The Temple Ambler Field Station is finding research and educational opportunities in the aftermath of an EF-2 tornado.

"The tornado provided a unique opportunity to study and teach lessons on the effects of climate change and the recovery of the forests right at our doorstep," says Amy Freestone, professor of biology at the College of Science and Technology.

About 1,100 trees were either uprooted or damaged from the destructive climate-driven disturbance of the tornado. Some of the Temple Forest Observatory's biggest trees—a 140.6 cm in diameter tulip poplar and a 35 m-high red oak—fell from their roots and were lost after the EF2-level tornado from Hurricane Ida hit Temple Ambler on Sept. 1, 2021.

Freestone adds that researchers now have a special opportunity to observe the growth of the forest at Temple Ambler as it continues to recover from the ecological disturbance.

Watch the story on WMAR2 Baltimore.

Destroyed forest teaches new lessons on recovering from disaster