NASH COUNTY, N.C. â Dozens of homes and buildings were damaged or completely destroyed and 16 people were injured when an EF-3 tornado ripped through Nash and Edgecombe counties Wednesday.
The National Weather Service confirmed it was an EF-3 tornado with winds of up to 150 mph. An EF-3 tornado is the fourth strongest type of tornado on a scale of six -- ranging from least violent (EF-0) to most violent (EF-5).
It is the second-ever EF-3 tornado to hit North Carolina in the month of July. The tornado may have covered a path as long as 20 miles, according to WRAL meteorologists. The debris wall of the tornado was about 2 miles wide near Interstate 95 in Nash County.
The roof was torn off the Pfizer facility in Rocky Mount and much of the plant was destroyed. Nash County Sheriff Keith Stone told WRAL News he heard reports that 50,000 pallets of medicine were destroyed when the tornado hit Pfizer.
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