Type | Tornado outbreak |
---|---|
Duration | August 6, 1993 |
Tornadoes confirmed | 24 |
Max. rating1 | F4 tornado |
Duration of tornado outbreak2 | ~ 4 hours |
Fatalities | 4 fatalities, 251 injuries |
Damage | $72 million |
Areas affected | North Carolina, Virginia |
1Most severe tornado damage; see Fujita scale 2Time from first tornado to last tornado |
The 1993 Virginia tornado outbreak was a tornado outbreak that occurred in the Southeastern United States on August 6, 1993. It was very rare in that most tornado outbreaks in this region occur in the spring.
FU | F0 | F1 | F2 | F3 | F4 | F5 | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
0 | 3 | 16 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 23 |
F# | Location | County | Time (UTC) | Path length | Damage | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Virginia | ||||||
F2 | NE of Kenbridge to NW of Colonial Heights | Lunenburg, Nottoway, Dinwiddie, Chesterfield | 1643 | 38 miles (60.8 km) | Tornado touched down near Kenbridge as an F0, blowing the roofs off of a briquette factory and a furniture company. The tornado reached F1 intensity in Nottoway County, leveling trees, outbuildings, and barns. A house was damaged as well. The tornado crossed into Dinwiddie County and further intensified into an F2 as it struck the town of Ford, where a house lost its second story, telephone poles and large trees were downed, and a wooden shed was leveled. The tornado caused F0 damage in Chesterfield County before dissipating. [1] | |
F4 | SW of Petersburg to NE of Hopewell | Dinwiddie, Prince George, Chesterfield | 1730 | 12 miles (19.6 km) | 4 deaths – See section on this tornado | |
F1 | N of Colonial Heights to SW of Talleysville | Chesterfield, Henrico, Charles City, New Kent | 1740 | 14 miles (22.4 km) | Tornado first moved through a subdivision, causing roof and window damage and downing numerous trees. The tornado then crossed the James River and struck the Varina-Enon bridge, flipping several vehicles. Minor tree damage occurred elsewhere. Five people were injured. [1] | |
F1 | SE of Roxbury to N of Providence Forge | Charles City, New Kent | 1800 | 6.5 miles (10.4 km) | Tornado caused extensive tree damage and destroyed two mobile homes. [1] | |
F1 | NE of Providence Forge | New Kent | 1815 | 4.8 miles (7.7 km) | Many trees were downed in rural areas. Tornado was up to a half-mile wide at times. [1] | |
F1 | W of Courtland | Southampton | 1820 | 1 miles (1.6 km) | Trees were uprooted and a shed was destroyed. [1] | |
F1 | Sussex to E of Waverly | Sussex | 1827 | 14 miles (22.4 km) | Tornado struck Waverly, where trees were snapped/uprooted and chimneys were knocked over. A branch was found driven into the siding of one home. A poorly-built metal peanut warehouse was destroyed as well. [1] | |
F1 | SW of Spring | Surry | 1835 | 2.5 miles (4 km) | Trees were snapped and uprooted, metal roofing was torn from a shed, and two vehicles were damaged. Three houses were damaged, including one that lost its chimney. [1] | |
F1 | W of Surry | Surry | 1835 | 5 miles (4 km) | An apartment building lost part of its roof and much of its siding. Trees were downed and a car had its windows blown out as well. [1] | |
F1 | SE of Williamsburg | James City, York | 1850 | 8 miles (12.8 km) | Near the beginning of the path, the tornado snapped pine trees, and destroyed a bathhouse and a recreational building. The tornado then rolled 5 mobile homes at a trailer park, flattened a large metal building, and threw a storage trailer. After crossing Highway 60, the tornado moved into York County, where trees were blown onto buildings at the Naval Weapons Station. [1] | |
F0 | Franklin area | Isle of Wight | 1900 | 0.3 km (0.5 km) | Brief tornado with no damage. [1] | |
F3 | S of Urbana | Middlesex | 1900 | 2.9 miles (4.6 km) | Tornado snapped trees, damaged a barn, and overturned a travel trailer. Listed as an F0 on the NWS Sterling survey page, and the NCDC listing as an F3 may be erroneous. [1] | |
F1 | Newport News to Hampton | James City | 1910 | 12 miles (19.2 km) | In Newport News, the tornado blew trees onto homes and tore apart a poorly-built flea market. Sheet metal was found wrapped around trees. In Hampton, the tornado overturned a portable classroom at a high school, and tore air conditioning units from the roof of a grocery store. At Langley Air Force Base, the tornado damaged several F-15s and a storage building. [1] | |
F0 | White Stone area | Lancaster | 1915 | 1 miles (1.6 km) | Trees were blown onto homes. [1] | |
F1 | N of Suffolk | Suffolk | 1930 | 2 miles (3.2 km) | Four homes were damaged and several trees were knocked down. Two homes under construction were moved several feet from their foundations. | |
F1 | Kiptopeke area | Northampton | 1950 | 0.5 miles (0.8 km) | Tornado struck Kiptopeke State Park, snapping multiple trees along the path. Picnic tables were thrown, and a 20-foot ornamental boat was thrown 120 feet. A construction trailer and another trailer were overturned as well. [1] | |
F2 | Chesapeake area | Chesapeake | 2000 | 2.5 miles (4 km) | Tornado moved through Chesapeake, damaging at least 35 homes. Some homes lost large sections of their roofs, and a brick two-car garage was destroyed. Trees were snapped and uprooted, some of which landed on homes. [1] | |
F1 | SE of Virginia Beach | Virginia Beach | 2045 | 1.5 miles (2.4 km) | Tornado began as a waterspout and moved ashore, causing tree and roof damage. One house had its roof blown off. [1] | |
North Carolina | ||||||
F1 | Grantham area | Wayne | unknown | unknown | This tornado damaged the roofs of 6 homes, the roof of a school, and four hangars at a local airport. Several barns and numerous trees were damaged as well. | |
F1 | Ponzer area | Hyde | 1900 | 0.5 miles (0.8 km) | Homes sustained roof damage, and outbuildings were damaged. | |
F1 | Swanquarter area | Hyde | 1910 | 0.7 miles (1.1 km) | A house was destroyed, and another was damaged. | |
F0 | Engelhard area | Hyde | 1945 | 0.2 miles (0.32 km) | A house roof and satellite dish antenna were damaged. | |
F1 | Pantego area | Beaufort | 2030 | 0.5 miles (0.8 km) | A two-car garage and home were damaged, and a tobacco barn was destroyed. | |
Sources: NOAA Storm Data, Tornado History Project Storm Data - August 6, 1993 |
F4 tornado | |
---|---|
Max. rating1 | F4 tornado |
Fatalities | 4 fatalities, 246 injuries |
1Most severe tornado damage; see Fujita scale |
This destructive tornado touched down on the southwest side of Petersburg, and rapidly intensified as it struck the historic downtown area of the city. Several well-built, multi-story brick buildings were leveled, along with a train station. A decorative caboose near the train station was ripped from its anchors and thrown 20 feet, pulling the anchors out of the ground in the process. Damage in downtown Petersburg was rated as F4. The tornado then moved through the Pocahontas Island neighborhood at F3 intensity, heavily damaging or destroying 47 homes and a church. A total of 100 buildings were damaged or destroyed in Petersburg. The tornado then crossed into Colonial Heights, severely damaging a strip mall, a K-mart, and a waterbed store. A Wal-Mart was destroyed, with three fatalities occurring at that location. Many cars in the parking lot were tossed and destroyed as well. Damage in Colonial Heights was rated as low-end F3. The tornado then crossed into Prince George County at F2 intensity, striking a sand and gravel company. Several cars and trucks were overturned, the second floor of a cinder-block building was destroyed, conveyor belts were twisted and overturned, and one person was killed at that location. Many trees were downed throughout the county. The tornado then struck the north side of Hopewell at F1 intensity, where it blew roofs off of an apartment complex. The tornado caused minor damage to an additional 49 homes, major damage to 13 homes and destroyed two other homes in Hopewell. The tornado exited Hopewell, weakened to an F0, and dissipated in Charles City County. From start to finish, this storm caused 4 deaths and 246 injuries. It was the deadliest Virginia tornado since 10 people were killed in Ivy on September 30, 1959. [2] It was also the first recorded F4 tornado in Virginia state history. [3] For a number of years afterwards, the remains of a damage swath (sheared, twisted and broken vegetation) through thick trees was visible along the west side of I-95 on the immediate north side of the Appomattox crossing. Perhaps one of the longest lasting reminders of the twister was on the Martin Luther King Jr. Bridge between Colonial Heights and Petersburg. As the tornado had smashed through the historic district, it ripped a traffic light off the bridge, and the snapped pillars remained until the bridge was replaced in 2002. As a result of the damage that occurred, a State of emergency was issued for Petersburg. [4] [5]
The 1974 Super Outbreak was the second-largest tornado outbreak on record for a single 24-hour period, just behind the 2011 Super Outbreak. It was also the most violent tornado outbreak ever recorded, with 30 F4/F5 tornadoes confirmed. From April 3–4, 1974, there were 148 tornadoes confirmed in 13 U.S. states and the Canadian province of Ontario. In the United States, tornadoes struck Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, and New York. The outbreak caused roughly $843 million USD in damage, with more than $600 million occurring in the United States. The outbreak extensively damaged approximately 900 sq mi (2,331 km2) along a total combined path length of 2,600 mi (4,184 km). At one point, as many as 15 separate tornadoes were occurring simultaneously.
The tornado outbreak of April 6–9, 1998 was a large tornado outbreak that started on April 6 across the Great Plains and ended on April 9 across the Carolinas and Georgia. A total of 62 tornadoes touched down from the Middle Atlantic States to the Midwestern United States and Texas. The outbreak is infamous for producing a deadly F5 that tore through the suburbs of Birmingham, Alabama, killing 32 people. The Birmingham tornado was one of only two F5 tornadoes that year. The other hit in Lawrence County, Tennessee, on April 16, as part of the same outbreak as the Nashville F3 tornado. This tornado outbreak was responsible for 41 deaths: 7 in Georgia and 34 in Alabama.
A destructive and deadly tornado outbreak impacted the Red River Valley on April 10, 1979. Several strong to violent tornadoes touched down throughout the region that day. One F4 tornado impacted Vernon, Texas. The most notable tornado was another F4 tornado that destroyed most of the southern part of Wichita Falls, Texas, and is commonly referred to as "Terrible Tuesday" by many meteorologists. Additional tornadoes were reported across the Southern Plains as well as in the Mississippi River Valley on April 11–12. Overall, the outbreak killed 58 people and injured 1,927 others. This tornado outbreak resulted from a storm system that was the same storm system that, just a few days later, produced the 1979 Easter flood, which was the worst disaster to befall Jackson, Mississippi in over a century, causing over $500 million in 1979 dollars, forcing the evacuation of over 15,000 residents, and killing one.
The tornado outbreak sequence of May 2004 was a series of tornado outbreaks that affected much of southern Ontario, the Central and Southern United States from east of the Rockies to the Mid-Atlantic States from May 21 to May 31, 2004. Particularly hard hit were the central Plains from Missouri to Iowa and the Ohio Valley. The Central Plains were hit by two significant outbreaks on May 22 and May 24, the first outbreak of which produced a very large and violent tornado in Hallam, Nebraska. The Ohio Valley was affected by one of the largest tornado outbreaks ever during the Memorial Day weekend on May 29–30.
This page documents notable tornadoes and tornado outbreaks worldwide in 2004. Strong and destructive tornadoes form most frequently in the United States, Bangladesh, and Eastern India, but they can occur almost anywhere under the right conditions. Tornadoes also develop occasionally in southern Canada during the Northern Hemisphere's summer and somewhat regularly at other times of the year across Europe, Asia, and Australia. Tornadic events are often accompanied with other forms of severe weather, including strong thunderstorms, strong winds, and hail.
This page documents the tornadoes and tornado outbreaks of 2002, primarily in the United States. Most tornadoes form in the U.S., although some events may take place internationally. The year had several large outbreaks that included the Veterans Day Weekend tornado outbreak and the Midwest to Mid-Atlantic United States tornado outbreak.
This page documents notable tornadoes and tornado outbreaks worldwide in 2001. Strong and destructive tornadoes form most frequently in the United States, Bangladesh, and Eastern India, but they can occur almost anywhere under the right conditions. Tornadoes also develop occasionally in southern Canada during the Northern Hemisphere's summer and somewhat regularly at other times of the year across Europe, Asia, and Australia. Tornadic events are often accompanied with other forms of severe weather, including strong thunderstorms, strong winds, and hail.
On February 21–22, 1971, a devastating tornado outbreak, colloquially known as the Mississippi Delta outbreak, struck portions of the Lower Mississippi and Ohio River valleys in the Southern and Midwestern United States. The outbreak generated strong tornadoes from Texas to Ohio and North Carolina. The two-day severe weather episode produced at least 19 tornadoes, and probably several more, mostly brief events in rural areas; killed 123 people across three states; and wrecked entire communities in the state of Mississippi. The strongest tornado of the outbreak was an F5 that developed in Louisiana and crossed into Mississippi, killing 48 people, while the deadliest was an F4 that tracked across Mississippi and entered Tennessee, causing 58 fatalities in the former state. The former tornado remains the only F5 on record in Louisiana, while the latter is the deadliest on record in Mississippi since 1950. A deadly F4 also affected other parts of Mississippi, causing 13 more deaths. Other deadly tornadoes included a pair of F3s—one each in Mississippi and North Carolina, respectively—that collectively killed five people.
This page documents the tornadoes and tornado outbreaks of 1989, primarily in the United States. Most tornadoes form in the U.S., although some events may take place internationally. Tornado statistics for older years like this often appear significantly lower than modern years due to fewer reports or confirmed tornadoes.
This page documents the tornadoes and tornado outbreaks of 1990, primarily in the United States. Most tornadoes form in the U.S., although some events may take place internationally. Tornado statistics for older years like this often appear significantly lower than modern years due to fewer reports or confirmed tornadoes, however by the 1990s tornado statistics were coming closer to the numbers we see today.
This page documents the tornadoes and tornado outbreaks of 1974, primarily in the United States. Most tornadoes form in the U.S., although some events may take place internationally. Tornado statistics for older years like this often appear significantly lower than modern years due to fewer reports or confirmed tornadoes.
This page documents notable tornadoes and tornado outbreaks worldwide in 1973, but mostly features events in the United States. According to tornado researcher Thomas P. Grazulis, 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. Most countries only recorded tornadoes that produced severe damage or loss of life. Consequently, available documentation in 1973 mainly covered the United States. On average, most recorded tornadoes, including the vast majority of significant—F2 or stronger—tornadoes, form in the U.S., although as many as 500 may take place internationally. Some locations, like Bangladesh, are as prone to violent tornadoes as the U.S., meaning F4 or greater events on the Fujita scale.
This page documents the tornadoes and tornado outbreaks of 1967, primarily in the United States. Most tornadoes form in the U.S., although some events may take place internationally. Tornado statistics for older years like this often appear significantly lower than modern years due to fewer reports or confirmed tornadoes.
This page documents the tornadoes and tornado outbreaks of 1952, primarily in the United States. Most tornadoes form in the U.S., although some events may take place internationally. Tornado statistics for older years like this often appear significantly lower than modern years due to fewer reports or confirmed tornadoes.
This page documents the tornadoes and tornado outbreaks of 1951, primarily in the United States. Most tornadoes form in the U.S., although some events may take place internationally. Tornado statistics for older years like this often appear significantly lower than modern years due to fewer reports or confirmed tornadoes.
This page documents the tornadoes and tornado outbreaks of 1950, primarily in the United States. Most tornadoes form in the U.S., although some events may take place internationally.
The first six days of December 1953 produced a destructive and deadly tornado outbreak sequence across the Southern United States. There were 19 confirmed tornadoes, including a violent F4 tornado that hit the northwest side of Alexandria, Louisiana and even more violent F5 tornado that hit Vicksburg, Mississippi. In all, the tornadoes killed 49 people, injured 404 others, and caused $45,709 million in damage. The death toll made this deadliest December tornado outbreak ever recorded and it would not be surpassed until 2021. This was also the last of the series of deadly and catastrophic tornado outbreaks to strike the US in 1953.
A localized, but destructive and deadly tornado outbreak impacted Tennessee, Alabama, and Georgia on Leap Day in 1952. Thanks in part to unseasonably strong jet stream winds and a strong cold front, eight tornadoes left trails of damage and casualties. The tornado to cause the most casualties was an F1 tornado in Belfast, Tennessee, which killed three people and injured 166. A violent F4 tornado moved through Fayetteville, Tennessee, destroying most of the town and killing two and injuring 150 others. On the north side of Fort Payne, Alabama, an F3 tornado caused major damage and injured 12 people. In all, the outbreak killed five, injured 336, and caused $3.1 million (1952 USD) in damage. Four more fatalities and 14 more injuries occurred from other non-tornadic events as well.
This page documents the tornadoes and tornado outbreaks of 1949, primarily in the United States. Most recorded tornadoes form in the U.S., although some events may take place internationally. Tornado statistics for older years like this often appear significantly lower than modern years due to fewer reports or confirmed tornadoes.
This page documents the tornadoes and tornado outbreaks of 1948, primarily in the United States. Most tornadoes form in the U.S., although some events may take place internationally. Tornado statistics for older years like this often appear significantly lower than modern years due to fewer reports or confirmed tornadoes. Also, prior to 1950, tornadoes were not officially surveyed by the U.S. Weather Bureau, which would later become the National Weather Service, and thus had no official rating. All documented significant tornadoes were instead given unofficial ratings by tornado experts like Thomas P. Grazulis.