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A powerful microburst, not a tornado, caused significant damage in Tempe on Oct. 13.

The storm was part of the remnants of Hurricane Priscilla affecting the Phoenix area.

Microbursts are sudden, straight-line downdrafts of wind from a thunderstorm.

With trees down, power outages and debris scattered across Tempe, it might seem like a tornado touched down in the area , but the city was actually hit by a powerful microburst, according to the National Weather Service office in Phoenix.

While residents posted the carnage on social media, rumors of a tornado are "false," said Gabriel Lojero, a meteorologist with the weather service's Phoenix office.

"We received a lot of damage reports of very large trees down in the Tempe area," Lojero said.

The microburst occurred

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