A tornado packing 125 mph winds cut a 17-mile swath of destruction through Montgomery and Schenectady counties on Wednesday, uprooting trees, shearing off roofs and injuring a man when his stable was torn apart, the National Weather Service said Thursday.

A second tornado touched down in Schoharie County, though it was weaker and caused less damage.

The first tornado made landfall in the town of Florida at approximately 6:45 p.m. with the funnel cloud remaining on the ground as it swept into western Schenectady County. It ended in Rotterdam.

"There is so much damage it is unbelievable," said Vasil Koleci, a National Weather Service meteorologist.

The first twister was categorized as a EF 2 on the tornado scale, meaning it was a significant tornado. At times, the twister was a mile wide.

The second tornado touched down in Summit at 7 p.m. It lasted 15 minutes and knocked down trees near the intersection of Dutch Hill and Wharton Hollow roads. That tornado was rated EF 1, cut a two-mile path and had a maximum wind speed of 100 mph.

On Thursday, the whine of chain saws and generators filled the air along many Capital Region streets in communities from Rotterdam to Troy, where thousands of people remained without power as Thursday evening approached.

Utility crews and municipal workers were also busy for hours in hard hit Clifton Park and Colonie.

While most residents escaped physical injury, Brian Pedersen of Mariaville was not so fortunate.

He suffered cuts to his back and head from flying debris, said his wife, Tracy Pedersen. She said her husband, who was hospitalized, was doing fine Thursday afternoon, although he had plastic surgery and facial and arm bruising.

The Pedersens' house was leveled, a portion pushed off its foundation, and a new two-story garage was flattened. A new horse barn and indoor riding ring, an outdoor riding ring and an older barn didn't fare any better.

Tracy Pedersen said 70- to 100-foot trees next to the home were knocked down.

The Pedersens are now stabling their horses at area barns, and Tracy Pedersen was searching Thursday afternoon for a place for her and the couple's four dogs to stay.

"The challenge is finding a place that will let you stay with four dogs," she said.

In Schenectady, Mayor Gary McCarthy said Thursday afternoon that the city removed 800 tons of debris from the streets, much of it from the Bellevue section.

The tornado also caused heavy damage in the Woodlawn and Mont Pleasant neighborhoods.

As of 2 p.m. Thursday, about 1,500 residents still had no power.

Three normally busy streets – Broadway, Campbell Avenue and Consaul Road – remained closed for a good part of Thursday.

McCarthy urged residents to be cautious, especially around downed power lines and if the smell of gas is detected. On Wednesday, three gas leaks were reported.

He said Thursday afternoon that it was too early to estimate the cost to the city in overtime to clean up debris.

"We staffed at a level to meet the crisis," said McCarthy, adding that the severe weather caught the city by surprise. "The most important thing is we came through this without any personal injuries."

Schenectady resident Meg Cauthorn was closing windows to keep out the rain when a swamp maple tree in her backyard crashed onto a tractor trailer truck parked in back of the Dollar General store next to her Fairview Avenue home. Before the tree snapped, she watched from her back door as wind gusts pushed it to a 20 degree angle.

"It was like dynamite. It was incredible," she said.

Frank Impellizzeri was in the basement of his Perry Street home, also in Bellevue, when a towering maple tree crashed into his living room.

The 64-year-old Impellizzeri escaped injury but he may have to move out because support beams in the dwelling were damaged and the foundation and chimney shifted. A neighbor said he and Impellizzeri had recently talked about splitting the cost of taking down the tree.

Impellizzeri's neighbor, Emmett Inserra, took damage to his own property in stride.

"I never liked that tree anyway," he said of the honey locust in his front yard that brought down power lines when it toppled onto his front lawn. In the backyard, another tree was on the roof of his detached garage. "We're fortunate the house is still intact," he said. "What are you going to do? You just have to pick yourself up, brush yourself off and move on."