The List of the Strongest Tornadoes Ever Recorded (Pre-1970): Part II

Vehicle damage is one way to ascertain the intensity of historical tornadoes, particularly since cars built pre-1960 were significantly heavier than modern light-weight vehicles. At left, extreme vehicle damage following the 1953 Beecher tornado (Image from the Flint Public Library). At center, a destroyed car after the 1956 Hudsonville tornado (Image by Thelma Bakker). At right, a truck stripped to its frame following the catastrophic Udall tornado of 1955.

□ While nowhere near definitive, objectivity is attempted through the use of damage photographs, reliable survey reports and fatality statistics. Unverified accounts, vague newspaper descriptions and damage figures are not considered. Tornadoes that occurred before 1880 and tornadoes that caused less than 10 deaths are excluded to eliminate the thousands of rural storms that failed to attract significant media attention. Little to no photographic evidence makes the inclusion of some past tornadoes unfeasible without further information.

Click to see Part I.

The list of the strongest tornadoes from 1880 to 1969:

1. Sherman, Texas – May 15, 1896

2. De Soto/Murphysboro/West Frankfurt, Illinois – March 18, 1925

3. New Richmond, Wisconsin – June 12, 1899

4. Beecher, Michigan – June 8th, 1953

5. Hudsonville, Michigan – April 3, 1956

6. Tupelo, Mississippi – April 5, 1936

7. Udall, Kansas – May 25, 1955

8. Pomeroy, Iowa – July 6, 1893

9. Woodward, Oklahoma – April 9, 1947

10. Scott County, Mississippi – March 3, 1966

11. Ruskin Heights, Missouri – May 20, 1957

12. Snyder, Oklahoma – May 10, 1905

13. Colfax, Wisconsin – June 4, 1958

14. Gans, Oklahoma – January 22, 1957

15. Winston County, Alabama – April 20, 1920

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7. Udall, Kansas – May 25, 1955

The Udall tornado caused the highest death toll in a US town with a population under 1,000. The town’s block-long business district was wrecked, whereas homes immediately to the south were swept completely away.

□ On the evening of May 25, 1955, a powerful supercell thunderstorm was edging northward near Ponca City, Oklahoma. After spawning a tornado that took 20 lives in the town of Blackwell, the storm produced another tornado that touched down near the Kansas border just before 10pm. Witnesses in the area reported that the tornado, which was made visible by near constant lightning, was approximately a quarter mile wide early in its development (NWS Storm Reports). The storm widened and strengthened as it moved northward, eventually expanding to more than half a mile in diameter. Maps from the time show the tornado traveled almost due north, but damage patterns indicate the tornado made a turn to the northeast as it roared towards the tiny town of Udall, which had only 600 residents (LIFE, 1955). The town’s population was within the boundaries of a tornado watch but a slight bureaucratic delay meant that the alert was not issued until 10:08pm. As a result, most residents who watched the 10 o’clock news were told that all advisories had been lifted (Smith, 2010). Many residents were in bed at 10:25pm, the moment the storm struck.

As the tornado reached the southwestern edge of town, it devastated the local high school and hurled vehicles from nearby houses more than a quarter mile. A massive electrical arc lit up the sky as the tornado struck a power station on 3rd Street, causing the entire town to disappear into darkness. The roar of the approaching storm gave many residents valuable time to seek shelter but the intensity of the winds below 2nd Street left nowhere safe to take cover. Rows of homes were swept completely away as the core of F5 winds passed just south of the town’s commercial strip (LIFE, 1955). The ensuing blizzard of high velocity debris killed people who attempted to run towards the few underground storm caves in town, including a couple and their two children (Raw Data Report, 1955). After leveling the town hall, the tornado crossed the railroad tracks that bisect the center of Udall and obliterated buildings in a neighborhood to the northeast. A nursing home on East Lewis Street was destroyed, leading to multiple fatalities. After exiting town, the tornado left a wide streak of scoured vegetation. (LIFE, 1955). A total of 75 people were killed in Udall, and another five lost their lives in a home south of town.

When the final people succumbed to their injuries, 13% of the town’s population was dead. There were multiple fatalities in 17 households, with up to five deaths in a single home (List of Deceased). The incredible intensity of the tornado left unusual sights across town. The damage to Udall’s public school was perhaps the most intense ever photographed. Thick, steal cross-beams arching over the school’s gym were snapped and, in some cases, blown completely away (NWS image). Near one of the classrooms, the severely denuded frame of a Ford truck was left tangled in a partially debarked tree. Areas of grass around the campus were scoured from the ground, and low-lying vegetation was stripped bare (Udall Historical Museum). Farther inside town, power poles were snapped like toothpicks several feet above the ground and a 30ft by 40ft concrete block building was swept away. The Udall event remains by far the deadliest tornado in Kansas history and one of the worst disasters to ever occur within the boundaries of tornado alley.

Vehicles across town were thrown long distances and mangled beyond recognition. At left, the tornado’s most iconic sight was the remains of a truck wrapped around a tree near the public school. A postcard from the time wrote that the (very likely deceased) driver was found a quarter mile outside town. (Images from the Udall Historical Museum)

At left, the foundation of a home that was swept completely away. Nearly every home south of 2nd Street was obliterated in F5 fashion. At right, a grade school with thick brick walls was nearly leveled to the ground. (Images from the Udall Historical Museum)

Composite aerial view of the town taken two days later after only moderate clean-up had occurred. The southern section of town (at left) was swept completely away, leaving a checkerboard of empty foundations. The rest of the community was left as a patchwork of F5 to F0 damage, with the least damage occurring in the northwest corner of town.

At left, ground scouring just east of town. At right, a field near the high school that appears to have been stripped bare (as evidenced by the post-storm tire tracks, which are a common sight in ground effected by F5 winds). The trees in the background have been completely debarked. (Right image from the Udall Historical Museum)

6. Tupelo, Mississippi – April 5, 1936

Catastrophic damage following the 1936 Tupelo tornado.

□ One of the worst tornado disasters in world history occurred in the midst of a wide-scale severe weather outbreak that brought devastating tornadoes throughout the Southeastern United States in the spring of 1936. Just after 8pm on April 5th, a massive funnel touched down approximately eight miles southwest of Tupelo, Mississippi. Little is known about the tornado’s path outside the city, but several fatalities occurred in rural areas, including one person who was killed in a vehicle swept off a road (Mississippi State Geological Survey). As the tornado raced through the outskirts of town it swept away the Burroughs home, leading to the deaths of the couple and their 11 children (New York Times, 1936).

One witness described the storm as “four funnels that merged” just west of town (The Press-Scimitar, 1936). More than a dozen large, well-constructed plantation homes were swept completely away as the tornado entered the wealthy Willis Heights neighborhood (Grazulis, 1993). Reported damage patterns indicate the tornado had a complex multiple vortex structure as some homes adjacent to the worst devastation suffered relatively modest damage (Mississippi State Geological Survey). The tornado tore through residential neighborhoods just north of the city’s business district, with most of the destruction occurring in a 300 yard wide swath centered near the intersection of Madison and Allen Street. One witness recalled that “all of a sudden, all these houses across the street went down like paper” (Edith Gurner, 2008). Residents scrambled into unusual hiding spots as the tornado approached, including one man who survived the storm after crawling into a manhole.

The tornado likely moved in excess of 55mph and took less than two minutes to reach the eastern side of Tupelo. Tens of thousands of pounds of debris were centrifuged around the core of the tornado as it crossed Gum Pond, where dozens of bodies from across town were later recovered. Many of the dead pulled from the water were black victims who likely originated from a working class neighborhood several blocks to the west. Materials from across town piled against the eastern shore of the pond as the tornado exited the area and plowed to the northeast. Heavy timbers and construction beams pierced deeply into the ground and the thick, concrete Battle of Tupelo Monument was blown apart. Additionally, fields east of town were scoured of vegetation and left covered with pulverized debris the size of woodchips (Mississippi State Geological Survey).

After the storm passed, rescue workers and the citizens of Tupelo combed the wreckage as torrential rain fell over the area. One survivor later reported that there was an eerie silence in the worst affected areas, without a single cry or moan coming from the rubble (Moore, 1992). The condition of some of the bodies made determining even the sex of the dead challenging (Mississippi State Geological Survey). Entire families were wiped out in the storm, with multiple households suffering more than five fatalities. The tornado’s final death toll is debatable due to the unknown fate of approximately 100 critically injured white patients and an unknown (but likely similar) number of injured black residents (Grazulis, 1993). The official death toll of 216 only takes into account the immediate fatalities from the storm, so later estimates were increased to 233. A final figure of 250 deaths seems appropriate, making the Tupelo event the deadliest tornado disaster in a single US town (Grazulis, 1993). The fatality rate within the main damage swath was perhaps the highest of any tornado to cause more than 100 deaths since the turn of the 20th century. While the storm was largely forgotten amidst the turmoil of the Great Depression, it remains one of the most catastrophic severe weather events to occur on American soil.

Aerial views of damage in Tupelo. At left, the devastation around Gum Pond. Possible vegetation scouring is visible atop the mound at right center. At right, looking northeast at the tornado’s path through the city.

Views of damage in Tupelo. At left, the remains of homes and a tree that was stripped bare by Gum Pond. At bottom right, only sections of baseboard remain where a home once stood.

At left, complete devastation in the eastern section of town. At right, a heavily damaged mansion that was similar to nearby residences that were reduced to their foundations. The three-story Hoffman house at 365 North Church Street was swept completely away, leading to several fatalities.

At left, the remains of the Hoffman mansion, which was swept down to its baseboards. Homes across the street suffered relatively modest damage. At right, a field that was “stripped bare” just east of town. (Mississippi State Geological Survey, 1936)

5. Hudsonville, Michigan – April 3, 1956

The Hudsonville tornado never took on the “wedge” shape typical of most F5 tornadoes and instead appeared as a large funnel, sometimes with two or more vortices visible at once. (Image by Marvin Bueker)

□ In the spring of 1956, one of the most violent tornadoes ever documented touched down far outside tornado alley in the outskirts of Grand Rapids, Michigan. Thousands of residents across the area witnessed the widely visible funnel as it turned to the north-northeast at nearly 50mph. The first instances of F5 damage occurred only five minutes after touchdown as the tornado crossed New Holland Street. Several newly built homes in the area were swept completely away, leading to the storm’s first fatality. Heavy pieces of furniture from the destroyed residences were thrown several hundred yards at high speeds, leaving long gouge marks in the ground upon impact. Aerial views of ground scouring indicate that the tornado intensified even further as it continued towards the west side of Hudsonville. The storm was well into the F5 category when it crossed the intersection of Van Buren Street and 40th Avenue. Seven homes within a 100-yard wide streak nearly vanished without a trace. The Oostendorp home was swept completely away along with the flooring and plumbing fixtures, leading to the deaths of the homeowner and his infant son (1956tornadoes). Vegetation around the home was scoured from the ground or left clinging by only a few roots, whereas neighboring homes only 60 yards to the east were left damaged but still standing.

The tornado maintained its strength as it crossed Port Sheldon Street near Elmwood Lake. Approximately fifteen homes were considered destroyed in this area. Four fatalities occurred in one home that was swept completely away. The underground basement of the home where the fatalities occurred was swept clean of furniture and personal affects. Debris from obliterated structures was whipped into long lines of wind rowing that extended more than a half mile through the surrounding fields. A car that had been driving on Port Sheldon Street was hurled several hundred feet, killing the two occupants. In total, 13 deaths were reported in the Hudsonville area.

After crossing the Grand River, the tornado swept through rural areas near the town of Standale, where four people died (Sheboygan Journal Wisconsin, 1956). The tornado would continue for another 40 miles through sparsely populated areas north of Grand Rapids. The final fatality occurred near Comstock Park, where several homes were leveled to the ground. Photographs indicate that the tornado narrowed into a long, snake-like funnel in the latter stages of its life before finally dissipating. Overall, the tornado caused 18 deaths and completely obliterated nearly 100 homes.

The remains of a home where a man and his young son were killed. Vegetation around the bare foundation was scoured from the ground and the fallen tree trunk behind the home was debarked and stripped of branches. Much of the furniture and debris from the home was found more than a quarter mile away. Amazingly, the homeowner’s wife and daughter survived the tornado, though both were critically injured. (Image by Thelma Bakker)

Extreme damage to cars near Port Sheldon Street. The mangled car at right originated from a home where four fatalities occurred. (Images by Thelma Bakker)

Aerial view of F5 damage to two homes along 40th Avenue. The tornado’s narrow path was made visible by streaks of pronounced wind rowing, an indication of extreme intensity. Similar wind rowing was photographed throughout the tornado’s damage path. All of the photographs used in this section came from 1956tornadoes flickr page, which is the single best resource for information and imagery on the Hudsonville tornado.

Fascinating and Accurate Tornado Records – the Deadliest, the Fastest, the Rarest

Several EF5 tornadoes have thrown industrial equipment weighing in excess of 15,000 lbs long distances. At top left, the 2011 El Reno tornado hurled an oil tanker weighing approximately 25,000 lbs a mile without leaving any noticeable ground impacts. At top right, the 1970 Lubbock tornado tossed a 26,000 lb fertilizer tank 3/4 of a mile over a freeway and several undamaged fences. At bottom left, the 2011 Tuscaloosa tornado hurled a train car weighing 71,600lbs 130 yards in one throw, according to witnesses. At bottom right, the 1995 Pampa tornado lifted a 35,000 lb lathe.

□ Accurate tornado statistics can be difficult to find. Recording techniques were not standardized before the weather radar age, so information on tornadoes that occurred before 1970 is often unreliable. Furthermore, lists of the deadliest and longest tracked tornadoes in world history are easy to find and dominated by 19th and early-20th century events.

To level the playing field and promote the dissemination of credible information, all of the following records cover tornadoes that occurred after 1970. Click each link in the index below to jump to a specific section. This page will undoubtably go through several edits and expand as more notable tornado records are uncovered. 

I. The Deadliest Tornadoes on Record

II. The Longest Tornado Damage Paths

III. The Fastest Tornadoes Ever Recorded

IV. Violent or Unusual Tornado Records

-IVa. The Highest Altitude Violent Tornado

-IVb. The Deadliest and Most Intense Anticyclonic Tornado Ever Recorded

-IVc. The Deadliest Hurricane Spawned Tornado

-IVd. The Highest Tornado Fatality Rate

-IVe. The Most Fatalities in a Single Building

-IVf. The Most Fatalities in a Single Mobile Home Park

-IVg. The Fastest Tornado Movement Ever Recorded Using Photogrammetry

-IVh. The Heaviest Object Ever Lifted by a Tornado

V. Graphs

Va. Graph of Tornadoes Causing 10+ and 20+ Fatalities by Decade

Vb. Graph of the Deadliest Tornadoes by Decade

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I.
□ The Deadliest Tornadoes on Record

The 2011 Joplin tornado was by far the deadliest tornado of the past 50 years. Considering the storm’s incredible intensity and size, it is remarkable the number of deaths did not surpass 200. All three of the deadliest tornadoes since 1970 occurred during the 2011 tornado season, the worst in modern history.

1. 158 fatalities – Joplin, Missouri – May 22, 2011

□ A violent EF5 tornado rapidly intensified as it entered heavily populated sections of Joplin. The storm holds the post-1970 record for the most fatalities in frame homes (approximately 70) and the most fatalities in commercial buildings (approximately 20). The commercial deaths do not include the large number of fatalities at medical facilities, churches and private organizations.

2. 72 fatalities – Hackleburg/Phil Campbell, Alabama – April 27, 2011

□ One of the most impressive tornadic events in history carved a 132-mile path of devastation through largely rural areas of northern Alabama. The EF5 tornado had an exceptionally high fatality to injury ratio. The storm holds the post-1970 record for the longest swath of EF5 damage (including approximately 40 consecutive miles at EF5 intensity).

3. 64 fatalities – Tuscaloosa/Concord, Alabama – April 27, 2011

□ Borderline EF5 tornado caused more than 40 deaths in Tuscaloosa. Extremely well-covered by local news agencies and photographers. Caused high-end EF4 damage from Tuscaloosa to the suburbs of Birmingham.

4. ≈47 fatalities – Pugh City, Mississippi – February 21, 1971

□ A fast-moving F4 tornado nearly wiped out the town of Pugh City, killing 22 residents. Dozens of small homes were swept completely away. Official death toll of 58 is likely the result of a tornado family.

5. 42 fatalities – Wichita Falls, Texas – April 10, 1979

□ A large tornado left a wide swath of marginal F4 damage in Wichita Falls. The historic storm holds the post-1970 record for the greatest number of fatalities in vehicles (25). The majority of the deaths in automobiles were people attempting to flee the storm.

6. ≈41 fatalities – Inverness, Mississippi – February 21, 1971

□ A fast-moving F5 tornado passed directly through the town of Inverness, killing approximately 20 residents. Most of the deaths were in poorly built homes that were obliterated.

7. 36 fatalities – Bridge Creek/Moore, Oklahoma – May 3, 1999

□ Violent F5 tornado killed 13 people in rural areas while at maximum intensity. The storm then caused another 23 deaths as it tracked through the Oklahoma City suburbs. Holds record for the highest doppler velocity ever measured – approximately 302mph.

8a. 32 fatalities – Oak Grove, Alabama – April 8, 1998

□ Marginal F5 tornado caused a high number of fatalities as it chewed through small towns near Birmingham after dark. The worst damage was confined to several small streaks of intense devastation.

8b. 32 fatalities – Xenia, Ohio – April 3, 1974

□ Infamous multi-vortex tornado became the deadliest and most damaging single storm in the 1974 Super Outbreak. Brief film of the tornado captured by a high school student was broadcast on news networks across the world.

9. 31 fatalities – Brandenburg, Kentucky – April 3, 1974

□ Violent F5 tornado swept away well-constructed houses in the town of Brandenburg. The storm struck far fewer homes than the Xenia tornado yet caused a similar death toll due to its extreme intensity.

10. 30 fatalities – Saragosa, Texas – May 22, 1987

□ Short lived multi-vortex tornado touched down and rapidly intensified as it passed over a small town in southwest Texas. Most of the fatalities occurred in the destruction of a crowded church.

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II.
□ The Longest Tornado Damage Paths

-Due to the high number of tornado families that have been officially recorded as a single storm, an accurate list is difficult to compile. Tornadoes thought to have been two or more separate storms are not included. This list will undoubtably go through various edits.

The longest tracked tornadoes generally occur in the South in the spring and fall when upper-level winds are more conductive to rapid forward movement. At left, one of the longest tracked tornadoes in history caused EF5 damage in Hackleburg. At right, an extremely long-lived nighttime tornado killed four people in the obliterated home at bottom near Jackson, Mississippi, in 1992. The body of one of the occupants was found in a tree a quarter mile from the foundation (Grazulis, 1997).

1. 149 miles – Yazoo City, Mississippi – April 24, 2010

□ A large, often obscured tornado sped through central Mississippi, killing 10 people in and near Yazoo City. The majority of the damage path was through sparsely populated forestland.

2. 132 miles – Hackleburg/Phil Campbell, Alabama to TN – April 27, 2011

□ Violent EF5 tornado travelled across nearly all of northern Alabama, causing 72 deaths before crossing the Tennessee border and continuing for an additional ten miles through Franklin County. The storm left strong tornado damage (EF3+) over more than 110 miles (NWS Survey).

3a. 128 miles – Brandon, Mississippi – November 21, 1992

□ Violent, rain-wrapped tornado killed 12 near Jackson around midnight. Four of the deaths occurred when a large, two-story brick home in the Easthaven subdivision was completely destroyed.

3b. 128 miles – Cordova, Alabama – April 27, 2011

□ Fast-moving tornado killed 13 people in Alabama. While officially rated an EF4, the tornado left severe ground scouring in unpopulated areas and hurled a vehicle nearly one mile.

4. 124 miles – Raleigh, Mississippi to AL – April 27, 2011

□ A Lesser know violent tornado during the 2011 Super Outbreak killed 7 in Mississippi and Alabama. Formed farther south than most of the tornadoes on April 27 and left a quarter-mile wide swath of fallen trees through a forest reserve.

5. 122 miles – Clinton, Arkansas – February 5, 2008

□ A fast-moving and long duration EF4 tornado ripped through largely rural areas of Arkansas. The 13 fatalities were spread out over a 30 mile area beginning in Pope County.

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III.
□ The Fastest Tornadoes Ever Recorded

-Due to their rapidly shifting nature, it is difficult to ascertain the forward speed of a tornado over a specified time period. Decaying tornadoes can momentarily exceed 90mph, but these great speeds are never maintained. Most of the fastest tornadoes occur in the South from late-November through April, but similar conditions can cause extremely fast moving tornadoes from Tennessee to Michigan.

In 2012, an extremely violent and fast-moving tornado was filmed as it sped through the town of Henryville, Indiana, at more than 60mph (Video contains strong language). The multi-vortex tornado was powerful enough to loft vehicles more than 200 yards, scour a highway of pavement and completely sweep away several large, two-story brick homes. While rated an EF4 by the NWS, the tornado probably had instantaneous gusts capable of causing EF5 damage in areas east of Henryville. (Video by Rhett Adams)

1a. 70mph+ – April 27, 2011

Many of the tornadoes in the 2011 Super Outbreak reached speeds of 70mph at some point in their development. Examples include the Hackleburg/Phil Campbell tornado as it ripped through Marion and Franklin Counties and the Smithville, Mississippi, tornado as it caused some of the most intense EF5 damage ever photographed in Monroe County.

1b. 70mph+ – March 2, 2012

The deadliest tornado outbreak of 2012 brought violent and fast-moving tornadoes to the states of Indiana and Kentucky. The deadliest two tornadoes in the outbreak – the Henryville, Indiana, tornado and the West Liberty, Kentucky, tornado – may have approached 75mph in periods of their development.

1c. 70mph+ – April 3, 1974

During the 1974 Super Outbreak, nearly every supercell was moving in excess of 50mph. The violent tornadoes that occurred in the state of Alabama – including the infamous Guin tornado – may have reached or momentarily surpassed 75mph.

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IV.
□ Violent or Unusual Tornado Records

IVa. The Highest Altitude Violent Tornado

One of the most unusual tornadoes in recorded history touched down high in the mountains near Yellowstone National Park on July 21, 1987. The rain-wrapped tornado, which travelled at nearly 60mph, was imbedded within an exceptionally violent mesocyclone that contained large hail and frequent microbursts. Fujita toured the 1.5 mile wide damage swath and noted bursts of extreme tree damage consistent with violent (F4/F5) tornadic winds more than 9,000ft above sea level (the worst damage is visible as the lighter area on the hillside just above center). Some mountain peaks affected by the storm were at an altitude of nearly 11,000ft (Fujita, 1989). The rare storm, which was likely capable of causing a wide swath of EF2, EF3 and EF4 damage early in its life, proved that potentially catastrophic tornadoes can occur well-outside “tornado alley.” Had the storm impacted a large population center, it could have caused damage and loss of life comparable to the 2011 Joplin tornado.

IVb. The Deadliest and Most Intense Anticyclonic Tornado Ever Recorded

In April of 1981, a thunderstorm developed over Washington County, Wisconsin. The storm resembled a typical nighttime thunderstorm on weather radar, so no tornado watch was issued. Despite the storm’s modest size and low cloud tops, it spawned an unusual anticyclonic tornado just after midnight. The short-lived tornado touched down at the edge of a neighborhood in the town of West Bend (visible above) and immediately began causing F4 damage (Wakimoto, 1983). Several two-story houses were leveled to the ground and three people were killed, including one man who was thrown more than 50 yards from his destroyed home. The rapidly intensifying tornado was exceptionally narrow, often less than 50 yards in width, and dissipated after traveling less than two miles. The event remains a meteorological oddity and the only violent anticyclonic tornado ever recorded. (Images by Patrick Golembiewski)

IVc. The Deadliest Hurricane Spawned Tornado 

In October of 1964, Hurricane Hilda made landfall in Louisiana as a weakening Category 3 storm. Before the hurricane’s eye reached the coast, a violent tornado was spawned 30 miles south of New Orleans in a marshy area near the Gulf of Mexico. The F4 tornado travelled westward over a narrow strip of homes and buildings that lined a waterway in the town of Larose, killing 22 residents. Some homes were swept completely away and many of the bodies were carried more than 100 yards and later recovered in a nearby bayou. The storm remains the deadliest hurricane spawned tornado in US history and one of the strongest such storms ever recorded.

IVd. The Highest Above-Ground Tornado Fatality Rate

On May 27, 1997, perhaps the most violent tornado in modern history passed over two clusters of homes just outside Jarrell, Texas. The slow-moving F5 tornado completely swept away two dozen homes and ground the debris into tiny pieces. Within the streak of worst damage, which expanded over a quarter-mile in width, there were no survivors above ground. All of the vegetation in the worst affected areas was scoured from the ground, leaving nothing but empty foundations and fields of mud.

IVe. The Most Fatalities in a Single Building (post-1970)

At left, the 1987 Saragosa, Texas, tornado killed 22 people in the Guadelupe Church during a graduation ceremony for young students. At center, the 1994 Piedmont, Alabama, tornado killed 20 parishioners at the Goshen United Methodist Church during Palm Sunday services (Survey Report). At right, the 2011 Joplin tornado leveled and partially swept away the Greenbriar Nursing Home. Of the approximately 90 residents and nurses in the building, 21 died.

IVf. The Most Fatalities in a Single Mobile Home Park

In November of 2005, a fast-moving nighttime tornado touched down near Evasnville, Indiana. Around 2am, the multi-vortex tornado struck the Eastbrook Mobile Home Park while most of the area’s residents were asleep. A total of 20 people were killed as the F3 tornado swept away mobile homes along the southern edge of the park. The event remains the deadliest tornado disaster in a mobile home park. In July of 1987, one of Canada’s deadliest tornadoes killed 15 people in the Evergreen Mobile Home Park in Edmonton, Alberta.

IVg. The Fastest Tornado Movement Ever Recorded Using Photogrammetry

Photogrammetry is a technique that allows for the measurement of debris movement in the visible portions of tornadoes. The highest officially calculated velocity using Fujita’s meticulous techniques was 284mph in the 1974 Parker City, Indiana, tornado (Forbes, Bluestein, 2001). The official analysis program ended in the 80’s, but rough calculations by Tom Grazulis indicated particle motions of 300mph just above ground-level in the 1995 Pampa, Texas, tornado (two vehicles are visible mid-air left of the funnel). Basic photogrammetry techniques indicate the 2007 Elie, Manitoba, tornado was of similar intensity (a van being thrown 200 yards from the tornado is visible at right).

IVh. The Heaviest Object Ever Lifted by a Tornado

In June of 1990, an exceptionally violent tornado formed in the desert-land of southwest Texas. Near the end of the tornado’s path in Bakersfield Valley, a production facility was destroyed (at left) and three oil tanks weighing 180,000lbs were moved three miles to the east. Two of the tanks were found 600ft up a hillside with a 40 degree incline. This is one of the most impresive instances of tornado damage ever recorded and perhaps the only documented instance of an object over 100,000 lbs being moved a long distance. (Images by Wayne Greene)

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V.
□ Va. Graph of Tornadoes Causing 10+ Deaths by Decade

Since the the 70’s, the average amount of lead-time preceding a tornado has not changed significantly. As a result, the trend towards fewer fatalities has bottomed out. Urban sprawl and the increasing population in many severe weather-prone states will likely lead to an upturn in tornadoes causing 10 or more fatalities in the coming decades. Due to the random nature of all weather disasters, there is extreme variance in the number of deaths per year. Using a statistical bell curve of all tornado fatalities from 1980 to 2010, the 2011 tornado season’s death toll would have been expected less than once in a million years. In reality, a deadlier season is likely in the next century.

□ Vb. Graph of the Deadliest Tornadoes by Decade

No single tornado caused more than 50 deaths between 1955 and 2011. After several widely visible and well-covered tornadoes (Xenia ’74, Wichita Falls ’79, Bridge Creek ’99) failed to cause more than 100 fatalities, it was considered by some an “impossibility” in the weather-radar age. In truth, major cities and crowded freeways open the possibility to a single storm causing more than 1,000 deaths.