weather potential so far.

The weather has been warm and there’s been moisture, which can lead to tornadoes, she said.

Ashley Dougherty, a meteorologist at WTAE, said it’s rare to have such an early start to tornado season.

“But with such a mild winter and warming up much earlier, it’s not too shocking,” she said. “Basically, the severe weather season started a month early, so it’s kind of a wait-and-see (period) to see what our June will be like.”

Dougherty also credited La Niña, a climate pattern in the Pacific Ocean that affects weather worldwide, which can be a harbinger of more severe weather.

However, other conditions have to be present as well, Hefferan said, such as moisture at the surface, cold air aloft, directional winds, high vertical winds, a destabilizing atmosphere and other factors.

“High vertical winds help fuel rotating thunderstorms,” she said.

On Saturday when the three tornadoes occurred, she said, there was a “lower probability” of them happening.

“We try our best to forecast, but we use the warnings to get the notice out,” Hefferan said. “Right now, it’s more active season — everybody just needs to be more aware of what’s going on in the weather.”

Tornadoes can happen in any state, including Pennsylvania, even though it’s not a tornado hotbed, she said.

“Tornado Alley is an area of the U.S. where there is a high potential for tornado development,” AccuWeather senior meteorologist Dan Kottlowski said. “This area encompasses much of northern Texas northward through Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri and parts of Louisiana, Iowa, Nebraska and eastern Colorado.”

When storms become severe, Hefferan suggests checking social media, TV and alerts, as well as knowing safe spots to take shelter in the event of a tornado.

“If you’re in the path of it, you want to take shelter immediately,” she said.