Tornado records

[34] The 2011 Philadelphia, Mississippi tornado caused extreme ground scouring across its path; up to .5 m (1.6 ft) of soil was removed from the environment, presumably from intense subvortices.

[36] During the F5 1999 Bridge Creek–Moore tornado on May 3, 1999, in the southern Oklahoma City metro area, a Doppler on Wheels situated near the tornado measured winds of 301 ± 20 mph (484 ± 32 km/h) momentarily in a small area inside the funnel approximately 100 m (330 ft) above ground level.

[54][55] During the Greenfield, Iowa EF4 on May 21, 2024, Doppler on Wheels recorded wind speeds of 263–271 mph (423–436 km/h) in a very small swath inside the funnel approximately 100–106 ft (30–32 m) above radar level as the tornado went through town.

Though these winds are possibly indicative of F5 intensity, this particular tornado's path never encountered any significant structures and caused minimal damage, so it was rated F4.

For years there was debate whether the originally-recognized path length of 219 mi (352 km) over 3.5 hours was from one tornado or a series.

A six-year reanalysis study by a team of severe convective storm meteorologists found insufficient evidence to make firm conclusions but does conclude that it is likely that the beginning and ending of the path was resultant of separate tornadoes comprising a tornado family.

[72] This violent tornado tracked 165.7 mi (266.7 km) through the states of Tennessee and Kentucky during a very intense late-season outbreak.

This is the width found by the National Weather Service based on preliminary data from University of Oklahoma RaXPol mobile radar that also sampled winds of 296 mph (476 km/h), which was used to upgrade the tornado to EF5.

[77] However, it was revealed that these winds did not impact any structures, and as a result the tornado was downgraded to EF3 based on damage.

[83] On May 19, 2024, a large multiple-vortex tornado tracked 15 mi (24 km) over rural areas near Custer City, Oklahoma.

Despite this, it was powerful enough to lift and throw a 800 lb (360 kg) trailer into a nearby parked car.

Calculations of highest speeds from the National Centers for Environmental Information Storm Events Database gives a high average forward speed of a significant tornado just west of Galt, Iowa, on December 15, 2021, of between 70.91 mph (114.12 km/h) and 88.65 mph (142.67 km/h).

[90] Due to significant variability caused by the unspecific nature of the timestamps provided, these speed figures are unofficial.

A pressure deficit of 100 millibars (2.95 inHg) was observed when a violent tornado near Manchester, South Dakota on June 24, 2003, passed directly over an in-situ probe deployed by storm chasing researcher Tim Samaras.

[92][93] On April 21, 2007, a 194-millibar (5.73 inHg) pressure deficit was reported when a tornado struck a storm chasing vehicle in Tulia, Texas.

[96] A few scientists in Europe,[107] the US, and elsewhere documented the occurrence of tornadoes in the late 18th and early-mid 19th centuries to try to discern patterns of distribution and sometimes with inferences about formative processes and dynamics.

Prior to Greensburg, the last confirmed F5/EF5 had hit the southern Oklahoma City metro area and surrounding communities on May 3, 1999.

2018 was the only year since official records began in 1950 that no tornado in the United States was rated in the violent class (F4/EF4+).

[115] Matt Suter of Fordland, Missouri holds the record for the longest-known distance traveled by anyone picked up by a tornado who survived the ordeal.

[118][119][120] On March 22, 2022, an EF3 tornado struck Arabi, Louisiana, a census-designated place in the New Orleans metropolitan area.

[122] On April 30, 1940, two separate tornadoes, less than two hours apart, struck the communities of Chaffee, Kelso and Illmo, Missouri.

[123] However, on July 14 and 15, 2024, back-to-back outbreaks of weak (EF0 and EF1) tornadoes produced six within the city limits in a span of under 48 hours.

The July 15 event, prompted by a derecho, spawned 32 tornadoes in the National Weather Service Chicago, Illinois area of responsibility, tying the one-year record of 32 in a single day.

The small town of Dolores, Uruguay, has been hit multiple times by intense tornadoes.

[128][129] La Plata is a town in Charles County, Maryland, located well outside the climatologically favored area for tornadoes, let alone violent ones.

On November 9, 1926, it was struck by a high-end F3 to F4 tornado that killed 13 school children, 4 townspeople, and injured some 65 others.

Not only that, but shortly before the F4 passed through downtown La Plata, eyewitness accounts indicated that a second F2 tornado formed a quarter of a mile south of the primary one.

[133] A lesser-known hotspot for tornadic activity is Shreveport and its neighbouring town, Bossier City, Louisiana.

Thirty-seven years later, on April 27, 2011 (the largest and deadliest outbreak since 1974), Tanner was hit yet again by the EF5 2011 Hackleburg–Phil Campbell tornado, which produced high-end EF4 damage in the southern portion of town.

As the day wore on and conditions became more favorable (with a developing squall line detected on radar), meteorologists Ernest J. Fawbush and Robert C. Miller issued the first ever official tornado forecast.