1920 Palm Sunday tornado outbreak

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1+1⁄2 mi (2.4 km) southeast of La Fox and moved northeast, later passing directly through downtown Elgin. Initially, the tornado destroyed a farmhouse and numerous barns, killing a father and tossing about a baby as it touched down. [10] [15]

Observers occasionally reported a well-defined funnel along the path as the tornado continued into the business district of Elgin, destroying or damaging many structures. It destroyed six businesses, damaged many others, and also "partially wrecked" three churches. Three people died as the rear of a theater collapsed, three more as a brick church tower fell, and one additional as a building façade caved in. Church services had been dismissed just minutes before, saving the lives of parishioners and preventing more deaths in Elgin. [10]

As the tornado left downtown Elgin, it destroyed numerous trees along with 25 homes and damaged 200 other residences. Thereafter, the tornado destroyed two more barns and killed 38 cattle. It then probably dissipated, only to develop into a new tornado. Both isolated tornado and widespread downburst damage was reported as far as Wauconda, killing cattle, damaging farms, and destroying many buildings. The tornado in Elgin was rated F3 in a study and was the first tornado of the outbreak to cause deaths and to kill more than five people. [15] [10]

Channahon–Troy Township–Lockport–Bellwood–Maywood–Melrose Park–Dunning, Illinois

1920 Palm Sunday tornado outbreak
Tornado Tracks of March 28, 1920.png
Paths of tornadoes over Northern Indiana and Southern Michigan
  1. ↑ All losses are in 1920 USD unless otherwise noted.
  2. ↑ The Fujita scale was devised under the aegis of scientist T. Theodore Fujita in the early 1970s. Prior to the advent of the scale in 1971, tornadoes in the United States were officially unrated. [1] [2] While the Fujita scale has been superseded by the Enhanced Fujita scale in the U.S. since February 1, 2007, [3] Canada utilized the old scale until April 1, 2013; [4] nations elsewhere, like the United Kingdom, apply other classifications such as the TORRO scale. [5]
  3. ↑ Historically, the number of tornadoes globally and in the United States was and is likely underrepresented: research by Grazulis on annual tornado activity suggests that, as of 2001, only 53% of yearly U.S. tornadoes were officially recorded. Documentation of tornadoes outside the United States was historically less exhaustive, owing to the lack of monitors in many nations and, in some cases, to internal political controls on public information. [6] Most countries only recorded tornadoes that produced severe damage or loss of life. [7] Significant low biases in U.S. tornado counts likely occurred through the early 1990s, when advanced NEXRAD was first installed and the National Weather Service began comprehensively verifying tornado occurrences. [8]
  4. ↑ All dates are based on the local time zone where the tornado touched down; however, all times are in Coordinated Universal Time and dates are split at midnight CST/CDT for consistency.
  5. ↑ Prior to 1994, only the average widths of tornado paths were officially listed. [14]

References

  1. ↑ Grazulis, Thomas P. (July 1993). Significant Tornadoes 1680–1991: A Chronology and Analysis of Events. St. Johnsbury, Vermont: The Tornado Project of Environmental Films. p. 141. ISBN   1-879362-03-1.
  2. ↑ Grazulis, Thomas P. (2001). The Tornado: Nature's Ultimate Windstorm . Norman: University of Oklahoma Press. p.  131. ISBN   978-0-8061-3538-0.
  3. ↑ Edwards, Roger (March 5, 2015). "Enhanced F Scale for Tornado Damage". The Online Tornado FAQ (by Roger Edwards, SPC). Storm Prediction Center. Retrieved February 25, 2016.
  4. ↑ "Enhanced Fujita Scale (EF-Scale)". Environment and Climate Change Canada. June 6, 2013. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved February 25, 2016.
  5. ↑ "The International Tornado Intensity Scale". Tornado and Storm Research Organisation. 2016. Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved February 25, 2016.
  6. ↑ Grazulis 2001, pp. 251–4
  7. ↑ Edwards, Roger (March 5, 2015). "The Online Tornado FAQ (by Roger Edwards, SPC)". Storm Prediction Center: Frequently Asked Questions about Tornadoes. Storm Prediction Center . Retrieved February 25, 2016.
  8. ↑ Cook, A. R.; Schaefer, J. T. (August 2008). Written at Norman, Oklahoma. "The Relation of El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) to Winter Tornado Outbreaks". Monthly Weather Review . 136 (8). Boston: American Meteorological Society: 3135. Bibcode:2008MWRv..136.3121C. doi: 10.1175/2007MWR2171.1 . Open Access logo PLoS transparent.svg
  9. ↑ "NOAA/NWS 1925 Tri-State Tornado Web Site--1925: Now vs. Then". Paducah, KY Weather Forecast Office. West Paducah, Kentucky: National Weather Service . Retrieved April 16, 2021.
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Mitchell, Charles L. (April 1920). "Tornadoes of March 28, in Northeastern Illinois". Monthly Weather Review. 28 (4). Chicago, Illinois: United States Weather Bureau: 191–196. Bibcode:1920MWRv...48..191M. doi: 10.1175/1520-0493(1920)48<191b:TOMINI>2.0.CO;2 . Open Access logo PLoS transparent.svg
  11. ↑ Meisinger, C. LeRoy (April 1920). "Discussion of Tornado Conditions". Monthly Weather Review . 48 (4). Boston: American Meteorological Society: 196–8. Bibcode:1920MWRv...48..196.. doi: 10.1175/1520-0493(1920)48<196:DOTC>2.0.CO;2 . Open Access logo PLoS transparent.svg
  12. 1 2 3 4 Smyth, P. H. (April 1920). "The Tornadoes of March 28, 1920, in East-Central Alabama". Monthly Weather Review. 48 (4). Montgomery, Alabama: United States Weather Bureau: 200–203. Bibcode:1920MWRv...48..200S. doi: 10.1175/1520-0493(1920)48<200:TTOMIE>2.0.CO;2 . Open Access logo PLoS transparent.svg
  13. ↑ Blake Naftel; Jon Chamberlain; Becky Monroe; Ed Lacey Jr.; Dick Loney (2015). "April 11th 1965 Palm Sunday Tornado Outbreak". Northern Indiana Weather Forecast Office . Syracuse, Indiana: National Weather Service. Archived from the original on April 4, 2015. Retrieved December 14, 2020.
  14. ↑ Brooks, Harold E. (April 2004). "On the Relationship of Tornado Path Length and Width to Intensity". Weather and Forecasting . 19 (2). Boston: American Meteorological Society: 310. Bibcode:2004WtFor..19..310B. doi: 10.1175/1520-0434(2004)019<0310:OTROTP>2.0.CO;2 .
  15. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Grazulis 1993 , p. 767
  16. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 Grazulis 1993 , p. 768
  17. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Northwest Ohio Is Swept By Tornado; 19 Known Dead". Toledo Blade. Press Pool. March 30, 1920.
  18. ↑ "Selected Timeline of Troup County History". Troup County Historical Society. Archived from the original on October 13, 2003. Retrieved February 5, 2013.
  19. 1 2 "Death And Destruction In Wake Of Tornado". Fenton Independent. April 1, 1920.
  20. 1 2 "Four Killed in Cyclone". Fenton Courier. April 1, 1920.
  21. 1 2 Grazulis 1993 , p. 769
  22. ↑ Grazulis 2001 , p. 21
Channahon–Troy Township–Lockport–Bellwood–Maywood–Melrose Park–Dunning, Illinois
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