Bucks County residents hunkered down during storm: 'It sounded like a bomb went off'

BUCKINGHAM, Pennsylvania (WPVI) -- A tornado moved through Bucks County, Pennsylvania into New Jersey Thursday, leaving major damage in its path.

This tornado was confirmed by the debris field on radar; it was one of at least four possible locations that saw tornadoes in the afternoon to the evening hours.

Several of the tornadoes were confirmed on radar because of the large debris field.

The storm blew through the Bensalem and New Hope areas of Bucks County on the Pennsylvania side of the Delaware River.

That same line of thunderstorms crossed over into Hopewell Township and Trenton in Mercer County. Witnesses reported seeing a large tornado on the ground.

WATCH: Tornado damage across Philadelphia region

The damage from tornadoes and severe storms stretched from the Lehigh Valley in Pennsylvania to the beaches in New Jersey.

The path of destruction left behind uprooted trees, parts of homes and businesses ripped off.

Chopper 6 was over the area Friday morning:

The morning after a tornado swept through, Chopper 6 surveys the damage in Hopewell Township, Mercer County.

Matt Maximuck, who owns a 100-acre farm in Buckingham, says the storm sounded like a freight train.

"It blew the roof off my barn and as you can see, shattered the glass windows on my greenhouses. It was a mess," said Maximuck.

"It sounded like a bomb went off." Residents in Bucks County are cleaning up after a severe storm left behind some major destruction on Thursday night.

In nearby Plumstead, a giant 50 to 60-foot tree came crashing down in a garage as a frightened homeowner sat nearby.

"It sounded like a bomb went off, things were hitting the house. It was very scary," said Virgina Sodi.

SEE ALSO: Storm leaves path of destruction after 'dangerous tornado' spotted in Philadelphia region

At the Faulkner dealership, you could see buildings were torn apart and cars flipped over.

The sound of chainsaws could be heard all through the area as people tried to cut pathways through the debris. Crews were also hard at work to restore power to the customers.

"We were down in the basement as it blew through here. There was a lot of wind bringing down all sorts of stuff. If you go down the road, you can see a straight line of trees that were brought down and power lines," said Dave Bloom of Buckingham.

There are multiple road closures in effect until further notice. The current list includes a complete closure of Street Road from Richlieu Road to Trevose Road; Old Lincoln Highway from Route 1 to Bristol Road; the area of Linconia Park has also been closed to all traffic.

The Red Cross has opened a shelter at Neshaminy High School for anyone who needs it.

A possible tornado also struck Weisenberg Township, Lehigh County. Two other tornado locations were confirmed by the debris field on radar: Bensalem/Trevose area and Waretown/Barnegat Light area.

Our sister station WABC-TV was over the storm damage on Long Beach Island, Ocean County:

John Del Giorno and Newscopter 7 survey storm damage on Long Beach Island, New Jersey.

Action News Meteorologist Karen Rogers explains, typically, tornadoes in our area are not on the ground long enough to collect enough debris that they can be spotted on radar. However, three such tornadoes occurred on Thursday.

The National Weather Service will be on the scene across the Philadelphia region Friday to survey damage from the storm.