blowdown
An area of forest where trees have been knocked flat by wind — a catastrophic windthrow event, sometimes affecting thousands of acres. A blowdown turns a vertical forest horizontal in minutes. The fallen trunks lie parallel, all pointing the same direction, recording the wind's path like compass needles.
Notes
Also called windthrow, which is already in the file. Blowdown emphasizes the event; windthrow emphasizes the process.
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