Central Plains Outbreak of May 1957

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Central Plains Outbreak of May 1957

Date of tornado outbreak:	May 19-May 21, 1957
Duration1:	3 days
Maximum rated tornado2:	F5 tornado
Tornadoes caused:	50 confirmed
Damages:	Not yet available
Fatalities:	59
Areas affected:	Central US Plains and Mississippi Valley
1Time from first tornado to last tornado 2Most severe tornado damage; see Fujita Scale

The Central Plains Outbreak of May 1957 is a tornado outbreak that took place across the US Central Plains from May 19 to May 21, 1957. The F5 tornado that was included in this outbreak and the most significant, is often called the Ruskin Heights Tornado according to people in the Kansas City area as the worst of the damage occurred in the Ruskin Heights area, a suburb and housing development south of Kansas City. 50 tornadoes were reported from Colorado to the Mississippi Valley and 59 people were killed during the outbreak including 44 from the Rusking Heights tornado.

Contents 1 Tornado table 2 Ruskin Heights/Kansas City Tornado event 3 Other tornadoes 4 References 5 External link

[edit] Tornado table

Source: [1][2]

Confirmed Total	Confirmed F0	Confirmed F1	Confirmed F2	Confirmed F3	Confirmed F4	Confirmed F5
50	6	15	18	7	3	1

[edit] Ruskin Heights/Kansas City Tornado event

Outbreak death toll

State	Total	County	County total
Kansas	7	Franklin	3
		Miami	4
Missouri	52	Carter	7
		Jackson	37
		St. Francois	8
Totals	59
All deaths were tornado-related

The tornado touched down shortly after 6:00 PM CDT in Williamsburg, Kansas and lifted about 71 miles (113.6 km)later just outside the town of Little Blue, Missouri southeast of Kansas City near the interchange of Interstates 70 and 470. Thirty-nine people where reported dead with in the first forty-eight hours, with five more dying from injuries over the years. The tornado hit the areas of Ottawa, and Spring Hill, Kansas before hitting Martin City, part of Grandview, Hickman Mills, Ruskin Heights, and Knob Town, Missouri. The 71 mile path leveled numerous of houses, and businesses. At one point the F5 tornado was over a mile (1.6 km) wide, but as it went through Ruskin Heights, the funnel was about three to four street blocks wide. One of the oddities was that the tornado hit a water tower head on, and passed through it, without any damage to it. But, across the street it leveled both Junior and Senior High Schools, and houses located in Ruskin Heights. Today, there is a memorial located at the entrance to Ruskin Heights commemorating those who where killed.

[edit] Other tornadoes

Two other killer tornadoes occurred on May 21 across Missouri. An F4 tornado in Carter County killed 7 and injured 75 while an F3 tornado in St. Francois County killed 8 and injured 50.

[edit] References

Caught in the Path, (ISBN 0-9655774-0-6) by Carolyn Glenn Brewer.

[edit] External link

• Ruskin Heights Tornado website