A tornado that hit Longview, Washington, on Thursday sent debris flying and ended in downed power lines and closed streets, the Weather Channel reported. The twister was classified as an EF1 on the Enhanced Fujita scale, which means it would have reached wind speeds of up to 110 miles per hour.

No injuries were reported, according to KIRO-TV, but the tornado "ripped roofs off buildings, uprooted trees and shattered windows Thursday afternoon." The Seattle-based station qualified the phenomenon as "rare" in that part of the country. Weather Channel expert Greg Forbes said it was only the third tornado to hit the area since the 1950s.

Even local Fire Chief Phil Jurmu was caught by surprise: "I kind of furrowed my brow, probably, and said, 'What?'" he told KATU-TV of Portland, according to The Associated Press. But backed by the National Guard, police and fire crews immediately responded to the hardest-hit area, Jurmu said.

A National Weather Service team out of Portland that surveyed the damage said it extended for more than a mile and across 200 feet.

Business in downtown Longview, a city of about 36,000, were hardest hit, KIRO-TV said. The twister tore the roofs off several buildings, and Longview Sewing owner Bradley Parker told the station he has to move out all of his inventory because of the damage.

"It was a very long 30 seconds, very long," he said. "But everybody was good. Nobody got hurt. That's the thing that matters most."

Others in the city reported to be startled when the tornado first touched down around 1 p.m.

"All of the sudden you started hearing popping and everything from other buildings. Somebody yelled, 'Tornado!' and we all ran inside," Steve Scott told KIRO-TV.

"It was like a waterfall going a thousand miles an hour," resident Dan Lewis said.