Massachusetts Communities Recover After Five Tornadoes Touch Down
BERLIN, MA – September 7, 2025 – Multiple Massachusetts towns are assessing damage following the confirmation of five EF1 tornadoes that struck on Saturday, September 6, 2025. The National Weather Service (NWS) survey team identified touchdowns in Paxton, holden, Berlin, and Stow.
Damage was primarily limited to uprooted trees, and thankfully, no injuries or fatalities have been reported. The NWS estimates peak winds reached 100-104 mph across the five separate tornado paths.
In Berlin, resident Steve Dennis described the tornado’s path as aligning with a forecast he’d heard. “the guy from the weather bureau, he was telling us that these things traveled usually in the north – they go northeast,” Dennis said. “I’m like, ‘Okay, well that’s north, that’s east. And there it is going northeast.’ Just like the guy said.” Dennis reported minimal damage to his property, noting only downed trees and displaced recycling barrels, and remarkably, his decorative reindeer remained intact.
Town officials were quick to respond. “We weren’t actually expecting one. But we knew the thunderstorm was coming through and it started off just about 4:30, like every other storm dose, where we had some wires down,” said Berlin Fire Chief Michael McQuillen. “Quickly things changed as the crews started responding.”
Chief McQuillen and Town Administrator Kristen Rubin utilized an emergency response drone to survey the damage. Rubin stated, “We started surveying the damage and it was like nothing that I had ever seen before; except on television.So, the one positive aspect appeared to be that much of it was in the woods.”
emergency crews from Berlin, including fire, police, EMS, and the highway department, along with mutual aid from boylston, have been working to restore power and assess infrastructure. McQuillen noted the potential for further damage from weakened trees, stating, “There’s a lot of cases out there where a tree fell in one direction, where it fell to the left, and if it hadn’t fallen to the right, it really would have destroyed a house.It would have crushed a house with people inside.”
Dennis echoed a sentiment shared by many residents, saying, “Plunked itself right here. But I guess all of us feel lucky that the buildings all made it intact.”
Fire Chief McQuillen is urging residents to inspect trees for loose, hanging branches that could pose a future hazard.
