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Westfield Mayor: Timing Of Tornado May Have Been A Good Thing

WESTFIELD (CBS) - The city of Westfield appears to be the first place to feel the effects of the tornadoes.

The damage there was significant, but everyone there managed to escape with their lives.

When the storm hit, many residents were still on the roads returning from work. The Mayor says timing of the storm may have been a good thing.

WBZ NewsRadio 1030's Ben Parker reports

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"School had recently just dismissed the kids, so I guess in a way, probably one of the good things was that many of the homes were unoccupied at the time," said Mayor Daniel Knapik.

People were running for cover when the storm hit. They only had a matter of minutes to react.

WBZ-TV's Peg Rusconi reports

The National Weather Service is studying the path of destruction in that town to determine the extent of the tornado.

"You see very concentrated damage in one area and then very little damage just outside, said Bob Thompson of the National Weather Service. "We're also seeing debris that's been taken a fair distance away, which suggests it's been lifted up and taken away."

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