The Montville tornado,also called the Montville waterspout at the time,was a tornado that struck Normandy in France in 1845. It is the deadliest tornado ever recorded in France with 75 deaths. Forming on 19 August,1845,it caused significant damage in the industrial valley of Malaunay and Montville,in the Department of Seine-Maritime. The worst of the damage from the tornado was rated EF5 by the Tornadoes and Severe Storms French Observatory (KERAUNOS),with the European Severe Storms Laboratory acknowledging the EF5 rating as its "maximum intensity",though ESSL also rated the tornado F5. TORRO rated the tornado T10. This is the second tornado in French history to receive a rating of F5,EF5,or IF5,the other being a tornado that occurred in Pas-de-Calais in 1967.[1]
Around midday,a storm broke out in the Rouen region,causing heavy rain. The tornado formed around 1 PM near the commune of Le Houlme and moved through the Cailly valley towards Malaunay,quickly acquiring gigantic force. On its path,it destroyed homes and uprooted hundreds of trees,some of which were swept away whole in the tornado. In the industrial valley,three large mills,at least one of which was newly built,were leveled and partly swept clean. One of the mills was a four-story structure that likely collapsed. Large debris was carried 30km (19mi) and mature trees were thrown "very far." This tornado was rated EF5 by the French Observatory of Tornadoes and Violent Thunderstorms (Keraunos),with the European Severe Storms Laboratory acknowledging the EF5 rating as its "maximum intensity",though ESSL also rated the tornado F5. TORRO rated the tornado T10.[2] In Malaunay,the Neveu spinning mill,a solid four-story building,was destroyed,followed by the Mare Frères workshops in the same commune and the Picquot-Deschamps spinning mill in Montville.[3]
According to analyses at the time,the tornado continued its path through the forests of Clères until it had travelled around 15 kilometres (9.3mi) in total,before dissipating near the commune of Grugny.[4]
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