Special thanks to Sergeant Rocco Renno of the Hoover Police Department and Officer Chad Allinder of the Jefferson County Sherrif's Department for their assistance withground damage surveys in the Birmingham area. Winter Weather Warnings Tornado Warnings for counties in Central Alabamawere in effect from338 pm until800 pm with this supercell. The warning is in effect until 4:15 p.m. (or 5:15 p.m. local time). Land Tuscaloosa, AL F4 Tornado - February 23, 1975 Published by Jen Narramore on February 23, 2019 Stats Path length: 14.4 miles Width: 500 yards Fatalities: 1 Injuries: 49 Rating: F4 County: Tuscaloosa Tornado Path Click Map To Enlarge SPC coordinates: Start: 33.08 / -87.60 End: 33.25 / -87.45 Alabama was hit the worst, with the first reported tornado hitting Marion and others hitting Tuscaloosa, Chilton County, and other locales. In all, 240 people died and more than 2,000 people were injured. The tornado devastated the Cedar Crest neighborhood just north of 15th St, leveling many cinder block homes and causing at least 3 fatalities. A tornado ripped the steeple from a Marshall County church, destroyed chicken houses near Albertville, and damaged homes and trailers in more than five counties in northeast Alabama. These are scenes from Ohatchee, which is about 50 miles northeast of Birmingham: Major destruction from tornado just Southwest of Ohatchee, AL. - A large supercell beginning in Mississippi dropped an EF-4 tornado packing winds of up to 190 m.p.h. This tornado initially touched down in rural northern Greene County and moved northeast through southern Tuscaloosa and western Jefferson Counties, where it caused devastating damage consistent with a violent EF4 rating to portions of the city of Tuscaloosa and western suburbs of Birmingham, before it lifted northeast of downtown Birmingham. That was the F4 tornado that affected areas from Greensboro all the way to Mount Cheaha. 6:14 a.m. - The damage reached Odenville in St. Clair County, where an EF-2 tornado damaged several homes, including multi-story brick structures. The threat wanes into Louisiana, as well as north into the Ohio Valley, but an isolated tornado, as well as instances of wind, hail and localized flooding are still concerns. The National Weather Service has spent the past few days tracing the path of Alabama's deadliest tornado since 2019. #alwx pic.twitter.com/Kfgmey9oKW, 12:30 p.m.: "[C]onfirmed large and extremely dangerous tornado south of Tuscaloosa. The tornado developed in the southwestern part of the county on the west side of the . Yall please stay safe and vigilant!. All rights reserved (About Us). List of North American tornadoes and tornado outbreaks, Bridge Creek, Moore, & Oklahoma City (Metro), OK, "Day 4-8 Severe Weather Outlook Issued on Apr 23, 2011", "Day 4-8 Severe Weather Outlook Issued on Apr 24, 2011", "Apr 25, 2011 0730 UTC Day 3 Severe Thunderstorm Outlook", "Apr 27, 2011 1200 UTC Day 1 Convective Outlook", "Apr 27, 2011 1300 UTC Day 1 Convective Outlook", "Particularly Dangerous Situation (PDS) Tornado Watch 235", "Storms, Tornadoes Leave Dozens Dead in Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia and Tennessee", "Tuscaloosa-Birmingham EF-4 Tornado April 27, 2011", "Tuscaloosa-Birmingham Tornado - April 27, 2011", "Discriminating EF4 and EF5 Tornado Damage", "Damage Survey of the Tuscaloosa-Birmingham Tornado on April 27, 2011", "THE AFTERMATH: Staff accounts of the tornado", "Obama In Tuscaloosa: 'I've Never Seen Devastation Like This', "Six UA students included in list of tornado deaths", Interview with Storm Chaser of April 27 Tuscaloosa Tornado, Full video of this tornado taken by the above storm chaser from Tuscaloosa University Mall parking lot, Full episode of Discovery Channel's Storm Chasers about the Tuscaloosa Tornado, "Normalized Damage from Major Tornadoes in the United States: 18901999", 10.1175/1520-0434(2001)016<0168:NDFMTI>2.0.CO;2, List of tornadoes in the 2011 Super Outbreak, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=2011_TuscaloosaBirmingham_tornado&oldid=1141443200, 2011 natural disasters in the United States, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, April 27, 2011, 6:14p.m. CDT (UTC05:00), 64 fatalities (+8 indirect), 1,500+ injuries, This page was last edited on 25 February 2023, at 02:47. The first was an EF-2 tornado that carved a 35.17-mile path through parts of Choctaw and Marengo counties. The mayor of Tuscaloosa estimated the cost of clearing the debris to be between $70 and $100 million. The tornado killed seven people and injured several others and caused widespread damage along its long path. A line of thunderstorms, stretching from near Meridian, Miss. Social media photos show severe damage to homes in Eagle Point, which is near Meadowbrook, Ala. and about 10 miles southeast of Birmingham. #alwx pic.twitter.com/U6DpeZeXIq, 6:00 p.m.: Tornado emergency extended into Columbiana and Wilsonville, about 30 miles southeast of Birmingham. All rights reserved (About Us). An hour later, the city of Newnan tweeted: The city experienced heavy damage in and around the historic downtown area due to tonights weather.. Tuscaloosa-area storm shelters, including those on the University of Alabama campus, will open when a tornado watch is issued, officials said. He's covering tornadoes in Alabama and his house just got hit. pic.twitter.com/ByAPwZ6JJK, 7:00 p.m.: Risk of tornadoes and severe weather lower but not eliminated into the evening. The tornado continued northeastward out of the Concord area and into the Pleasant Grove community. The National Weather Service rated this tornado at EF4, with winds around 175 miles per hour, said local news reports. 2023 Advance Local Media LLC. Multiple rounds of intense supercell thunderstorms are expected this afternoon and early evening, with the potential for long-track strong to violent tornadoes, the Storm Prediction Center wrote. Late Thursday afternoon into early evening, a second long-track, destructive tornado was on the ground for about 100 miles in north central Alabama before it lifted, only about 10 miles south of the first tornadic storm. Alberta Elementary School suffered nearly complete destruction, with only a few portions of walls still standing. Also, to Gene Bussell and his crew with the AlabamaNational Guard for their cooperation with aerial surveys along this track. The tornado weakened slightly as it moved across County Road 57 but still damaged several homes. Severe thunderstorms will break out in multiple zones shortly after lunchtime along the cold front near and east of the Mississippi River, and farther east across eastern Mississippi, northwest Alabama and Middle Tennessee. Then, as the lower atmosphere is heated, the cap will break allowing storms to explosively develop. The storm is sweeping northeast at 40 mph and is expected to pass very close to Pell City momentarily. So, this supercell existed for about 7 hours and 24 minutes, and traveled approximately 380 miles producing several strong to violent tornadoes along the way. Every tree was snapped in this area, including those within deep ravines. Randy Robbins, a survivor of the Tuscaloosa storm, made it through, with the storm ripping his jeans, watch, glasses, and shirt from his body, leaving only his boxers, a silver cross necklace and his iPhone remaining in his right hand. As it crossed Hurricane Creek, it tore apart a large metal railroad trestle, and a 34-tonne (74,957lb) metal truss support structure was thrown 100ft (30m) up on a nearby hill. 4:30 a.m.- Tornadoes begin crossing over from Mississippi and firing along a line stretching from Pickens County to Fayette County, causing damage to homes, power lines and felling trees. On April 27, 2011, a devastating tornado tore through Tuscaloosa, Alabama. The tornado is one of the 10 longest tornado tracks on record in Alabama, coming in at No. Tornado warnings are in effect about 30 miles south of Tuscaloosa, Ala. until 5 p.m. and 15 miles east of Rome until 4:45 p.m. (5:45 p.m. local time). Words matter. Words simply can't adequately describe what . On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. [17] A four-sided brick home in the area also had its roof torn off, but none of its exterior walls collapsed. The majority of it remained within a couple of yards of the home. #alwx pic.twitter.com/0lqKYP5OwS. Acquired May 7, 2011, this natural-color image shows part of a tornado track near the town of Berry, Alabama. Winding and meandering road networks make it impossible to escape a tornado if youre caught on the roadways, too. Average tornado warning lead time is around 10 minutes at best, meaning its vital to have a plan in place before you need it. (The National Weather Service in Birmingham issued an update on Jan. 18, saying damage near the Independence community in Autauga County led to the path length being extended from the previous 76 miles.). Alabama was hit the worst, with the first reported tornado hitting Marion and others hitting Tuscaloosa, Chilton County, and other locales. 6:25 p.m.: Tornado warning discontinued for twister that tracked south of Tuscaloosa and Birmingham. The damage in the Fultondale area includedfoldedhighway light poles along the interstate, and roof damage to the Days Inn on U.S. Highway31. Just downstream, several manufactured homes in a cluster were shredded and thrown considerable distances, the weather service said. It continued on into Jefferson County, crossing Interstate 65, slamming into Pleasant Grove, Concord and McDonald Chapel in Jefferson County. NOAA Weather Radio It also was similar to the path. [5] At 1:45p.m. CDT (18:45 UTC), a Particularly Dangerous Situation (PDS) tornado watch was issued for much of Alabama, northwest Georgia, southeast Mississippi, and southern middle Tennessee, with a >95% probability of at least two tornadoes and one or more strong tornadoes. Just before noon, the Storm Prediction Center has issued a particularly dangerous situation tornado watch for central and eastern Mississippi, western and northern Alabama, southern middle Tennessee, and northwest Georgia until 8 p.m. central time. Local Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Data, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. That especially includes areas near and north of Interstate 22 and along and south of Interstate 40, where the most widespread severe weather can be expected. These are not individual tornadoes but reports of tornadoes. The South is an area known for systematic vulnerability to severe weather and tornadoes. A well-anchored clubhouse on the property was mostly swept away and its remains were scattered into a pond, even though the structure had lacked interior walls. The coverage and intensity of storms, from Alabama and Georgia, into the Tennessee Valley and western Carolinas, should decrease some overnight as the activity gradually shifts eastward, but storms that produce pockets of damaging winds or even additional tornadoes are not out of the question. Throughout the afternoon hours, in the wake of an earlier mesoscale convective system, the airmass across western and northern portions of Alabama began to quickly destabilize, with mixed layer convective available potential energy (CAPE) estimated in the 25004000 j/kg range and low-level dewpoints of 7072F surging northward from Louisiana. The tornado continues to loft massive amounts of debris into the air, which is being detected by radar. Severe Storms. Latest update on Tuscaloosa from Mayor Maddox. BUT, the actual count will be far, far less. While uncertainty exists as to how intense individual storms will become and what specific areas will be hit, an extremely serious outbreak of severe weather is anticipated. Theyll probably clear Mississippi by sunset and plow through Alabama and eastern Tennessee after dark while diminishing in intensity, although at least some isolated severe weather risk will remain. Elsewhere, only one other tornado warning was active, about 30 miles west of Tuscaloosa, until 2:30 p.m. Alabama was hit the worst, with the first reported tornado hitting Marion and others hitting Tuscaloosa, Chilton County, and other locales. Extensive wind-rowing of debris was noted in Concord and Pleasant Grove, numerous trees were debarked, and some homes were swept away (though much of the debris remained next to the foundations and was not scattered, and most vehicles were not moved more than 15 yards (14m)). The same tornadic thunderstorm which caused damage southeast of Birmingham had charged into northeast Alabama, near the border with Georgia where a tornado warning is in effect until 4 p.m. The tan-toned, debris-filled path passes through the center of town, affecting both commercial and residential properties. Linhares added that using that definition, 95 of 2,505 tornadoes, or 3.8 percent, qualify as long-track tornadoes. Extent of injuries unknown. The tornado entered the southern portion of Tuscaloosa as a low-end EF4 and crossed 35th Street, completely destroying a cell phone tower and several warehouses in an industrial area. PLEASE TAKE COVER if you are in the path of this storm! (2011, May 3). His girlfriend, Ashley Harrison, who was huddle in a closet with him was ripped from his arms. Meteorologists found at least EF-3 damage in the Kingston area of Autauga County, where seven people have died, and at least EF-2 damage in the Selma area. [1] As a shortwave trough tracked across portions of the Mid-South and southeastern United States, moderate instability and strong wind shear ahead of a trailing cold front was expected to promote the development of supercell thunderstorms capable of producing tornadoes, large hail, and damaging winds. It then went on to impact parts of Birmingham at high-end EF4 intensity before dissipating. Were very accustomed to storms, and we know in the spring time that we deal with these, but you never really prepare for them.. It touched down near Argo, and cleared at 72-mile path, rolling through Shoal Creek Valley in St. Clair County, packing winds of more than 180 mph and killing 22 people all the way to the Georgia line, obliterating homes along the way. Now, the full fury of the outbreak was showing its muscle throughout the state. All NOAA, Tuscaloosa-BirminghamEF-4 Tornado Devastating images are coming in from tornado damage in the Birmingham, AL area. Fire Weather 3:45 p.m.: Birmingham ABC affiliate reporter: multiple people pulled from their homes and hospitalized southeast of the city. Nine were in central Alabama, one was in north Alabama, one was in southeast Alabama and three were in southwest Alabama. Severe Safety w/ ASL In Florence, in the northwest corner of the state, a police officer was struck by lighting while setting up street barricades. A four-sided brick home in the same areaonly lost a roof and no exterior walls, which is indicative of EF-2 damage. Damage at the beginning of the path ranged from EF1 to EF2. The swarm of storms came after roughly 50 tornadoes tore through the region last week. More damage continued to the northeast along County Road 140, where two people were killed in separate homes at the eastern end of the road. (Video: Cesar Villasenor via Storyful), Storm updates between Thursday afternoon and evening. The weather service said that radar showed a debris ball in southern Coosa County which matched ground observation of a wide area of snapped pine trees on either side of McKissick Road between the communities of Speed and Equality. #alwx #tornado @spann pic.twitter.com/qTVTJ1kHBe, 3:10 p.m.: Long-track tornado in Alabama nears border with Georgia. By the time that tornado lifted just north of downtown Birmingham, it had covered 80.3 miles, reached up to about 1.5 miles wide, killed 64 people, injured over 1500, and caused . Microbursts In all, 299 Alabamians were killed in the outbreak. The tornado strengthened as it crossed the Black Warrior River, north of Interstate 20 and approached Tuscaloosa to a violent EF4 with winds of 170 mph. Severe Storms, Image of the Day 2023 Advance Local Media LLC. 5:17 a.m. - Tornadoes touched down from the Mercedes plant in Tuscaloosa to Lake Guntersville. Light poles were damaged along Interstate 65, and a Days Inn and several other commercial buildings sustained major damage along US 31 before the tornado began to rapidly narrow and weaken. Cookie Settings/Do Not Sell My Personal Information. pic.twitter.com/efdr6wVo9S. As its path narrowed to 0.5 mile, the tornado passed north of Brookwood, near the intersection of Hannah Creek Rd and CR 59. This individual was pulled from the debris alive. YouTubes privacy policy is available here and YouTubes terms of service is available here. https://t.co/r5wRwYAbMV. May 16, 2011: NASA has released a unique satellite image tracing the damage of a monster EF-4 tornado that tore through Tuscaloosa, Alabama, on April 27th. The tornado killed 64 people, including six University of Alabama students. 0:38 Nearly a decade has passed since the deadliest tornado in Tuscaloosa's history carved a 5.9-mile path of destruction through the city, though for most people who lived through that storm. @NWSBirmingham @spann #alwx pic.twitter.com/0QhnzMfgRZ. The tornadic storms occurred amid an intensifying storm system unleashing all modes of severe weather from Mississippi to Kentucky to western South Carolina. #alwx pic.twitter.com/cpMwa23Q8L. Many stations, including WIAT, the WBMA trimulcast, CBS affiliate WTVY (channel 4) in Dothan and NBC affiliate WSFA (channel 12) in Montgomery, showed television cameras capturing the event as the tornado which appeared wider than its estimated width during that section of the path as the condensation funnel was partially obscured by a debris cloud and a dense rain shaft moved east-northeast across the western and northern suburbs of Birmingham at high-end EF4 strength around 6:00p.m. CDT (23:00 UTC). EF-4 damage was prevalent here,withslabs wiped clean, though the debris from each home had not been removed by the winds. It was a devastating F4 that pushed 18 miles through Tuscaloosa County. The weather service will have to analyze all the storm tracks to say for sure, but it appears that one storm held together -- possibly dropping tornadoes periodically along the way -- from Mississippi all the way across Alabama and into Georgia. Eleven were killed and 144 injured. Drought Monitor The tornado continued to Holt Lock and Dam Road near its intersection with Recreation Area Road. 869K views 9 years ago. Know the location of the nearest shelter, or business that is open 24/7, wrote James Spann, a veteran meteorologist at ABC 33/40 in Birmingham known for walking Alabamians through scores of historic outbreaks. On December 16, 2000, a destructive tornado outbreak hit the Southeastern United States, from Mississippi to North Carolina.The most significant tornado of the outbreak occurred in communities south and east of Tuscaloosa, Alabama.The F4 tornado killed 11 people and injured more than 125 others; it was the strongest tornado to hit the state of Alabama in the month of December since 1950. However, this was revised to 64 deaths and more than 1,500 injuries. [10][18], The National Weather Service determined the path length of this violent tornado to be 80.68 miles (129.84km) with a maximum damage path width of 1.5 miles (2.4km), or 2,600 yards (2,400m). One home on a foundation was swept clean, with only floor joists remaining attached to the foundation. East of Holt, the tornado path width widened from 0.5 mile to around 1 mile. It is even more at risk from high-end tornadoes than the traditional Great Plains Tornado Alley, with swifter-moving storms that cover more ground. Caption by Michon Scott. The warning is in effect until 5:30 p.m. and the storm is racing northeast at 60 mph and headed in the direction of the town of Brent. State highways 45, 20 and 72 in Mississippi, as well as the Natchez Trace Parkway, Highways 43 and 72 in Alabama, and Highways 64, 43 and 412 in Tennessee are among the major routes that could be impacted by especially dangerous weather. One of the cities hit hardest was Tuscaloosa, Ala. A nearly mile wide tornado cut a path though the town, killing 53 people, and injuring 1200 more. Tropical Incredibly sad looking at this radar data and seeing the debris signature triple in size after passing over/near #Columbiana Alabama #tornadooutbreak pic.twitter.com/ge7gY5iLWE, 5:30 p.m.: Tornado emergency for areas about 40 miles south of Birmingham. Specific threats will depend on where one is in relation to the overarching storm system, but storms are expected to be both unusually widespread and intense across a large swath of area. Clarence Davis, 73, was standing outside his house on Closhire Drive after debris was dumped in his yard. Based on the damage scene and contextual evidence, it is plausible that winds were stronger, the weather service said. On the street corners and in the neighborhoods, thousands of citizens transformed into heroes by aiding the injured, searching for the missing, clearing debris, and volunteering from dawn to dusk. Noon: Particularly dangerous situation tornado watch issued. through north central Alabama to just northeast of Rome, Ga. (see 3:55 p.m. update) has generated several areas of rotation, prompting both tornado and flash flood warnings. 11:20 a.m. - An EF-1 tornado touched down in Decatur Industrial Park, damaging roofs and leaving damage. 8:12 p.m. - An EF-4 tornado killed nine along a 44-mile path through Elmore, Tallapoosa and Chambers counties in the Lake Martin area. The tally would only mount as the sun rose. Other Research a tornado emergency is in effect until 6 p.m. a tornado warning is in effect until 4 p.m. A string of those tornado reports likely came from one storm, one long-lived supercell storm. It crossed the highway and rolled a manufactured home along Autauga County Road 40. He stated further that he had already declared a federal state of emergency in Alabama.[23]. Rapidly intensifying, the tornado moved towards the southern and eastern portions of Tuscaloosa at around 5:10p.m. CDT (22:10 UTC). As of 7 p.m., there were no tornado warnings in effect over Alabama but scattered storms continued, some severe. Cookie Settings/Do Not Sell My Personal Information. No Excuses! tweeted Dan Satterfield, a meteorologist who spent years in Birmingham covering severe weather outbreaks. Two waves of deadly storms battered the state over the course of one day, leaving broken cities, twisted wreckage and lost lives. National Weather Service The monster tornado that devastated Tuscaloosa, Alabama, (see map) on April 27 was spawned by unusual "perfect storm . The large tornado that was on the ground about 30 to 40 miles south of both Tuscaloosa and Birmingham lifted and the warning for the storm discontinued around 6:15 p.m. And just like that -- it's gone! NWS Birmingham, Alabama465 Weathervane RoadCalera, AL 35040205-664-3010Comments? Six dead as destructive tornadoes cut across Alabama, Georgia. This video is from the EF4 tornado that went through Tuscaloosa, AL on 4/27/11. Its a call to prepare. As the tornado moved across a coal yard in this area, a 35.8-tonne (78,925lb) coal car was thrown 391ft (119m) through the air. The Old Kingston-Lake Martin tornado was one of 14 tornadoes that hit Alabama on Jan. 12. It was right in my face, he said. Contact Us The warning for the tornado south of Tuscaloosa, Ala. (see 4:30 p.m. update below) was upgraded to a tornado emergency, the most serious alert, due to a confirmed large and destructive tornado about 8 miles southwest of Mertz or 25 miles southeast of Tuscaloosa, shown in the image above. 4:30 p.m.: New tornado warning south of Tuscaloosa and flash flood warnings through Tuscaloosa and Birmingham. The storm packed winds of 190 miles (310 kilometers per hour) and left a path of debris running southwest to northeast. Entire neighborhoods are leveled. It turns out another tornado from Thursday would also qualify as a long-track storm: The EF-1 twister that left a 30.4-mile-long track through parts of Lawrence, Morgan and Limestone counties in northwest Alabama.