2011 Super Outbreak

2011 Super Outbreak

Storm system on April 27
Type	Tornado outbreak
Duration	April 25–28, 2011
Tornadoes confirmed	362 confirmed (Record for a continuous outbreak)
Max rating1	EF5 tornado
Duration of tornado outbreak2	3 days, 7 hours, 18 minutes
Highest winds	210 mph (340 km/h) (Hackleburg, AL/Phil Campbell, AL EF5)
Largest hail	4.5 inches (11 cm) in diameter in Saltville, Virginia on April 27
Damage	~$11 billion (2011 USD)[1]
Casualties	324 fatalities (+24 non-tornadic), 2,200+ injuries[2][3][4][5]
Areas affected	Southern United States, Eastern United States
1Most severe tornado damage; see Enhanced Fujita scale 2Time from first tornado to last tornado

The 2011 Super Outbreak was the largest, costliest, and one of the deadliest tornado outbreaks ever recorded, affecting the Southern, Midwestern, and Northeastern United States and leaving catastrophic destruction in its wake.^[6][7][8][9] The event affected Alabama and Mississippi the most severely, but it also produced destructive tornadoes in Arkansas, Georgia, Tennessee and Virginia, and affected many other areas throughout the Southern and Eastern United States. In total, 362 tornadoes were confirmed by NOAA's National Weather Service (NWS) and Government of Canada's Environment Canada in 21 states from Texas to New York to southern Canada. Widespread and destructive tornadoes occurred on each day of the outbreak, with April 27 being the most active day with a record of 218 tornadoes touching down that day from midnight to midnight CDT (0500 – 0500 UTC). Four of the tornadoes were destructive enough to be rated EF5, which is the highest ranking possible on the Enhanced Fujita scale; typically these tornadoes are only recorded about once each year or less.^[8]

In total, 348 people were killed as a result of the outbreak, which includes 324 tornado-related deaths across six states and an additional 24 fatalities caused by other thunderstorm-related events such as straight-line winds, hail, flash flooding or lightning.^[10][11] In Alabama alone, 238 tornado-related deaths were confirmed by the Storm Prediction Center (SPC) and the state's Emergency Management Agency.^[2][10]

April 27's 317 fatalities were the most tornado-related fatalities in the United States in a single day since the "Tri-State" outbreak on March 18, 1925 (when at least 747 people were killed).^{[12][13][14][15]} Nearly 500 preliminary local storm reports were received for tornadoes over four days, including 292 in 16 states on April 27 alone.^[16] This event was the costliest tornado outbreak and one of the costliest natural disasters in United States history (even after adjustments for inflation), with total damages of approximately $11 billion (2011 USD).^[1]

Meteorological synopsis

The outbreak was caused by a vigorous upper-level trough that moved into the Southern Plains states on April 25. An extratropical cyclone developed ahead of this upper-level trough between northeastern Oklahoma and western Missouri, which moved northeast.^[17] Conditions were similar on April 26, with a predicted likelihood of severe thunderstorms, including an extended threat of strong to violent long-track tornadoes during the afternoon and evening hours; mixed-layer CAPE values were forecast to be around 3000–4000 J/kg, around east Texas, Louisiana and Arkansas. The storm mode on April 26 was predicted to consist of mostly discrete supercells during the afternoon and early evening, shifting over to a mesoscale convective complex, with more of a threat of damaging winds and hail during the nighttime hours.^[18]

As the storm system moved eastward toward the Ohio, Mississippi and Tennessee Valleys on April 27, a very powerful 80–100 knot mid-level jet stream moved into the Ohio and Tennessee Valleys, behind the trough, creating strong wind shear, with a low pressure center moving quickly northeastward across those areas on the 27th. On the afternoon of April 27, CAPE values were estimated to be in the range of 2000–3000 J/kg across Louisiana and southern Mississippi, with the moderate instability moving northeastward across the southern Tennessee Valley; in addition, temperatures across the southeastern United States ranged from the 70s°F (mid-20s°C) to the lower 90s°F (near 35 °C). Helicity levels ranged from 450–600 m²/s², which were supportive for significant tornadic activity and strong to violent long-track tornadoes.^[19]

In total, 56 severe weather watches (2011 watches, 199–256; two watches were omitted in error) were issued by the Storm Prediction Center (SPC) over those four days in the outbreak area, including 41 tornado watches (10 of which were PDS watches) and 15 severe thunderstorm watches.^[20][21]

April 25

A large area of possible severe storms for April 25–27 was forecast as the Storm Prediction Center (SPC) issued a moderate risk of severe weather for three consecutive days, centered over Arkansas through Tennessee. At 3:25 p.m. CDT (2025 UTC), the SPC issued a Particularly dangerous situation (PDS) tornado watch for much of Arkansas and parts of Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas and Louisiana.^[22] By the evening hours of April 25, multiple tornadoes had been reported across a few states, including some that caused significant damage in Arkansas. An intense supercell thunderstorm tracked near the Little Rock metropolitan area and a tornado emergency was declared for Vilonia, Arkansas. A large EF2 wedge tornado struck the town, causing severe damage and killing four people.^[23][24] A strong EF3 tornado had also struck the Hot Springs Village area earlier that evening, causing severe damage and one death. Another EF2 tornado caused extensive damage to a school building and Little Rock Air Force Base later that evening as well.^[25] Severe flooding continued across a large area from the Red River valley to the Great Lakes.^[26] A total of 42 tornadoes and four tornado-related deaths were confirmed on the 25th.

April 26

A high risk of severe weather was issued for April 26 for portions of Louisiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma and Texas along and near the Interstate 30 corridor as conditions became even more favorable for extreme weather.^[27] A large PDS tornado watch with very high tornado probabilities was issued that afternoon for that same area.^[28] Widespread tornado warnings were issued in that area later that evening.^[29][30][31]

Tornado watches were also issued for the Lower Great Lakes in the afternoon hours, and supercells began to track across southern Michigan in the early evening. Two tornadoes touched down in Michigan and caused damage to farm structures. Further east, severe thunderstorms caused scattered wind damage and large hail across Pennsylvania and New York. Two-inch-diameter hail was reported in Lock Haven, Pennsylvania.^[32] An isolated supercell moved across Central New York throughout much of the afternoon, producing golf ball-sized hail in Syracuse, and spawned a very brief EF1 tornado in Verona Mills, causing primarily tree damage. Another tornado in Gilbertsville caused significant damage to an athletic field at a school.^[33]

Numerous tornadoes touched down across Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, and several other states. Most of the tornadoes were weak, but a few caused considerable damage. A long-tracked wedge tornado caused EF2 damage along a path through rural portions of Texas and Louisiana.^[34] An EF3 tornado destroyed multiple structures and caused severe damage at Fort Campbell, Kentucky as well.^[35] A total of 55 tornadoes were confirmed the 26th, though no fatalities occurred.

April 27

Significant severe weather was ongoing at the start of April 27 and continued for the entire day virtually unbroken. For the second day in a row, the SPC issued a high risk of severe weather for the Southern United States, and late that morning the SPC increased the probability for tornadoes to 45 percent along a corridor from Meridian, Mississippi to Huntsville, Alabama, an extremely rare issuance exceeding the high risk standards. Conditions for tornadoes became increasingly favorable for an extreme tornado outbreak.^[36]

Morning squall lines

During the early morning hours, a cold front with several embedded low pressure areas extended from east Texas northeastward into the Ohio River Valley. An upper-level disturbance that had moved across the frontal boundary the previous evening sparked an area of thunderstorms that morphed into a squall line. This line of severe thunderstorms would be responsible for tornado actitvity from late on April 26 into the late morning of April 27. Early in the morning, the squall line, packing straight-line winds and numerous embedded tornadoes, moved through Louisiana and Mississippi, then proceeded to affect North and Central Alabama and parts of Middle and East Tennessee. The line strengthened as it moved through Alabama, due in part to a high amount of low-level moisture from the Gulf of Mexico and increasing wind shear.

Many of the tornadoes embedded in this initial squall line were weak, though several were strong and caused considerable damage. An EF3 caused major damage to homes in Coaling, Alabama, an EF2 and an EF3 caused major damage and a fatality near Eupora, Mississippi, and an EF3 caused heavy damage in downtown Cordova, Alabama, which was struck by a deadly EF4 tornado later that afternoon. One embedded cell that began in Cullman County, Alabama produced a long-tracked EF2 that struck the town of Hanceville, killing one person. That cell would go on to produce over ten tornadoes (mostly EF1s) to the northeast in Marshall County and another EF1 in Dade County, Georgia. The initial storms caused widespread power and telephone line outages across Alabama and Tennessee. This line of storms also caused some NOAA weather radio transmitter sites to stop functioning for the remainder of the outbreak. As a result, many people had no warning of approaching tornadoes later in the day.^[37]

From late morning to early afternoon, another squall line moved through northern parts of Mississippi and Alabama as high wind shear and low-level moisture persisted. However, this time several discrete supercells developed along and in front of the line, spawning seven weak tornadoes across Morgan, Limestone, and Madison Counties in northern Alabama around noon that day.^[37]

Afternoon supercells

The most prolific supercells of the outbreak developed shortly after noon in Mississippi and began to track eastward. During the early afternoon, as wind shear and low-level moisture continued to increase dramatically, a tornado emergency was declared for Neshoba County, Mississippi as a large tornado was reported on the ground by storm spotters and a camera atop a television tower from ABC affiliate WTOK-TV (channel 11) in Meridian, Mississippi. This powerful EF5 tornado caused incredible damage northeast of Philadelphia, Mississippi, where pavement was torn from roads, vehicles were thrown, and the ground was scoured out to a depth of 2 feet (0.61 m) by the tornado. Three people died in this tornado when a mobile home was picked up and thrown 300 yards (270 m) into a wooded area, being obliterated in the process.^[38] Another very long-tracked EF4 tornado killed seven people and passed near the town of Enterprise, Mississippi, killing 7 people before crossing into Alabama and eventually dissipating. In response to the high risk issued by the SPC and the already unstable atmosphere expected to become even more unstable through the afternoon hours, a PDS tornado watch was issued at 1:45 p.m. CDT (1845 UTC) for much of Alabama and portions of Mississippi, Tennessee, and Georgia. A widespread complex of supercell storms overspread the states of Mississippi and Alabama and violent tornadoes began rapidly touching down as the evening progressed.^[37] Four tornadoes were officially rated as EF5 on the Enhanced Fujita scale that day. One of these EF5s obliterated the town of Smithville, Mississippi, where many well-built brick homes were reduced to bare slabs, numerous hardwood trees were completely debarked, and an SUV was hurled half a mile into the top of the town's water tower, leaving a visible dent. Another long-tracked EF5 wedge tornado passed through rural portions of Alabama and Tennessee, becoming the deadliest tornado of the outbreak as it completely devastated the towns of Hackleburg, Phil Campbell, Mount Hope, Tanner, and Harvest, killing 72 people. This marks only the second day in history (the other being the April 3, 1974 Super Outbreak) that there were more than two F5/EF5 tornadoes.^[39]

The tornadoes continued to track through central Alabama that afternoon and into the early evening hours. A dangerous and destructive tornado struck the city of Cullman, Alabama at around 3:00 p.m. CDT (2000 UTC). This large, multiple-vortex tornado was captured on several tower cameras from television stations such as Fox affiliate WBRC (channel 6) and ABC affiliate WBMA-LD/WCFT-TV/WJSU-TV (channels 58, 33, and 40) out of Birmingham. The tornado caused extensive destruction in downtown Cullman, a city of about 20,000 people; the tornado was ultimately rated an EF4. The final damage count was 867 residences and 94 businesses in Cullman, and 6 people were killed throughout the path.^[40] The town of Cordova, Alabama, which had already been damaged by an EF3 tornado from the initial round of storms, was struck by an EF4 tornado that killed 13 people. Two violent EF4 tornadoes also ripped through Jackson County, Alabama, one of which caused a fatality near Bridgeport, while the other passed near Pisgah and into Georgia where it caused major damage in Trenton, killing 14 people along its path. At around 5:10 p.m. CDT (2210 UTC), a very large and exceptionally destructive tornado struck Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and about 40 minutes later, the same tornado struck the northern suburbs of nearby Birmingham.^[41] A tornado emergency was issued for both cities, along with many other cities that day. Many local television stations, including WBRC and WBMA-LD/WCFT/WJSU, as well as CBS affiliate WIAT (channel 42), broadcast live footage of this long-tracked tornado in both Tuscaloosa and Birmingham. A debris ball was observed by the Birmingham NEXRAD, indicating that the tornado was causing extreme damage.^[42] This tornado killed 64 people and caused extensive devastation in densely populated areas, and the tornado struck several of the same small communities as the April 1956 F4, the April 1977 F5 and the April 1998 F5 tornadoes that hit portions of the Birmingham area. The supercell responsible for the Tuscaloosa/Birmingham EF4 tornado originated in Newton County, Mississippi. The supercell also produced an EF4 tornado later that evening that killed 22 people as it struck areas in and around Ohatchee, Alabama before eventually crossing into Georgia and causing additional damage near Cave Spring before dissipating. Further to the south, a mile-wide EF3 tornado killed 7 people in mostly rural areas and caused major damage in the small town of Eoline. The final EF5 tornado of the day caused remarkable damage in and around the town of Rainsville, Alabama, killing 25 people before crossing into Georgia and dissipating. Tornadoes continued to touch down further to the northeast as the sun set, particularly in Georgia. This included a long-tracked EF4 that caused major damage in Ringgold, Georgia, Apison, Tennessee, and Cleveland, Tennessee, killing 20 people along the path. After dark, violent tornadoes continued to touch down, and a nighttime EF4 tornado destroyed many lakeside homes at Lake Martin in eastern Alabama, killing 7 people. Additional strong nighttime tornadoes occurred in Georgia, including an EF3 that killed two people in Barnesville, and another EF3 that destroyed multiple homes and killed one person at Lake Burton.^[43][44][45]

Continued activity farther east

Powerful tornadoes touched down across Tennessee as well that evening. A violent EF4 struck the community of New Harmony, Tennessee, where homes were leveled, vehicles were tossed, and four people were killed.^[46] Two EF3 tornadoes crossed paths in Greene and Washington counties (coming a couple hours apart), resulting in 8 fatalities. The rural communities of Horse Creek and Camp Creek suffered major damage from those tornadoes late that evening.^[47][48] A very large EF4 wedge tornado leveled a mile-wide swath of forest though 14 miles (23 km) of Great Smoky Mountains National Park.^[49] At Chilhowee Lake, large metal power line truss towers were torn and thrown from their concrete supports that they were anchored to.^[50]

A secondary area of severe weather also developed that afternoon and evening along the Interstate 81 corridor from central and northern Virginia northward through Maryland, Pennsylvania, and New York, continuing into early April 28. Many tornadoes touched down in this area as well.^[51][52] Most of these tornadoes were weak, though an EF2 tornado touched down near the town of Halifax, Virginia, and caused severe damage to homes in the area, resulting in one death.^[53] Tornado alerts were issued for Southern Ontario as far north as Ottawa as well; one tornado was later confirmed in Fergus, Ontario.^[54]

Overview

A statewide review by emergency management officials recorded 249 fatalities in Alabama, 23 of which were not tornado-related.^[10] Damage and power outages in the Huntsville area were so widespread that at one point over 650,000 people were out of power in the Tennessee Valley Authority system. The EF5 tornado that struck Hackleburg and Phil Campbell eventually damaged main power lines coming from Browns Ferry Nuclear Plant further to the northeast. These towers were the main supply of electrical power to much of North Alabama and some were without power for two weeks. The tornado just missed the Limestone Correctional Facility, which less than a year later would be struck by another tornado.^[55]

The Storm Prediction Center received 292 reports of tornadoes in the preceding 24 hours.^[16] It broke the record for the most tornado touchdowns in 24 hours with 219 in the United States from midnight to midnight CDT (0500 – 0500 UTC) breaking the 24-hour record of 147 (in both totals, excluding confirmed tornadoes outside the United States that were part of the outbreak) set by the 1974 Super Outbreak. Of those 219 tornadoes, 59 touched down in Alabama and 79 hit the ground in Tennessee, accounting for well over half of the tornadoes that touched down on April 27.^[56] On April 27 alone, the National Weather Service in Huntsville, Alabama issued 92 tornado warnings, 31 severe thunderstorm warnings, and seven flash flood warnings.^[57]

April 28

Tornado watches were issued for the Atlantic coast from Pennsylvania to Florida at the start of the day and continued through the morning and early afternoon, but tornadoes were forecasted to generally be weaker and more isolated.^[58] Despite this, the secondary portion of the outbreak that had began producing scattered tornadoes throughout the Mid-Atlantic and East Coast regions the previous evening intensified during the early hours of the morning, producing numerous tornadoes in Pennsylvania,^[59] New York, Virginia,^[60] North Carolina,^[61] South Carolina,^[62] Georgia, Florida,^[63] and Maryland. While most were weak, some of the tornadoes that struck portions of Virginia, New York, and Pennsylvania were strong.^[64] Although tornado watches were issued, no tornadoes were spotted in New Jersey^[65] or Washington, D.C.^[60] In the wake of the tornadoes and severe thunderstorms, widespread flooding hit the Midwest, South, and Eastern Seaboard, with extensive flood and flash flood warnings issued.^[66] One particularly damaging and deadly EF3 tornado struck the town of Glade Spring, Virginia very early in the morning, where three people died.^[67] The last tornadoes of the outbreak touched down that afternoon in eastern North Carolina, which was hard hit in the April 16 outbreak, though the tornadoes that impacted the area this time around were weak.^[68] The system moved out into the Atlantic Ocean that evening, with the exception of isolated thunderstorms over central Florida that night into April 29, although there were no tornadoes then.^[69]

Notable tornadoes

Daily statistics

Date	Total	EF0	EF1	EF2	EF3	EF4	EF5	Deaths	Injuries
April 25	42	17	20	4	1	0	0	4	--
April 26	55	31	19	4	1	0	0	0	--
April 27	218	67*	81	36	19	11	4	317	2000+
April 28	47	18	23	5	1	0	0	3	--
Total	362	133*	143	49	22	11	4	324	2000+

* One tornado touched down in Ontario, Canada on April 27 and was rated as an F0. It is counted as an EF0 in this table.

Outbreak death toll

State/Province	Fatalities
Alabama	252
Arkansas	5
Georgia	14
Mississippi	31
Tennessee	32
Virginia	4
Totals	324
Only tornado-related deaths are included (24 deaths were not caused by tornadoes)

Vilonia, Arkansas

The first tornado of the outbreak to cause multiple deaths was a long-tracked, high-end EF2 wedge tornado that struck the small town of Vilonia, Arkansas in Faulkner County around 7:30 p.m. CDT (0030 UTC) on April 25.^[70] A tornado warning was issued for the town roughly 30 minutes prior to the tornado's arrival, and the relatively low loss of life was attributed to this lead time.^[71] A tornado emergency was declared at 7:24 p.m. CDT (0024 UTC) for Vilonia shortly before the tornado struck.^[72] Four people were killed in the town and many more were injured. The tornado touched down northwest of Ferndale in Pulaski County at 6:48 p.m. CDT (2348 UTC), downing trees and transmission towers at EF1 intensity.^[73] It continued northeast of Natural Steps, severely damaging a small church and downing numerous trees, one of which landed on a house.^[74] The tornado continued to knock down trees as it passed near Roland, several of which landed on homes. The tornado reached EF2 strength as it crossed into Faulkner County and passed southeast of Mayflower, downing numerous trees and power lines and damaging homes and outbuildings. Past Mayflower, it continued towards Vilonia and struck a mobile home park, where numerous mobile homes were destroyed and the four fatalities occurred. Two of the fatalities occurred when a couple attempted to take shelter in a cargo container, which was thrown 150 yards (140 m) and deposited near a pond. Several other people were injured in this area as well. The tornado maintained EF2 intensity as it moved directly through Vilonia, damaging numerous homes and businesses and flipping several semi-trucks. The American Red Cross indicated that approximately 34 site-built houses and 62 mobile homes were destroyed, 91 site-built homes and 41 mobile homes suffered major damage, 145 site-built houses and 43 mobile homes had minor damage, and 53 site-built houses and 38 mobile homes were affected in some other way in the Vilonia area.^[75] One of the mobile homes was picked up and flipped, and the home's two bathtubs were found over a hill about 40 yards (37 m) away. The lone occupant of the mobile home sustained major injuries.^[76] After moving through Vilonia, the tornado weakened to EF1 strength as it moved into White County and passed west of El Paso, where trees were blown over onto houses (damaging several roofs), barns and outbuildings were destroyed, an RV and the trailer portion of a tractor-trailer were overturned, and hundreds of trees were downed. The tornado finally dissipated north of Joy at 7:59 p.m. CDT (0059 UTC), after having travelled just over 51 miles (82 km). At its widest point, the tornado was 1.64 miles (2.64 km) wide.^[71][77] Following the tornado, 85 members of the U.S. National Guard were deployed to assist in search and rescue, debris clearing, security and traffic control.^[78]

On April 27, 2014, three years and two days after this tornado, a violent EF4 tornado touched down west of Ferndale and moved along almost the same path as this tornado, causing 16 fatalities and many injuries. However, it affected more of Mayflower than this tornado did and caused greater damage all along the path, especially in Vilonia, before lifting near El Paso.^[79]

Philadelphia–Kemper County, Mississippi

The first EF5 tornado of the outbreak touched down in the city of Philadelphia, Mississippi on April 27. The tornado hit the ground at 2:30 p.m. CDT (1930 UTC) and traveled for nearly 29 miles (47 km) through Neshoba, Kemper, Winston, and Noxubee counties, reaching a maximum width of a ¹⁄₂-mile (0.80 km).^[80][81] The tornado killed three people, injured eight others, and caused $1.1 million in damage across its path.^[81][82]

The supercell thunderstorm that produced this tornado formed around 1:00 p.m. CDT south of Jackson, Mississippi.^[83] Traveling briskly to the northeast, it became severe within 25 minutes and potentially tornadic by 1:36 p.m. CDT.^[83][84] A tornado finally touched down at 2:30 p.m. CDT just east of the Philadelphia Municipal Airport. It quickly intensified and began producing EF5 damage by 2:38 p.m. CDT; extreme ground scouring, up to 2 feet (0.61 m) deep in places, occurred in northeastern Neshoba County. After crossing into Kemper County, the tornado obliterated a mobile home, killing all three inside.^[81] It reached EF5 strength a second time near the Kemper–Winston county line where extreme ground scouring again took place and pavement was scoured.^[81][83] Extreme tree damage took place along the track and it ultimately dissipated at 3:00 p.m. CDT about 6 miles (9.7 km) north of Mashulaville.^[81]

This was the first tornado to cause F5/EF5 damage in Mississippi since the Candlestick Park tornado of March 3, 1966. Additionally, the formation of the Smithville tornado later that day marked the first time since statistics have been kept that two EF5 tornadoes have been recorded on the same day in Mississippi. Prior to this, the last confirmed EF5 tornado was the Parkersburg, Iowa tornado of May 25, 2008.^[81]

Cullman/Arab, Alabama

Rated an EF4, this highly visible multiple-vortex tornado tracked directly through downtown Cullman.^[85] The tornado touched down at 2:40 p.m. CDT (1940 UTC) on April 27 and tracked a 47-mile (76 km) damage path through Cullman, Morgan and Marshall counties, resulting in six fatalities.^[86]

The Cullman tornado first touched down on the north side of Lewis Smith Lake and caused light structural damage near Crane Hill before intensifying and tracking directly towards Cullman, snapping numerous trees and heavily damaging several homes. The tornado became violent as it entered Cullman, being tracked and broadcast live via several tower cameras, including one operated by ABC 33/40, for several minutes. That camera captured the destruction of a communications tower belonging to Cullman area low-power television station WCQT-LP as the tornado passed through the city. Radio stations in downtown Cullman also reported on the tornado and some even captured the tornado passing over until power was knocked out. The courthouse and nearby emergency management building took a direct hit from the tornado, both sustaining considerable damage, and two school buildings were heavily damaged as well. Many well-known businesses such as Vincent's Furniture, The Cullman Times, and the Busy Bee Cafe were also either severely damaged or destroyed.^[85]

Downtown Cullman was badly damaged by the tornado, with the major damage being along a two-block area through the center of the downtown business district. The tornado more or less followed U.S. Highway 278 through the city, which in turn led to the tornado crossing and creating extensive damage along many major intersections, including those with Interstate 65, U.S. Highway 31, State Route 157, and State Route 69. Numerous well-built brick buildings and storefronts in downtown Cullman were heavily damaged or completely destroyed, along with multiple churches. Many homes were damaged or destroyed in residential areas of the city, with extensive tree and power line damage noted as well. In all, a total of 867 residences and 94 businesses within the city of Cullman were damaged or destroyed.^[86]

The tornado continued northeast, becoming large and wedge-shaped. It then passed just north of Fairview, completely destroying multiple homes and debarking numerous hardwood trees. Pieces of debris were found speared through vehicles in this area.^[86] The tornado then briefly passed through a section of Morgan County near the town of Hulaco, destroying several older block-foundation homes and snapping numerous large trees off at the base. The tornado then crossed into Marshall County and impacted the rural community of Ruth, just north of Arab. A large but poorly-anchored brick home was swept completely away in this area, with the debris scattered 100 yards from the foundation. Several large trees on the property were ripped out of the ground and missing, along with a trailer that was unable to be located at the time of the survey. Multiple other homes and structures were impacted in the Ruth area, and a gas station was completely destroyed. A shed was destroyed with pieces of large farm machinery stored inside thrown up to 20 yards away, a storage trailer was tossed 100 yards and found impaled by multiple planks of wood, and concrete power poles in the area were bent over. Arab's power grid was completely crippled by the tornado's effects, and many roads in the area were obstructed by downed trees and power lines. The tornado damaged and destroyed several other homes, garages, and sheds north of Union Grove before it crossed the Tennessee River, snapping numerous trees in a forested area before dissipating.^[86]

Hackleburg–Phil Campbell–Tanner–Harvest, Alabama/Huntland, Tennessee

This devastating, long-tracked, EF5 wedge tornado was the deadliest of the outbreak. It first touched down in Marion County, Alabama about 5 miles (8.0 km) west-southwest of Hamilton around 3:00 p.m. CDT (2100 UTC) on April 27, leaving massive damage along its track. The storm would eventually reach the Hackleburg area, completely leveling many homes and businesses, including a large plant operated by Wrangler. Most of the structures in downtown Hackleburg were badly damaged and Hackleburg High School was destroyed. Well-built homes were wiped cleanly from their foundations, extensive wind-rowing of debris occurred, trees were completely debarked, and cars were thrown hundreds of yards. According to the Red Cross, 75 percent of the town was destroyed.^[87] While initially rated as an EF3, the rating was increased to EF5 after further analysis of the damage, making it the first F5/EF5 tornado in Alabama since the Birmingham tornado of April 8, 1998.^[88]

Soon after crossing into Franklin County, the town of Phil Campbell experienced significant devastation of the same magnitude as Hackleburg. Numerous homes, some of which were well-constructed, were swept away as the tornado tore through town. At least three churches along the path sustained significant damage, with one church in the town being completely destroyed and having only the foundation slab remaining. Multiple mobile homes throughout the path were completely destroyed, and their mangled frames were tossed at least 25 to 50 yards (23 to 46 m). Cars were tossed and destroyed throughout the path of the tornado, with one car wrapped around a debarked tree. A 25-foot (7.6 m) section of pavement was torn from a road in this area as well. The most intense damage along the path occurred northeast of Phil Campbell in the rural community of Oak Grove, where vehicles were carried long distances and mangled beyond recognition, large trees were completely debarked, and large brick homes with extensive anchoring were obliterated with the debris wind-rowed hundreds of yards away. The tornado continued into Lawrence County, impacting the Mount Hope community, where significant devastation was incurred to single-family homes and a restaurant. Nothing but the foundation and a pile of debris remained at the restaurant site, and a small portion of the restaurant's foundation slab buckled.^[89]

The tornado moved northeast, producing EF3 damage in and around Langtown. The tornado re-intensified to EF4 strength as it passed near Moulton and Trinity, debarking trees, mangling, and leveling homes. It then continued through the northwest corner of Morgan County, crossed Wheeler Lake, and moved into Limestone County, coming within 2 miles (3.2 km) of Browns Ferry Nuclear Power Plant. The tornado caused power outages in the area, and the plant had to be shut down. The tornado continued towards the small community of Tanner.^[90][91][92] Tanner experienced a large swath of EF4 damage and a narrow corridor of "high-end EF4 to near-EF5 damage". The storm "completely wiped clean" several well constructed homes with anchor bolting.^[90] As the storm crossed U.S. Highway 72 in eastern Limestone County, the tornado destroyed a Doppler radar operated by NBC affiliate WAFF (channel 48) and continued into East Limestone, a heavily populated area of Limestone County where homes in multiple subdivisions were damaged or destroyed at high-end EF3 strength. As the storm crossed into Madison County, it approached the densely populated suburban communities of Harvest and Toney, where it either damaged or destroyed hundreds of homes, especially in the Anderson Hills and Carter's Gin subdivisions. Many homes were reduced to rubble, and the damage in this area was rated mainly EF3 with a small pocket of EF4 damage in Harvest. The tornado completely destroyed a Piggly Wiggly grocery store in Harvest and severely damaged a convenience store and local bank, which was shut down for months following the event.^[93] The storm progressed across Pulaski Pike in northwest Madison County, damaging many homes. In all, hundreds of homes received moderate to major damage along the path from Limestone to Madison County with many of these being total losses.^[90]

The tornado then moved into Tennessee and continued south of Huntland. Isolated and minor EF0 to EF1 damage was noted through most of its path in Tennessee. Widespread damage to trees and outbuildings occurred in this area. The worst damage, however, was to a cinder block utility building and was rated lower-end EF3. Most of its roof was removed, with over half of its downwind wall pushed outward. The tornado eventually dissipated east of Huntland.^[92]

In total, this tornado killed 72 people, all in Alabama.^[2] This made it the deadliest single tornado ever to strike the state of Alabama as well as (at the time) the deadliest in the United States since the 1955 Udall, Kansas tornado that killed 80 people.^[94][95] In addition to being the deadliest, this tornado also had the longest track of any tornado in the outbreak, with its path extending 132.1 miles (212.6 km) across Northern Alabama and into Tennessee.^[92]

Reform–Oakman–Cordova–Blountsville, Alabama

The tornado touched down at 3:40 PM CDT in northeastern Pickens County, Alabama, moving through Tuscaloosa County, briefly into Fayette County, and back into Tuscaloosa County, before rapidly intensifying and crossing into Fayette County once again. There, it caused considerable damage and was rated EF3 in the area. The tornado moved into Walker County, beginning to weaken as it moved south of Oakman. The tornado weakened considerably as it approached Corridor X of the Appalachian Development Highway System, with only minor EF0 tree damage, before it strengthened significantly as it entered the town of Cordova as a 0.5-mile (0.80 km) wide EF3.^[96]

Considerable damage occurred as the tornado moved through Cordova. Buildings in downtown had already been damaged by an EF3 tornado earlier that morning and received further damage from this tornado. East of Cordova, the tornado crossed the Mulberry Fork of the Black Warrior River three times (along with the Sipsey Fork once, just north of its confluence with the Mulberry Fork). It intensified further into a violent EF4 in northeastern Walker County, as it completely leveled a site-built home and obliterated two nearby mobile homes. South of Sipsey, additional homes and mobile homes were destroyed at EF2 to EF3 strength.^[96]

The tornado then crossed the Mulberry Fork for the fourth time and moved into Cullman County. South of Arkadelphia, a second area of EF4 damage was observed, as a cinder block construction home was leveled and a car was thrown 130 yards (120 m). Nearby, an underground storm shelter collapsed onto the occupants sheltering inside as the tornado passed overhead.^[96] The tornado then crossed the Mulberry Fork again, moving into Blount County, where it crossed Interstate 65, before crossing the Mulberry Fork into Cullman County southwest of Garden City. It quickly crossed the river again (the seventh crossing), moving back into Blount County. As it continued to the south-southwest of Garden City, it straddled the Mulberry Fork before finally moving solidly into Blount County and toward Blountsville. On the southeast side of Blountsville, the tornado caused high-end EF2 damage to multiple well-built brick and slab foundation homes, one of which had some exterior walls collapse. The storm continued to the northeast and out of Blountsville, where two additional homes sustained high-end EF3 damage. A large portion of one of the homes was wiped off of its foundation; however, its garage sustained only minor roof damage. At the second of these two homes, a dump truck was thrown 30 feet (9.1 m).^[96] The tornado then moved into Marshall County, causing significant damage to a house and completely destroying an industrial plant at EF2 strength. The tornado then moved into a wooded area, weakened, and eventually lifted south-southwest of Guntersville at 5:56 p.m. CDT (2256 UTC). Thousands of trees were downed along the tornado's path.^[97]

This tornado was on the ground for two hours and sixteen minutes, tracking for 127.8 miles (205.7 km) across seven counties. It was rated as a low-end EF4 with winds of 170 mph (270 km/h). In total, 13 people were killed and 54 others were injured.^[96][97]

Smithville, Mississippi/Shottsville, Alabama

This extremely violent EF5 wedge tornado, with estimated winds of up to 205 mph (330 km/h), struck the town of Smithville, Mississippi at 3:47 p.m. CDT (2047 UTC) on April 27, resulting in catastrophic damage and numerous fatalities.^[98] The tornado began 3 miles (4.8 km) west-southwest of Smithville along the Tennessee–Tombigbee Waterway near the Glover Wilkins Lock at 3:42 p.m. CDT (2042 UTC), snapping numerous trees near the Smithville Recreation Area. The tornado then rapidly intensified as it approached town, reaching EF5 intensity. As the storm crossed Davis Road South, the ground was deeply scoured in a nearby field.^[99] The tornado swept away numerous homes and structures as it moved northeast, following Highway 25. A semi-truck was thrown a considerable distance and destroyed in this area, and at one residence that was swept away, part of the concrete foundation slab was pulled up and dislodged slightly.^[98][99] A large brick funeral home was reduced to a bare slab as the tornado exited at the northeast side of town, with the debris scattered and wind-rowed into an adjacent wooded area. Nearby granite tombstones were blown over in the opposite direction of the tornado's passage. Overall, the tornado destroyed 117 structures in Smithville and damaged 50 others, killing 16 people.^[100] The tornado weakened as it continued through rural areas northeast of town and moved into Itawamba County, where it downed numerous trees and power lines and caused roof damage to a house before exiting the county.^[99][101]

The tornado continued across the Alabama state line into Marion County, where it caused EF1-strength damage near Bexar. Continuing northeast, the tornado re-intensified as it struck the rural community of Shottsville at high-end EF3 intensity, where homes and mobile homes were destroyed and seven people were killed, and it produced additional high-end EF3 damage as it continued north of Hamilton.^[102] More structures were impacted as the tornado approached and crossed into Franklin County. The tornado then dissipated near the town of Hodges at 4:23 p.m. CDT (2123 UTC). The damage path was 37.3 miles (60.0 km) long and ³⁄₄ mile (1.2 km) wide at its widest point, and it killed a total of 23 people along its path. 137 other people were injured.^[102][103]

Pisgah–Flat Rock–Higdon, Alabama/Trenton, Georgia

This multiple-vortex EF4 tornado devastated portions of Jackson and DeKalb counties in Alabama, as well as Dade and Walker counties in Georgia along a 47-mile long path, killing 14 people and injuring at least 50 others.^{[104][105][106]}

The tornado touched down north of Section, initially producing EF0 to EF1 tree damage. The tornado rapidly intensified to low-end EF4 strength as it passed northwest of Pisgah and Rosalie, destroying numerous mobile homes and block foundation homes, scattering the debris hundreds of yards and killing three people. Thousands of trees were snapped and debarked, vehicles were thrown up to 50 yards in different directions, and multiple barns and chicken houses were heavily damaged, along with the roof of a church.^[104] As it passed near Flat Rock and Higdon, the tornado reached high-end EF4 strength, mowing down thousands of trees in this rural area. As the tornado struck a farm, a home and two chicken houses were completely obliterated and swept away. A heavy propane tank was lofted and thrown 100 yards from one of the chicken houses, and 19 cattle on the property were killed. Remarkably, a family of four taking shelter inside the house were completely unharmed.^[104] The tornado maintained EF4 strength as it tore through the rural community of Shiloh, sweeping away numerous mobile homes and block foundation homes and killing 5 people at that location. Thousands of trees were snapped, a log cabin was destroyed, livestock was killed, chicken houses were flattened, and a van was lofted and dropped into a field 400 yards away from where it originated.^[104] The tornado then crossed into Georgia and struck Trenton as an EF3, killing two people. Dozens of homes in Trenton were completely destroyed, 18 others sustained major damage, and tens of thousands of trees were downed in the area. A grocery store, two apartment complexes, and a funeral home were destroyed as well.^[105]

The tornado weakened to EF2 strength as it struck Flintstone further to the northeast, but still resulted in major damage. Numerous trees and power lines were downed, 7 homes were destroyed, 26 sustained major damage, and 35 sustained minor damage in the Flintstone area. The tornado continued northeast, weakening to EF0 strength and dissipating in Fort Oglethorpe.^[106]

Tuscaloosa/Birmingham, Alabama

A large multiple-vortex wedge tornado touched down in rural Greene County, Alabama and tracked across neighboring Tuscaloosa County, including the southern and eastern portions of Tuscaloosa at around 5:10 p.m. CDT (2210 UTC) on April 27.^[41][107] Debris from the tornado was reported to be falling from the sky across Birmingham over 20 miles (32 km) away in Jefferson County. Skycams operated by Tuscaloosa television station WVUA-CA (channel 7) as well as Birmingham Fox affiliate WBRC (channel 6), ABC affiliate WBMA-LD/WCFT-TV/WJSU-TV (channels 58, 33, and 40), and CBS affiliate WIAT (channel 42) captured video of the tornado as it struck Tuscaloosa (WIAT took home multiple awards including a regional Edward R. Murrow Award for "outstanding live coverage" of the event).^[108] As the tornado traveled east to 35th Street and Kauloosa Avenue, the Tuscaloosa Environmental Services and Cintas facilities suffered severe damage. Numerous homes and apartment buildings in the Rosedale and Forest Lake neighborhoods, as well as a P&P Grocery store in Rosedale, were devastated. Several stores and restaurants in a business district at the intersection of McFarland Boulevard and 15th Street, near the DCH Regional Medical Center, were reduced to rubble by the tornado. Buildings were also completely destroyed on 35th Street, between Interstate 359 and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. The Alberta City neighborhood in eastern Tuscaloosa sustained catastrophic damage as numerous homes, apartment buildings, and a shopping center were completely leveled. Additional high-end EF4 damage occurred in the Tuscaloosa suburb of Holt further to the northeast, as several homes were leveled or swept away in that area. The tornado then exited the Tuscaloosa area and moved through dense forest towards Birmingham, downing and debarking thousands of trees.^[109] The University of Alabama suspended its operations, cancelled its softball and rowing competitions, cancelled its final exams period, and postponed its commencement until August 6.^[110]

Many stations, including WIAT, WBMA/WCFT/WJSU, WTVY (channel 4) in Dothan and WSFA (channel 12) in Montgomery, showed television cameras capturing the event as the tornado moved east-northeast across the western and northern suburbs of Birmingham around 6:00 p.m. CDT (2300 UTC). Several suburbs in the area were severely damaged by the massive tornado as it tore through the west side of Birmingham, resulting in multiple fatalities. The suburbs of Concord, Pleasant Grove, and McDonald Chapel were devastated by the tornado as it moved northeast, flattening entire neighborhoods. As the tornado entered the Birmingham city limits, it devastated the Pratt City neighborhood, destroying numerous homes and apartment buildings. The tornado then struck the suburb of Fultondale, causing EF2 damage to homes and businesses before dissipating east of Fultondale.^[107][111] Surveys indicated high-end EF4 damage from the tornado in Birmingham's western suburbs.^[107]

The National Weather Service determined the path length of this violent tornado to be 80.7 miles (129.9 km) with a maximum damage path width of 1.5 miles (2.4 km). The tornado's most intense damage indicated peak winds of around 190 mph (310 km/h); therefore, it was given a final rating of EF4. Reports from Tuscaloosa indicated 44 people were killed, with an additional 20 deaths in Birmingham.^[107][112] Overall this tornado killed 64 people and injured more than 1500.^[2][107] President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama visited Tuscaloosa on April 29, taking a ground tour of some of the affected areas. Obama was quoted as saying that he has "never seen devastation like this." He stated further that he had already declared a federal state of emergency in Alabama.^[113]

Fackler–Stevenson–Bridgeport, Alabama/Haletown, Tennessee

This EF4 tornado, with winds of up to 180 mph (290 km/h), touched down just northeast of the community of Fackler at 5:05 p.m. CDT (2205 UTC) on April 27, initially causing minor damage to mobile homes and downing trees. The tornado then moved northeast toward Stevenson, where large trees were downed, several roofs were damaged, a trailer was tipped over, and a shed was partially destroyed. It then reached EF3 intensity, and 24 metal high-tension truss towers were twisted and flattened northeast of Stevenson Airport. In this area, a mobile home was obliterated and a site-built house was collapsed. Two other homes sustained structural damage, two mobile homes were rolled on their side, and a metal barn was destroyed as well. The tornado then continued to the northeast and reached EF4 strength, with the most significant damage being located near the intersection of County Roads 255 and 256. Here, a home was reduced to its foundation, a concrete slab at the front of the home was pulled up, and a set of concrete stairs was ripped from the foundation. A compact car was thrown about 50 yards (46 m) as well.^[114][115]

Continuing, the tornado reduced two more well-built and well-anchored homes to their block foundations and threw another car approximately 50 yards (46 m). Several large trees were snapped off just above the ground, a third home was left with no walls standing, and a mobile home was completely demolished and strewn along County Road 256 as well. The tornado continued northeastward, destroying a cinder block garage and damaging a mobile home along 6th Street, just southeast of Bridgeport. It then crossed the Tennessee River, producing significant tree damage before moving into Marion County, Tennessee.^[114][115] The tornado entered Tennessee along Lakeview Drive near Moore Crossing and Nickajack Dam. It then proceeded to cross Nickajack Lake three times near Interstate 24 at EF2 strength, downing numerous trees before dissipating in a bend of the Tennessee River northeast of Haletown at 5:31 p.m. CDT (2231 UTC). The tornado travelled 30.24 miles (48.67 km) through Jackson and Marion Counties and had a peak width of 1,320 yards (1,210 m). One person was killed by the tornado in Jackson County.^{[114][115][116]}

Sawyerville–Eoline, Alabama

This strong, long-tracked wedge tornado touched down in extreme southwest Greene County to the west-southwest of Tishabee, near the Sumter County border, at 5:30 p.m. CDT (2230 UTC) and moved northeast. After having touched down in a rural area on the east side of the Tombigbee River, the tornado quickly intensified to high-end EF2 strength along County Road 69. Moving northeast, the tornado damaged a barn and destroyed two small churches and at least four mobile homes. While crossing U.S. Highway 43, the tornado destroyed a large metal outbuilding, caused substantial roof and wall damage to several brick buildings and homes. Hundreds of trees were downed in this area as well. Two people sustained minor injuries in Greene County as the tornado continued along a primarily rural path northeast, moving across the Black Warrior River and into Hale County.^[117][118]

The tornado entered Hale County west of Sawyerville, continuing to move through sparsely populated rural areas. North of Sawyerville, the tornado strengthened to EF3 intensity as it was crossing Alabama State Highway 14. Reaching estimated maximum winds of 145 mph (233 km/h), the tornado continued on its northeast track, crossing County Roads 18 and 21, Alabama State Highway 69, and County Road 29 as it moved south and east of the small communities of Harper Hill and Ingram. The tornado caused extensive structural damage through this area, consisting of many mobile homes and site-built homes being either heavily damaged or destroyed. A church in the area was heavily damaged, vehicles were tossed and destroyed, and thousands of trees were downed as well.^[117][119]

Leaving behind six fatalities and forty more injuries, the tornado maintained its intensity as it moved into the Talladega National Forest. It downed a significant number of trees before moving into Bibb County north of Alabama State Highway 25.^[117][119] In Bibb County, the tornado continued moving northeastward through the Talladega National Forest at EF3 intensity, with thousands more trees being knocked down and partially debarked. Almost immediately after exiting the national forest, the tornado directly impacted the small community of Eoline along U.S. Highway 82, northwest of Brent and Centerville. Around one dozen mobile homes and single-family site-built homes were destroyed, while many more sustained anywhere from minor to major damage. Additionally, the Eoline Volunteer Fire Department and another business were destroyed. One fatality occurred in Eoline, in a vehicle near the fire department building, along with ten other injuries.^[117][120]

Northeast of Eoline, the tornado weakened to EF2 intensity, continuing to cause significant damage as it crossed County Road 9, Alabama State Highway 5, and County Road 26, south of West Blocton. Several mobile homes and site-built homes were either destroyed or sustained major damage. Along the path, thousands of trees were downed. The tornado continued to weaken as it moved to the east of West Blocton, continuing to knock down trees. More trees were downed as the tornado crossed the Cahaba River and lifted just northeast of Marvel at 6:55 p.m. CDT (2355 UTC), not far from the Shelby County border.^[117][120]

The tornado was rated as an EF3, with maximum sustained winds of 145 mph (233 km/h). It remained on the ground for almost an hour and a half, traversing 72.13 miles (116.08 km), being, at times, about 1 mile (1.6 km) wide. In total, seven people were killed and an additional 52 were injured.^{[117][118][119][120]}

Raleigh–Rose Hill–Enterprise, Mississippi/Yantley–Uniontown, Alabama

This extremely long-tracked EF4 tornado touched down near Raleigh, Mississippi in Smith County at 5:42 p.m. CDT (2242 UTC), and continued into the Uniontown, Alabama area before dissipating. The tornado initially downed trees, blew skirting from mobile homes, and tore shingles from roofs. The tornado intensified as it moved northeast across Smith County and produced up to EF2 and EF3 damage. One mobile home was picked up, bounced a couple times, and thrown into a tree line, where it was torn apart and debris was scattered up to a mile away, including the frame. The tornado mowed down a stand of pine trees and destroyed two frame houses, with major damage to the interior walls, and the exterior walls completely destroyed. Many power poles were snapped, a mobile home was annihilated, and a large shop building was completely destroyed as well. It then moved into Jasper County and snapped and debarked many pine trees. The first area of EF4 damage was observed near Louin as a frame home and several mobile homes were completely destroyed, with parts of the mobile homes being thrown long distances, and some of the frame home foundation being swept clean. The tornado caused significant damage to a poultry farm and cattle ranch before it weakened briefly. It then destroyed two mobile homes and caused extensive tree and power line damage. The tornado then produced a relatively narrow path of EF1-strength tree and power line damage for several miles, until re-intensifying near to EF3 strength near Rose Hill.^[121]

Southeast of Rose Hill, the tornado removed most of the roof of a frame home and caused heavy damage to the exterior walls, took a large section of roof off another frame home, completely destroyed a large mobile home, and caused extensive tree damage. The tornado then weakened again and entered Clarke County as an EF0 while only downing a few trees. The tornado strengthened again and downed trees and power lines as it crossed Interstate 59. Several other homes and mobile homes were destroyed as the tornado moved along the south side of Enterprise. At the same time, Sean Casey of Team TIV shot the tornado with his new 3D camera as it was crossing I-59, making this the first tornado ever shot in 3D. Another area of EF4 damage was observed east of Enterprise as a new home undergoing completion was leveled, with the debris swept off the foundation. Many more frame homes were heavily damaged nearby. Many mobile homes were destroyed and trees were downed in this area as well. It then weakened slightly to EF3 strength and produced heavy damage to more houses and mobile homes near Snell and Energy. It also downed many more trees and power lines before moving into Choctaw County, Alabama southwest of Yantley. The tornado killed seven people and injured fourteen others on its 65-mile (105 km) portion of the path that was in Mississippi.^[121]

In Choctaw County, the tornado traveled 27.5 miles (44.3 km) as it caused extensive damage to homes (one of which was destroyed at EF3 strength), and numerous other structures. Several mobile homes were destroyed and many trees were either snapped or completely uprooted. The tornado then moved into Sumter County.^[122] In Sumter County, the tornado caused significant damage to homes and mobile homes before it crossed the Tombigbee River and moved into Marengo County. It continued causing significant tree damage as well as destroying several homes and outbuildings along a 26.7-mile (43.0 km) path in this county. The tornado then entered Perry County, the final portion of the path, where it damaged two outbuildings and a grain silo as well as causing significant tree damage before lifting just north of Uniontown at 8:35 p.m. CDT (0135 UTC). The damage in Sumter, Marengo, and Perry Counties was rated EF2.^[123]

This tornado was on the ground for nearly three hours, having traveled 122.04 miles (196.40 km) across seven counties in two states. Seven people were killed and another 17 were injured.^{[121][122][123]}

Fyffe–Rainsville–Sylvania–Ider, Alabama

This violent multiple-vortex tornado, rated EF5, devastated sections of DeKalb County, Alabama at 6:19 p.m. CDT (2319 UTC), during the late afternoon of April 27. The tornado tracked northeastward generally parallel to and just east of Highway 75 through Fyffe, Rainsville, and Sylvania and into Georgia, killing 25 people.^[124]

The tornado touched down in the Lakeview community, initially causing structural damage to small buildings and snapping trees. The tornado grew in intensity as it struck Fyffe, where more significant damage occurred. Past Fyffe, the tornado became violent, and its width increased from around 50 yards (46 m) to 0.5 miles (800 m) as it entered eastern Rainsville, reaching EF5 strength and destroying numerous homes and businesses. A Huddle House restaurant, the Rainsville Civic Center, and a credit union were destroyed. Multiple vehicles were also thrown, including a school bus that was completely stripped down to its chassis.^[125] Numerous homes in the Rainsville area were swept completely away, with debris strewn up to a mile from the foundations. Some of these homes were connected to their foundations with anchor bolts and foundation straps. Trees were debarked and mobile homes were completely destroyed as well.^[124] Damage was particularly intense just northeast of Rainsville, and one well-built stone house in this area was completely obliterated, with the debris strewn well away from the structure. A large supporting cement and stone pillar was ripped completely out of the ground at this residence, pulling up a section of concrete foundation in the process. Scouring and pock-marking of the ground was noted in this area. Numerous homes were swept away along Lingerfelt Rd as well. At one house that was swept away in this area, supporting concrete anchors were ripped out of the ground, a concrete porch was ripped off with pieces strewn up to 150 yards (140 m) away, a pick-up truck from the home was found mangled in pieces over 250 yards (230 m) away, and a safe weighing 800 pounds (360 kg) was pulled off its anchorage and thrown into a wooded area 600 feet (180 m) away. When found, the safe's door had been ripped open and completely off.^[124] An underground storm shelter in this area had much of its dirt covering scoured away, the occupants of which reported that structure heaved upwards slightly as the tornado passed overhead. Pavement was scoured from several roads in the area, and a concrete porch was torn away and broken in half at another residence that was swept away.^[126]

The tornado continued across the eastern fringes of Sylvania, where a church was completely destroyed, a section of sidewalk was pulled up, and additional homes were swept away and scattered, though it was revealed that these homes were pushed off of their foundations with limited anchorage. A high-end EF4 rating was applied in this area as a result.^[124] The tornado continued to level additional homes as it passed near Henegar and Ider. It crossed into Georgia near Fox Mountain as an EF1 with winds of 110 mph (180 km/h). It tracked 3 miles (4.8 km) into Georgia before lifting outside of Rising Fawn. Damage in Georgia was limited to trees and power lines and minor structural damage to a few homes. This tornado came from the same supercell that produced the EF4 that hit the town of Ringgold, Georgia about 30 minutes later.^[124][127]

Shoal Creek Valley–Ohatchee–Piedmont, Alabama/Cave Spring, Georgia

After the Tuscaloosa/Birmingham tornado lifted, the same supercell produced another tornado, at 6:28 p.m. CDT (2328 UTC) near Argo, Alabama in eastern Jefferson County. It went on to devastate the rural community of Shoal Creek Valley, located between Ashville and Ragland in St. Clair County, Alabama.^[128]

After touching down southwest of Argo, the tornado continued northeast of Odenville, producing EF0 to EF1 tree damage. Further east, the tornado intensified to EF3 strength and entered the rural community of Shoal Creek Valley, following along County Road 22/Shoal Creek Road for approximately 12.5 miles (20.1 km), with the path and width varying greatly along the road. Many homes were left with only interior walls standing in this area. Some section of this path segment had damage that was much worse on one side of the road than the other, while other areas showed equal devastation on both sides of the road. The tornado reached mid-range EF4 intensity towards the end of the valley as it approached Neely Henry Lake. Additional homes were destroyed in this area, one was swept away, and thousands of trees were mowed down and debarked. The tornado maintained EF4 strength as it crossed the lake and tore across the north edge of Ohatchee, completely leveling or sweeping away numerous waterfront homes. Damage ranged from downed trees and roof damage to total destruction as the tornado roared through this area at 50–60 mph (80–97 km/h), packing winds of over 180 mph (290 km/h). The official count of homes destroyed or heavily damaged in Shoal Creek Valley and Ohatchee was 256. Most phone lines, power lines and poles were destroyed, and water lines were severed by uprooted trees. Entire homes were leveled, and in some cases completely removed by the storm, leaving only brick steps, a fireplace and chimney, or a slab behind. Barns, vehicles, tractors and heavy farming equipment were shredded and thrown up to 0.5 miles (0.80 km) away from where they originated. Livestock were thrown and killed, and the initial human death toll of 13 would eventually rise to 15 in the area.^[128] The tornado caused mainly EF3 damage to homes as it passed north of Wellington, though a small pocket of EF4 damage occurred in the small rural community of Webster's Chapel, where a church and several homes were completely leveled or swept away, trees were reduced to stumps, and many other homes were left with only interior walls standing.^[128][129] The Silver Lakes Golf Course also sustained major damage in this area, where at least 50,000 trees were flattened and multiple buildings were damaged or destroyed.^[130] Continuing northeast, the tornado produced high-end EF3 damage north of Piedmont, destroying mobile homes, snapping numerous trees, and leveling a house. Additional homes were leveled at high-end EF3 intensity near The Indian Mountain Tract before it continued across rural areas into Georgia.^[128] Many outbuildings and homes were destroyed, and many trees were downed across Polk, Floyd, and Bartow counties before the tornado dissipated. Severe damage was noted near Cave Spring where chicken houses and homes were damaged or destroyed, and several people were injured. The damage in Georgia was rated EF2.^[131]

This tornado's final death toll, combining fatalities in both St. Clair and Calhoun counties in Alabama, would eventually come to 22.^[2]

Ringgold, Georgia/Southeast Tennessee

A violent multiple-vortex tornado struck portions of extreme northern Georgia and southeast Tennessee during the mid-evening hours of April 27. It touched down along Davis Ridge Road in Catoosa County, Georgia, and moved through the town of Ringgold at EF3 strength, destroying numerous homes and businesses.^[132] A Baymont Inn & Suites, located near Interstate 75 was partially destroyed by the tornado, along with a McDonald's, a Taco Bell, and several gas stations located on Highway 151 in Ringgold at the Interstate 75 interchange (exit 348). The Catoosa County Department of Family and Children Services and other businesses on Nashville Street in downtown Ringgold were also heavily damaged. The Kellerhals Center for Visual Arts Education at Ringgold High School was destroyed (RHS itself had minor damage), and Ringgold Middle School was heavily damaged.^[132][133] Past downtown Ringgold, the tornado reached EF4 intensity as it tore through a subdivision along Cherokee Valley Road at the north edge of town. Twelve homes were completely obliterated and swept away at that location (though they were not well-built). There were 74 destroyed homes and/or businesses, 60 with major damage, and 118 with minor damage for a total of 252 affected structures in the Ringgold area. Eight people were killed, mainly at the subdivision along Cherokee Valley Road.^[134]

The storm then crossed the Tennessee state line at 8:28 p.m. EDT (0028 UTC), and moved into Hamilton County, Tennessee, striking the small town of Apison at high-end EF4 strength, where multiple large homes were leveled or swept away, 150 others were damaged, and thousands of trees were snapped and uprooted.^[135][136] The tornado then crossed into Bradley County at low-end EF4 strength, moving across the southern and eastern fringes of Cleveland and affecting mainly residential areas, though a few businesses were damaged or destroyed as well. Subdivisions in the southern part of the city sustained major damage, with numerous houses destroyed and a few that were leveled.^[135] Four people were killed in Cleveland, and many others were injured.^[135][137] Several trees were felled in Polk County (as the tornado had weakened to EF1-strength), before the tornado crossed into McMinn County.^[135] The tornado re-strengthened to an EF2 and destroyed two houses and a mobile home before lifting south of Athens.^[138]

The tornado killed 20 people and injured hundreds more along its 57-mile (92 km) path across Catoosa, Hamilton, Bradley, Polk and McMinn counties. The tornado was given a rating of EF4 with winds ranging from 175–190 mph (282–306 km/h). The damage path of the tornado was between ¹⁄₃ and ¹⁄₂ mile (0.54 and 0.80 km) wide. This tornado is only the eighth in Georgia to be categorized as an F4/EF4 on the (Enhanced) Fujita scale, since official tornado records have been kept in 1950.^{[132][135][139]}

All roads in and out of Ringgold were closed until the morning of April 29; after roads leading to the affected areas were re-opened, residents and business owners were allowed to return, being allowed entry only by providing identification, and informing police a reason why they were entering into the area, in order to curb looting in the storm-damaged areas.^[140]

Non-tornadic effects

This storm system prolonged an ongoing heavy rain event, which began across Arkansas and Missouri on April 22.^[17] Weekly rainfall totals reached 19.73 inches (501 mm) 6 miles (9.7 km) east-northeast of Springdale, Arkansas, 16.20 inches (411 mm) 4 miles (6.4 km) northwest of Poplar Bluff, Missouri, and 14.96 inches (380 mm) at Westville, Oklahoma.^[141] On April 25, 2011, thunderstorms with high winds swept through parts of southern and southeastern Ohio. Straight-line winds estimated at 80 miles per hour (130 km/h) uprooted trees, damaged roofs, and downed power lines through Perry County, Ohio and Athens County, Ohio. Strong thunderstorms and heavy downpours which led to flooding were also reported in multiple areas across Upstate New York with heavy flooding in the Syracuse area. The rain also saturated hundreds of lakes in the Adirondack mountains. Interstate 81 was briefly shut down in the downtown area at traffic hour and the State University of New York Upstate Medical University also closed briefly due to flooding in the lobby.^[142]

Farther south, flash flooding late on April 26 resulted in two fatalities in Monroe, Louisiana after an apartment complex was swamped. The flooding there was considered to be worse than the flooding after Hurricane Gustav in 2008.^[143] In central and northern Arkansas, up to 10.44 inches (265 mm) of rain was reported during that week. The resulting flash flooding in central Arkansas also resulted in five people losing their lives. Many roads were closed due to the flooding there. The flooding was mitigated somewhat by a significant drought that had existed before the storm.^[144]

Severe thunderstorms were reported as far north as Northern Ontario on the evening of April 26. Heavy rains and minor flooding were also reported in Northern Ontario from April 26–28.^{[145][146][147][148]} Windstorms were also reported in Southern Ontario and Southern Quebec which resulted in several injuries and one death, damages and power outages.^{[149][150][151][152][153]}

Other fatalities due to straight-line winds occurred in McComb, Mississippi early on April 26^[22] and also in Moody, Alabama, Vestavia Hills, Alabama, and Franklin, Tennessee early on April 27 from the squall line with embedded tornadoes.^[16][32]

Aftermath

Alabama Governor Robert J. Bentley declared a state of emergency in the state of Alabama on April 27, due to storm damage from severe thunderstorms earlier that day as well as forthcoming severe weather later that day. States of emergency were also declared in Arkansas, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri, Tennessee, and Oklahoma because of the flooding and tornadoes.^[154] Following the tornado outbreak on the evening of April 27, President Barack Obama granted a federal emergency declaration for the state of Alabama, giving federal assistance, including search and rescue assets, to the affected region.^[155]

More than 2,000 National Guard troops were deployed to Alabama, assisting local and state first responders in search and rescue efforts.^[156] President Obama visited the affected areas of Alabama on April 29.^[157] Also on April 29, he approved a federal disaster declaration for seven Mississippi counties: Clarke, Greene, Hinds, Jasper, Kemper, Lafayette, and Monroe.^[158] By the morning of April 30, the Alabama Emergency Management Agency had confirmed at least 45 storm fatalities in Tuscaloosa, but this was later corrected downward to 44. The tornado killed 64 people along its entire path.^[10]

Electricity outage

Storms through the area severely damaged Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA)'s power grid for transmitting electricity throughout the region. More than 300 power transmission towers, 120 feet (37 m) to 150 feet (46 m) tall, were destroyed in the storms, some "twisted like bow ties" according to National Weather Service meteorologist Eric Holweg. The towers supported some 90 transmission lines, a mixture of 500kV and 161kV lines. Those lines provided power from TVA to 128 regional distributors.^[159][160]

TVA lost the ability to transmit power from both Browns Ferry Nuclear Power Plant and Widows Creek Fossil Plant after the storms on April 27, requiring both to be shut down. The nuclear plant's cold shutdown was supported by diesel generators for four days until a second 161kV line could be restored to the plant. The loss of redundant off-site power required a "notification of unusual event", the lowest of four levels of concern dictated by the NRC. Some 60 percent of the sirens for warning residents of worse problems around Browns Ferry were disabled by the storms, and the plant had to arrange plans to use cars with loudspeakers to warn residents in case of another problem. Chief Operating Officer Bill McCollum of TVA stated that it could be weeks before the nuclear plant is up and running again.^[91][160] The Nuclear Regulatory Commission stated at a press conference: "The plants' conditions are stable and are being placed in a cooled-down condition."^[161][162]

Huntsville was the largest city with no electricity from TVA.^[160] All the traffic lights were off, a dusk-to-dawn curfew was imposed, students were sent home from United States Space Camp, and the Panoply Arts Festival was canceled.^{[163][164][165]} Power was restored gradually to Huntsville, beginning with 3 percent on the morning of May 1.^[166] Only localized outages remained eight days after the storm.^[167] In addition to traffic and safety issues, the outage caused difficulties with water treatment and distribution and retail of all kinds, including gasoline and food purchases.^[166][168]

Ontario electricity outages were minor, mostly caused by the windstorms of April 28. Although they affected thousands of people at different times throughout the day, all power was restored by the end of the day.^{[149][150][151][152][153]}

See also

• List of North American tornadoes and tornado outbreaks
• List of F5 and EF5 tornadoes
• Tornadoes of 2011
• List of disasters in the United States by death toll
• Tornado records
• Tri-State Tornado – Deadliest tornado in North America, and made March 18, 1925 the deadliest tornado day recorded in United States.
• 1932 Deep South tornado outbreak – Deadliest tornado outbreak in Alabama history, including an F4 tornado that tracked through Tuscaloosa.
• 1936 Tupelo–Gainesville tornado outbreak – Infamous tornado outbreak occurring on April 5–6, 1936. Deadliest U.S. tornado outbreak since the March 1925 (Tri-State Tornado) outbreak, thus surpassing the March 1932, April 1974, and April 2011 outbreaks in total fatalities.
• April 1956 Birmingham tornado – F4 tornado that hit the northern Birmingham suburbs on April 15, 1956.
• 1974 Super Outbreak – Infamous tornado outbreak occurring on April 3–4, 1974, similar in severity to the 2011 Super Outbreak; though the 2011 event surpassed the 1974 Super Outbreak as the largest recorded outbreak.
• April 1977 Birmingham tornado – F5 tornado that hit the northern Birmingham suburbs on April 4, 1977.
• 1994 Palm Sunday tornado outbreak – March 27, 1994 outbreak that produced an F4 tornado in St. Clair, Calhoun and Cherokee Counties in north-central Alabama.
• April 1998 Birmingham tornado – F5 tornado that struck western parts of Birmingham on April 8, 1998.
• December 2000 Tuscaloosa tornado – F4 tornado that hit southeast suburbs of Tuscaloosa on December 16, 2000.

References

Further reading

• Chiu, Samantha (2013). "Mesoscale and Stormscale Ingredients of Tornadic Supercells Producing Long-track Tornadoes in the 2011 Alabama Super Outbreak". M.S. Thesis. Urbana-Champaign: University of Illinois. 

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to April 25–28, 2011 tornado outbreak.

• Hook–Echo.com Tornado Outbreak Overview
• Time lapse visualization of the April 25–28 tornado outbreak
• Interactive map of all the tornado paths during the April 25–28 outbreak

Emergency Tornado Aid

• National Red Cross
• Tuscaloosa News People Finder – Set up by local newspaper to aid in finding loved ones and friends missing in the tornado.

Memorials

• University of Alabama Holds Memorial Ceremony Honoring Students who Died in Disaster as well as First Responders

Pictures from Tuscaloosa, Alabama

• Tornado Damage in Tuscaloosa, Alabama

Video

• Overhead view of Cullman, Alabama damage
• Detailed Radar loop of Northern Alabama, Eastern Mississippi, and Southern Tennessee