Topic: Tornado Alley 2009 - Tornado season across the Mid-West has begun

[Harley Pearman]

Tornado Watch 195

This is part of a much larger broader Weather Statement updated 20090426/2316 from the National Weather Service. The radar image attached is from 2316 pm.

THE NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTRE HAS ISSUED A TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF
SOUTH CENTRAL AND SOUTH EASTERN KANSAS
WESTERN AND CENTRAL OKLAHOMA
NORTHWEST TEXAS INCLUDING THE EASTERN PANHANDLE

EFFECTIVE THIS SUNDAY NIGHT AND MONDAY MORNING FROM 615 PM UNTIL 300 AM CDT.

...THIS IS A PARTICULARLY DANGEROUS SITUATION...

DESTRUCTIVE TORNADOES... LARGE HAIL TO 3 INCHES IN DIAMETER...
THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS TO 70 MPH... AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS

THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS APPROXIMATELY ALONG AND 85 STATUTE MILES EAST AND WEST OF A LINE FROM 45 MILES WEST NORTHWEST OF EMPORIA KANSAS TO 90 MILES SOUTHWEST OF WICHITA FALLS TEXAS. FOR A COMPLETE DEPICTION OF THE WATCH SEE THE ASSOCIATED WATCH OUTLINE UPDATE (WOUS64 KWNS WOU5).

That was part of the Tornado Watch 195 issued by the National Weather Service - Storm Prediction Centre 26/4/09. The fact this it had a "Particularly Dangerous Situation" statement attached to it made it quite significant.

The radar image of the thunderstorms that triggered this type of alert is attached. This too is sourced from the National Weather Service - Storm Prediction Centre 26/4/2009.

Two narrow lines of thunderstorms are present in the image with the southern one just east of Childress and well to the east of Lubbock in Texas.

The second line is situated in western Oklahoma (just east of the Panhandle) and well into Kansas. The city of Wichita in Kansas is threatened by an intense storm at the time.

There were 11 tornado reports and some 124 hail reports from the events including 5 "Large hail reports" - Hail greater than 2 inches in diameter for 26/4/2009. Some tornado reports were not significant however some significant ones include:-

2159 - 1 Mile east of Coggan in Linn County Iowa. The Ryan Fire Department reported a tornado on the ground east of town.

Note:- Coggin is NE of Cedar Rapids on Route 13. It is a largely rural area.

2223 - 1 Mile SW of Buck Creek in Delaware County Iowa. A tornado was reported to be on the ground.

Note:- Located in eastern Iowa. Largely a rural area.

2249 - 4 Miles NW of Viola in Sedgwick County Kansas. A tornado was reported.

Note:- Viola is approximately 18 miles SW of Wichita on Route 42.

2259 - 5 Miles SW of Mid Continent Airport in Sedgwick County Kansas. An observer estimated the width of a tornado at 300 feet (90 metres).

Note:- Mid Continent Airport is on the western outskirts of Wichita off Route 42. This tornado was close to the western outskirts of Wichita at the time.

2258 - 2 Miles SW of Lake Afton in Sedgwick County Kansas. A KWCH Chaser reports home damage due to a tornado.

It is possible that the tornado reports from Sedgewick County is from the same tornado that has tracked NE from near Viola to near the airport which is a distance of at least 15 miles (Nearly 24 km). This is quite possibly a significant tornado that has occurred very close to Wichita.

(Reports sourced from the Storm Prediction Centre 26/4/2009).

Harley Pearman

[David C]

There were some nice tornadoes from the storm that tracked across NW Oklahoma, Harley. Tim Marshall has some nice pictures of an elephant trunk / beautiful wall cloud near Roll, OK.

The further outlook suggests some decent H5 flow will remain in place until the end of the month, which may yield a few relaxing chase days, some hint of upper level system around the typical May 4 period and then NW flow regime through to mid-May prior to the next strong upper level system. We'll see.

[Mike]

This could be a wild day...

The GFS is showing the highest CAPE. a whopping 5000 in areas. And the NAM showing 4500.

LIs are also forecast to be -10 by the GFS and NAM.

Not to mention some fairly strong shear present it seems, according to both the NAM and GFS (though this I may be wrong about since latest SPC says only 30-35kt).

NAM is currently showing absolutely amazing EHI (0-1km) of 4 as well.



[Edit JD: Unfortunately non permanent link to SPC 4-8 day outlook removed. Please save the outlooks or use date oriented links or they simply become irrelevant]

[David C]

Any storm structure freaks have got to check out the Garden City region Kansas supercell today (Wed 29th CDT) on storm track. Beautiful inverted wedding cake structure!! Also a spectacular dusty tornado.

http://www.stormtrack.org/forum/showthread.php?p=224615#post224615


The T-warned Childress storm was a beast on radar and ditto for the one down in the sw desert region of Texas near the Mexico border  -- I'dsay there is now swine flu in the stratosphere. Enormous slow moving storms - what a chaser's delight!!

[nzstorm]

Yes, amazing structure on the Garden City storm. That region is a great spot for storm structure.

[Harley Pearman]

Summary of the storms - Texas to Kansas 29 April 2009:

The pictures of the storms are amazing.

I managed to obtain a radar image of the affected area 29 April 2009 at approximately 1.15 pm Eastern Australian Time for the affected area from the National Weather Service / Storm Prediction Centre. It was part of Tornado Watch 213 valid from 3.45 pm to 11 pm CDT 29/4/09.

The image shows interesting thunderstorm activity SW of Garden City (3 cells), a significant cell north of Childress and a line of storms south east of Childress but NW of Dallas - Fort Worth area. The isolated cell north of Childress appears intense and is close to a town called Wellington in Collingsworth County (Texas).

Looking at the Storm Prediction Centre 29/4/2009, there were 12 tornado reports for the day with the bulk coming from:-

Finney County Kansas - 5 in total.
Floyd County Texas - 4 in Total.

Garden City is situated in Finney County and Tornado reports include:-

002 - 5 miles SW of Garden City - Tornado is reported by KAKE News.
0045 - 5 miles SSE Plymell (Finney County) KSN TV Reporter indicated a tornado on east side of Highway 83.

Floyd County - Texas:

The reports are around the small town of Cedar Hill on Route 97 NE of Floydada. In particular:-

2240 - 8 Miles NE of Cedar Hill.
2313 - 2 Miles east of Cedar Hill.
2318 - 3 Miles east of Cedar Hill.
2350 - 7 Miles ESE of Cedar Hill.

The 2313 report indicates 2 tornadoes at the same time as stated by spotters and chasers close to the intersection of Route 97 and County Road 241. This appears to be the same storm but two tornadoes in the same rural area just east of town.

Of the hail reports, the most outstanding one goes to a place 40 miles south of Sheffield in which softball sized hail occurred at the Terrell Gas Plant in Terrell County Texas (Report Number 2219). Terrell County is in far south west Texas bordering the Rio Grande River.

Kansas storms and severe weather 27/4/09:

I have been reading the Wichita Eagle (Kansas) of late and noted thunderstorms and severe weather have caused 5 fatalities over recent days including a motorcyclist struck by lightning. There has also been flooding in Wichita as well.

In particular Wichita had a narrow escape from tornadoes 26/4/09 when tornado sirens sounded after 3.30 pm after rotating clouds were spotted and again after 6 pm following a tornado at Lake Afton just 15 miles (24 km) west of the city. (Wichita Eagle 27/4/2009 - "Storms Generate Flooding, Tornadoes".


Harley Pearman

[Harley Pearman]

Severe weather / storms / tornado event of 3 / 4 May 2009

On 3 and 4 May 2009, a weather event from eastern Texas stretching into North Carolina unfolded. Affecting the states of Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, Georgia and North Carolina the event triggered the following:-

- 12 known tornado reports.
- 129 wind reports with a significant proportion of these relating to wind and powerline damage.
- 24 Hail reports. Hail was not a serious issue from this event.
- Tornado Watch Number 237 from 2.35 am to 8 am for 4/5/09. The tornado watch was issued for the early hours of the morning when most people would have been sleeping.

The tornado Watch covered the following:-

- Tornadoes.
- Hail to 2 inches in diameter.
- Wind gusts to 70 miles per hour.
- Dangerous lightning.

The Tornado Watch 237 covered Southern Alabama, Western Florida Panhandle and south east Mississippi.

The area impacted from eastern Texas to the border of North Carolina with Virginia appears to exceed 1,000 kilometres and 7 states were affected in one way by the thunderstorms and damaging winds.

Tornadoes were reported in the following counties:-

Jefferson County in Alabama.
Shelby County in Alabama.
St Clair County in Alabama.
Talladega County in Alabama.
Calhoun County in Alabama.
Marshall County in Alabama.
Morgan County in Alabama.
Madison County in Alabama.
Rockingham County in North Carolina.
Cumberland County in Tennessee.

Report 2300 - A tornado track was surveyed 2 miles NE of Owens Crossroads in Madison County Alabama after the event with a peak wind gust of 100 miles per hour, a path length of 1.6 miles and a maximum path width of 75 yards. (Location is off Route 431 SE of Huntsville).

Report  1927 - 5 miles NW of Coosa Island in St Clair County Alabama, a tornado touched down near Camp Creek Road and County Road 27. The tornado lifted on the west side of Pell City near Interstate 20 and US Highway 78. (Pell City is located some 34 miles NE of Birmingham).

It appears numerous trees were brought down in affected areas blocking roads.

Additionally, winds from the thunderstorms appears to have caused havoc across 7 states. Trees, powerlines were brought down across a wide swathe. Additionally, there were tornadoes not reported by the public but identified by Doppler radar. Some significant reports worthy of mention include:-

1205. A 62 mph wind gust reported 5 miles SW of Lufkin in Angelina County Texas measured at the airport.
1210. San Augustine in San Augustine County Texas - Trees and powerlines down right across the county.
1220. Centre in Shelby County Texas - Trees and powerlines down and probable damage to buildings.
1245. Mansfield in De Soto County Louisiana - Mansfield and Loganport without power.
1245. Ringold in Bienville County Louisiana -Several trees down along the path of a Doppler radar indicated a tornado between Ringold and Bienville (That appears to be a tornado not reported in a rural area in NW Louisiana)
1300. A boat was upturned then sank on Sam Rayburn Dam in Jasper County Texas. The person on the boat was stranded.
1325. Quitman in Jackson County Louisiana - Doppler radar indicates a tornado. (On Route 167 Northern Louisiana).
1345. Colfax in Grant County Louisiana - Trees and powerlines down across the county.
1425. 7 miles WSW of Monroe in Ouahita County Louisiana - Doppler radar indicates a path of a tornado.
(Very close to the city of Monroe on Interstate 20).
1625. Mize in Smith County Mississippi - Tree tops snapped along HWY 28 between Mize and Taylorsville.
1640. A fatality 2 miles east of Laurel in Jones County Mississippi occurred when a tree fell onto a mobile home.
1743. 3 miles NW of Butler in Choctaw County Alabama - Emergency Manager reported damaging straight line winds estimated between 50 and 70 miles per hour associated with a thunderstorm.
1845. 3 miles north of Grove Hill in Clarke County Alabama - Trees and powerlines down right across the county.
1855. Marion in Perry County Alabama - Thousands of trees down across the county.
2001. Maplesville in Chilton County Alabama - Cattle and deer lifted off the ground in the Jemison Thorsby area. One inch hail.
2121. Opelika in Lee County Alabama. Peak wind measured at 61 mph.
2302. 3 miles SSW Indian Valley in Floyd County Virginia - Possible tornado.
1135. Evergreen in Conecuh County Alabama - 59 mph peak thunderstorm wind gust observed.

Looking at the wind reports, the damage to trees, powerlines and buildings appear to be consistent across a large area through 7 states. There appears to have been at least 9 more tornadoes than that observed by the public but this needs to be confirmed.

The plot from the National Weather Service - Storm Prediction Centre from 12 UTC-1159 UTC for 5/3/09 is provided below which clearly shows the path of the weather event discussed. The map is an update for 05/04/09 and updated at 2103Z.

Harley Pearman

[nzstorm]

Is this May tornado season in a spot of trouble? Models dont look to encouraging.

[Colin Maitland]

One of the 15 tornadoes that developed and have been reported  on the  8th of may 2009, has claimed a life. It was reported from NOAAS storm prediction centre as *** 1 FATAL, 1 INJ *** NWS SURVEY HAS DETERMINED AN EF 2 TORNADO WITH A WIDTH OF 400 YARDS AND AN ESTIMATED WIND SPEED OF 130 MPH OCCURRED ALONG A 4 MILE INTERMITTENT P (SGF)
That is pretty wide tornado to be comming at you.


I have posted this article regarding an inland hurricane also known as a Derecho that is currently effecting South USA. Story courtesy of ACCU Weather.http://www.accuweather.com/regional-news-story.asp?region=southusnews

A nasty, fast-moving thunderstorm complex, known as a Derecho or Inland Hurricane, ripped through Kansas Thursday night and southern Missouri Friday morning with wind gusts of 100 mph and rainfall in excess of 3 inches in some areas. The Inland Hurricane continues to race to the east and is now ripping through the Ohio Valley states with wind gusts to 100 mph.

As the system blasts in, it may seem like a rain-wrapped tornado or a wall of water with high winds to some. People should be on guard for the rapidly approaching storms that can down trees and power lines, damage homes, overflow streams, and flood streets and rural roads in a matter of minutes. The storms also have potential to produce large, destructive hail and could spawn a couple of tornadoes.

Travelers and residents in a swath from Missouri and Arkansas through Kentucky, Tennessee, the Virginias and North Carolina should expect delays on the ground and in the air into tonight as a result. Motorists are urged not to drive through flooded areas, as roadways may be washed out and concealed by high water. Pull well of the road, in a safe area until the storms pass. Only a few inches of run-off can push your vehicle into deep water. The AccuWeather.com Severe Weather Center has the latest on thunderstorm- and flood-related watches and warnings for your area.
Related Links

    * South Central Radar
    * Southeast Regional Video
    * South Central Warnings
    * Severe Weather Center


Additional storms are expected to plague the South, as well as part of the mid-Atlantic Saturday. Thunderstorms capable of producing damaging winds, large hail and flash flooding will stretch from central Texas to Long Island during into the evening Saturday. The storms on Mother's Day may stretch from northeastern Texas to the Carolinas. Some locations in the South may be hit by multiple storms each day through Sunday. Story by AccuWeather.com Expert Senior Meteorologist Alex Sosnowski

Ist attachment is the inland hurricane
2nd NOAA storm report.

[Harley Pearman]

Thunderstorms, Severe weather and tornadoes affect 13 USA States 8/5/2009

Further to Coltan's post above, Friday 8 May 2009 saw 13 US states affected by severe weather. Looking at the Storm Prediction Centre - National Weather Service (NOAA), it is identified that:-

- 29 reported tornadoes across 7 states.
- 8 Very large hail reports larger than 5 cm (2 inches).
- 95 Hail reports.
- 186 wind reports (Some very significant).
- Severe weather causes 4 known fatalities and 3 known injuries across the affected area.
- The states of Missouri, far southern Illinois and northern Arkansas is worst affected.
- A wind gust of 106 miles per hour (170.5 km/h) recorded at Carbondale in Illinois (Accuweather 8/5/09)

As Coltan indicates, a derecho seems to have caused much of the damage.

The damaging thunderstorm complex according to Accuweather covered 350 miles (563 km) over a 9 hour period.

The complex started in far south eastern Kansas and travelled east into Kentucky and towards the Appalachian Mountains before weakening.

The plot below shows 4 areas where severe weather occurred being Central and Northern Texas into Oklahoma, SE Iowa, Missouri, far southern Illinois, northern Arkansas, Kentucky and eastern Tennessee. To show what occurred a sample of the storm reports are reproduced.

Tornadoes:

1306 - 4 miles SE Willard in Green County Missouri - A National Weather Service storm survey identified an EF1 tornado touched down near the intersection of Farm Road 115 and Willard Road. A house sustained heavy damage.

1327 - 3 Miles SW of Charity in Webster County Missouri - A NWS survey determined an EF2 tornado with a width of 400 yards and an estimated wind speed of 130 mph (209 km/h) occurred covering 4 miles causing 1 fatality and 1 injury. (Note- Webster County is just east of Springfield in SW Missouri. The tornado occurred at the NW corner of the county and then travelled into Dallas County closer to town).

1500 - 1 Mile NW of Pomona in Howell County Missouri. A NWS survey has determined than en EF3 tornado with a width of 400 to 800 yards and estimated wind speeds of 165 mph (265.5 km/h) occurred covering 1.8 miles (2.89 km). Note:- Pomona is on Route 63 in central Howell County.

2104 - 3 miles ENE Kirksville in Madison County Kentucky. A tornado with 1 fatality in which a tornado lifted a pick up truck and dropped it into a pond. This occurred near the intersection of Highway 52 and 1295. (Note:- The county is located SSE of Lexington).

2158 - 5 miles SE of Huntsville in Scott County Tennessee - Several homes destroyed in the Fairview community. (Note:- Fairview is a town with around 6,600 residents and it appears that the town has suffered a direct hit from a tornado. Fairview is NE of Knoxville on Route 63).

Hail reports

In addition to the tornadoes, some substantial hail events occurred from this system. The five most significant are:-

1223 - Carthage in Jasper County - Missouri - Golf ball size hail in eastern Joplin and in Carthage. (SW Missouri).
1318 - Greenfield in Dade County Missouri - Hail 2 to 3 inches deep covering the ground.
1434 - Potosi in Washington County Missouri - A spotter reports baseball size hail.
2303 - 16 miles ESE of Breckenridge in Stephens County Texas - Baseball size hail 5 miles south of Caddo (On Route 180, eastern side of the county).
0510 - Whitewright in Grayson County Texas - Golfball hail reported in town.

Wind reports

Substantial wind damage occurred in the affected areas. There are 186 wind reports and at least 4 reports may be possible tornado damage but requiring damage surveys to verify this. Damage is consistent across a wide area. A sample of five is provided here to show what happened.

1210 - 2 miles ENE of Liberal in Barton County Missouri - Pieces of steel wrapped around trees. Trees snapped off 10 feet (3 metres) above the ground.

1249 - Carterville in Jasper County Missouri - Wind gusts to 65 mph as well as golf ball size hail. (Note:- NE suburb of Joplin).

1253 - Altamont in Labette County Kansas - Widespread wind damage across the county. Trees and powerlines down. Tree fell onto house. Oswego and Bartlett without power. (SE Kansas).

1335 - 3 miles east of Garrison in Christian County Missouri - A possible tornado. Several trees uprooted and pointing different directions and roof damage to a dwelling house. (Note:- SE of Springfield in the SE of the county. This is a rural area).

1340 - 1 mile south of Willard in Greene County Missouri - Wind estimated at 80 mph (128.7 km/h) causing significant tree damage, powerline damage and damage to roofs of buildings (Just NW of Springfield close to the city limits. Its likely that damage has occurred in Springfield itself).

The updated plot from the National Weather Service - Storm Prediction Centre (NOAA) for the day is provided. This is an update of the one posted by Colton in his post. The plot indicates 26 tornadoes but as information becomes available this has recently increased to 29 reported for the day.

Harley Pearman

[Harley Pearman]

Damage Assessment Surveys of weekends storms and tornadoes in Missouri USA

The National Weather Service is publishing "Damage Surveys" from some of the storms of May 8 2009 that afflicted Missouri, southern Illinois, northern Arkansas and Tennessee.

To find them go to http://www.nws.noaa.gov/
Then click on the USA Map under the heading "Click below to Zoom in" in any region desired.

It offers more details of the latest weather events occurring in the various regions. In the case of the storms in Missouri 8/5/2009, the National Weather Service Teams have been conducting aerial surveys and ground surveys and have identified that at least 13 tornadoes afflicted southern Missouri broken into:-

1 x EF3 tornado.
4 x EF2 tornadoes.
7 x EF1 tornadoes.
1 x EF0 tornado.

This is further broken down into:-

3 tornadoes in Green County all of which were rated EF1.
1 tornado in Christian County rated EF1.
1 tornado in Webster County rated EF1.
1 tornado in Dallas County rated EF2.
1 tornado in Laclede County rated rated EF2.
3 tornadoes in Douglas County with one rated EF1 and two rated EF2.
2 tornadoes in in Howell County with one rated EF3 and one rated EF1.
1 tornado in Texas County rated EF0.

Hence, 8 counties in a relatively small area experienced tornadoes.

Additionally, the event is being called the May 8 Derecho. Aerial photos have been provided for each tornado track plus damage assessment. For example, damage surveys already conducted include:-

1) Charity tornado:- Rated EF2 and travelled 4 miles and 800 yards wide at the widest point and caused 1 fatality.
2) Willard tornado:- Rated EF1 and travelled 1.1 miles and was 50 yards wide. A single house was assessed as suffering heavy damage. Winds estimated at 95 miles per hour.
3) Ebenezer tornado:- Rated EF0 with winds estimated at 80 mph. The damage path is 100 yards wide and tornado travelled 2.3 miles.
4) Pomona tornado:- Rated EF3 and survey team has estimated damage path being 400 to 800 yards wide. Winds estimated at 165 mph and damage path is 1.8 miles long. Damage assessment includes 2 school buses overturned, trees uprooted, 1 house, 1 travel trailer, 2 outbuildings suffering heavy damage and an auto repair shop destroyed.

5) Western Douglas County:- One tornado rated EF2 with winds estimated at 130 mph that touched down north of Merritt. At its widest point, it was three quarters of a mile wide (1.2 km). It travelled 3 miles before lifting and 2 homes suffered damage.

The second tornado is rated EF2 with winds estimated at 120 mph. It travelled 2 miles and was half a mile wide at its widest point.

The other 7 tornadoes affecting southern Missouri is covered in a similar fashion.

The attached map shows the number of tornadoes that occurred in southern Missouri marked as red lines.

Survey teams from the National Weather Service are conducting surveys in Jasper and Cherokee Counties and have determined that:-

- The storm that occurred is a Derecho.
- Straight line wind speeds of between 75 and 90 mph occurred.
- Towns affected include Columbus, Crestline, Asbury and Carl Junction.
- A 300 metre high (Although stated as a 1,000 foot high) transmission line was brought down.
- Microburst damage observed 3 miles east of Crestline and a residence suffered significant wind damage.

Similar surveys are being undertaken in other areas of Kentucky and Tennessee and the National Weather Survey advises that the survey assessments are continuing.

(All information as well as the plot below is from NOAA / National Weather Service May 10 2009 from survey teams).

Harley Pearman

[Mike]

Here's an amazing radar capture of a 'land hurricane' or Mesoscale Convective Low.  It was tornado warned in the area of the hook, but actually these create Derecho events. Winds were recorded at 80mph.  What's fascinating is the structure of storm lines to the RHS - almost lightning like appearance.   It was from 8/5/2009 in Tennessee.

[Harley Pearman]

May 8 2009 Derecho

More information is becoming available on this weather event via the National Weather Service - Storm Prediction Centre (NOAA) as damage surveys continue.

The National Weather Service has published some radar images of the Derecho early in its life cycle and it looks evident and clear at 7.05 am and 8.05 am (Reproduced Below) taken from "Severe Storms Slam the Ozarks May 8 2009". In brief and in summary, the following is identified:-

- It started Friday morning.
- While it is stated that a number of tornadoes were spawned, it appears the count has topped 37.

Significant winds were observed along the leading edge of the system and behind it as well. The complex created its own low pressure system. The pressure was so low behind the thunderstorms that air had to rush in from behind to equalise the pressure difference. The persistent rush of air primarily from the North West was so strong that winds were estimated to reach as high as 90 mph and winds of 60 mph lasted as long as 30 minutes. Hence the strong winds at both ends caused much damage. Trees were uprooted, snapped or damaged. Damage occurred to barns, outbuildings, moving mobile homes from their foundations and causing structural damage to well built homes. (National Weather Service 10/5/2009).

The National Weather Service has released IEM composite radar images of the system. The first image at 7.05 am has the system over far NE Oklahoma / SE Kansas and SW Missouri. For example, it is over Joplin in Newton County, Missouri. In the state of Missouri, it is affecting Newton, Jasper and Barton Counties plus others.

At 8.05 am, the system has progressed east and is affecting places further east such as Springfield in Green County Missouri. The worst of it has cleared from SE Kansas. The worst of it is affecting several counties including Barry, Stoney Greene, Webster, Christian and Dallas Counties in Missouri.

The distance from the centre of Joplin to the centre of Springfield via Route 44 is 72 miles or 115 km (Approximately 66 miles or 106 km in a straight line) which provides some idea on how fast the storm system was moving across this part of the state.


Harley Pearman

[Harley Pearman]

Storm prediction centre - Storm reports for 13 May 2009

Further thunderstorms across Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri, Illinois, Arkansas and far north eastern Texas occurred just days after the May 8 Derecho. The worst hit states by far are Oklahoma, Missouri and Illinois. In particular:-

- 23 Tornado reports.
- 130 Hail reports.
- 151 wind reports.

Staff from the National Weather Service are busy undertaking damage assessment surveys from this event while still conducting surveys from the Derecho of May 8. All the details of the tornadoes below are summaries prepared by the National Weather Service Damage Assessment Teams (May 14 2009).

Several of the tornado reports are from Kirksville and surrounds and it has been found that 3 tornadoes occurred across Sullivan and Adair Counties in north east Missouri. In particular:-

- One tornado rated EF1 touched down just north of Milan causing a fatality. It continued east for a few miles before lifting. Damage assessment shows EF1 damage.

- One tornado touched down 5 miles west of Novingar near Highway 149 destroying a house, an outbuilding, a mobile home and minor damage to buildings on the south side of town. It paralleled Highway 6 east of Novingar damaging powerlines. It is rated EF1.

One tornado touched down 2 miles west north west of Kirksville, then moved east through the city. The tornado produced 2 fatalities and produced EF1 damage to several structures. The tornado continued east through the rural area and intensified causing EF2 damage.

Note:- The towns of Novingar and Milan are west of Kirksville. Kirksville is home to around 17,200 residents on Route 63. It is clear that the tornado has passed through a portion of this small city and photos of this do show extensive damage to homes in affected areas.

Up to 9 of the 23 tornado reports are from this small area of Missouri and reports indicate substantial damage to buildings, injuries as well as cars flipped. These are by far the most significant of the tornadoes and the times of the various reports are 2210, 2228, 2235, 2235, 2243, 2248, 2311, 2316 and 2318.

Another tornado in nearby Knox County Missouri further east being 2 miles north of Edina (2340) also has caused extensive damage including powerlines brought down and trees scattered across the road. Note:- Edina is located 23 miles east of Kirksville.

Hail reports

The majority are not significant although the following are noteworthy enough:-

2334 - Nardin in Kay County Oklahoma - Hail up to golf ball size observed.
0045 - 2 miles south of Greenfield in Blaine County Oklahoma - Hail up to tennis ball size observed.
0105 - Hydro in Caddo County Oklahoma - Golf ball size hail on the ground.
0105 - Geary in Blaine County Oklahoma - Golf ball hail observed and winds to 50 and 60 mph around town.
0135 - Mulhall in in Logan County Oklahoma - Golf ball size hail observed.
0531 - Lawton in Comanche County Oklahoma - Baseball hail observed over NW of the city. Note:- Reading the local weather news on the internet, this occurred over the NW portion of the city only.

The large hail reports are scattered across the state being north of Oklahoma City, north west of Oklahoma City and south west of Oklahoma City.

Additionally, a thunderstorm passed over Oklahoma City late in the day that was warned for hail and tornadoes as well. There were reports of hail occurring within the metropolitan area as well.

Wind reports

The most significant are reproduced to give a sample of what happened.

2230 - 2 miles north of Linneus in Linn County Missouri - A trailer destroyed and Doppler radar indicates a possible tornado. Note:- It indicates a possible tornado not reported requiring verification. The location is 23 miles south of Milan in northern Missouri.

0040 - At Greenfield in Hancock County Indiana - Trees split by wind and powerlines down.

0056 - Indianapolis International Airport in Marion County Indiana - Winds to 70 mph measured.

0300 - 3 Miles north west of Cement in Caddo County Oklahoma - A trailer roof blown off and a trailer moved 8 feet by the winds (Note:- Cement is located SE of the County near the HE Bailey Turnpike).

0454 - Litchfield in Montgomery County Illinois - Thunderstorm wind damage causes a tractor trailer to be flipped on Interstate 55.

0550 - Rankin in Vermillion County Illinois - A tree was blown into a house and winds estimated at 70 mph.

The remainder relate to typical damage from wind gusts being trees down, powerlines brought down, some damage to homes and or trees snapped and roads blocked.

The plot below (Produced by the National Weather Service - NOAA 14/5/2009) shows how and where severe weather affected the mid west 13/5/2009.

A full account of the severe weather event, storms, tornado counts can be found at http://www.nws.noaa.gov/
National Weather Service - Then under the heading "Click Below to Zoom in" on the USA Map, click on any region desired. It is here where information is being posted on the severe events including damage assessment surveys, photographs, maps, plots and even tornado analysis where appropriate.


Harley Pearman

[Harley Pearman]

One thunderstorm near Pampa and Miami in Texas Panhandle spawns 5 tornadoes 15/5/2009

A single supercell thunderstorm in North East Texas has spawned 5 tornadoes in which the National Weather Service Damage Assessment Team has been busy analysing damage paths.

The area around Pampa at the time was under "Tornado Watch 307". The thunderstorm in question was warned for:-

- Dangerous lightning.
- Tornadoes.
- Destructive winds to 80 mph (128.7 km/h).
- Baseball size hailstones.

The towns in the affected area are Pampa, Miami and Lefors. The affected counties were Gray and Roberts. Lefors is situated SE of Pampa on Route 273 and Miami is located NE of Pampa. The affected area is relatively small.

The National Weather Service has determined that 5 tornadoes occurred in this area with 3 being EF0, 1 being EF1 and one being EF2. There were 2 tornadoes in Roberts County and 3 tornadoes in Gray County as summarised below:-

Tornado 1 - Rated EF0 located 13 miles west of Miami. It had a path length of 1/4 of 1 mile (400 metres) and a maximum width of 100 yards. No damage was reported because it occurred in open country. Time 4.45 pm to 4.46 pm.

Tornado 2 - Rated EF0 located 14 miles west south west of Miami. It had a path length of 1/2 mile (800 metres) and had a maximum width of 100 yards. Time 4.47 pm - 5 pm.

Tornado 3 - Rated EF0 located 5 miles NE of Pampa. It had a path length of 1 mile (1.6 km) and had a maximum width of 1/4 mile (400 metres). It remained in open county causing no damage. It lasted 4 minutes. Time 5.02 pm to 5.06 pm.

Tornado 4 - Rated EF2 located 4 miles ENE of Pampa. It had a path length of 3 miles (4.8 km) and had a maximum width of 1/2 mile (800 metres). The National Weather Service determined that this was a multi vortex and one home sustained significant damage 4 miles east of Pampa. At least 4 other homes sustained other damage from downburst winds in close proximity to the tornado 1 to 3 miles east of Pampa. Other structures and vehicles were damaged including a semi truck that was overturned and a motor home. One injury occurred. Trees and powerpoles sustained damage. Time 5.09 pm to 5.17 pm.

Tornado 5 - Rated EF1 located 2 miles north west of Lefors. It had a path length of 6 miles (9.65 km) and had a maximum width of 1/4 mile (400 metres). Classified as a multi vortex. Several homes and structures received minor to moderate damage due to the tornado and downburst winds. Widespread tree damage occurred. Time 5.25 pm to 5.45 pm.

No other thunderstorm producing tornadoes have been identified to date except for the ones occurring in Gray and Roberts Counties in Texas (Specifically North east Texas).

It is noted that the 5 tornadoes occurred in a space of 1 hour from 4.45 pm to 5.45 pm 15/5/2009.

The surveys and data were conducted by the National Weather Service from Amarillo Texas and plotted at 4.05 pm CDT Saturday May 16 2009. Full details including photographs can be found at the same website http://www.nws.noaa.gov/ as described in my previous Post.

Harley Pearman