Date of tornado outbreak: | April 4 - April 5 |
Duration1: | 48 hours |
Maximum rated tornado2: | EF2 tornado |
Tornadoes caused: | 46 confirmed |
Damages: | Unknown |
Fatalities: | 9 |
Areas affected: | Southern US and East Coast |
1Time from first tornado to last tornado |
The April 2011 derecho and tornado outbreak was a large-scale damaging wind and tornado outbreak that affected the South and Eastern parts of the United States. The system produced a large serial derecho windstorm that caused thousands of reports of wind damage and several embedded tornadoes. Power outages were extensive across the area and tree damage was severe. Several people were killed and injured by falling trees and branches as the storm passed through. Damaging tornadoes touched down in Arkansas, Kentucky, and Mississippi. The storm continued into the early hours of the morning causing more wind damage along the East Coast along with a few more tornadoes.It is reportedly one of the most prolific damaging wind events on record.
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Several storms started to develop in the evening on April 3. Storms in Kansas, Missouri, Iowa, and Illinois brought severe thunderstorms to the areas. A tornado watch was issued for Iowa and Illinois as the storms rolled through, and later a severe thunderstorm watch for northeastern Illinois and southeastern Wisconsin. However, there were no reported tornadoes.[1] Continuing eastward, the system entered an environment favoring tornadic development. Two tornadoes were reported in Kentucky during the early afternoon, both rated EF2 and resulting in injuries.[2] Near Hopkinsville, a tornado, confirmed by local emergency services, caused significant damage to a manufacturing plant and injured several people.[3] Numerous buildings were reported to be destroyed, trapping residents within debris.[4] Other tornadoes caused damage and injuries in the southern states including Louisiana and Mississippi. In addition to the tornadoes, there was widespread wind damage (over 1,400 severe weather reports were received by the Storm Prediction Center, with the vast majority being damaing winds) as an extremely large squall line/serial derecho, which had begun to form over northern Texas at around 4 am Monday morning, tracked across the southern United States with wind gusts as high as 90 mph (145 km/h) reported across 20 states. Severe wind damage and power outages also occurred in Arkansas, in addition to a few tornadoes.[2] Nine people were killed in this storm, one of the deaths was as a result of an EF2 tornado in Dodge County, Georgia that destroyed mobile homes.The other fatalities were caused by straight line winds. The squall line continued into the early hours of the morning and caused more severe wind damage and some tornadoes along the East Coast, especially in Georgia and the Carolinas. Numerous power outages also took place due to the extensive wind damage. Nearly 100,000 and 147,000 residences lost power in Tennessee and Georgia respectively.[5][6]
Confirmed Total |
Confirmed EF0 |
Confirmed EF1 |
Confirmed EF2 |
Confirmed EF3 |
Confirmed EF4 |
Confirmed EF5 |
46 | 8 | 32 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
List of reported tornadoes - Monday, April 4, 2011 | ||||||
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Parish |
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Arkansas | ||||||
EF1 | E of Ashdown | Little River | 1310 | 5 miles (8.0 km) | A metal building and a carport were destroyed and many trees were knocked down. | |
EF1 | N of Hope | Hempstead | 1338 | 3.5 miles (5.6 km) | A barn was damaged and nine chicken houses were heavily damaged. A tractor trailer was also flipped. | |
EF2 | E of Blevins | Hempstead, Nevada | 1340 | 2 miles (3.2 km) | Severe damage on a chicken farm with a trailer and four chicken houses destroyed, with hundreds of chicken killed. Two people were injured on the farm. | |
EF1 | S of Fourke | Miller | 1350 | 2.75 miles (4.43 km) | Many trees were snapped or knocked down, some falling on a house with significant damage and a large storage building which was destroyed. | |
EF1 | N of Whelen Springs | Clark | 1409 | 4 miles (6.4 km) | Damage to trees, power poles and power lines. | |
EF1 | SW of Waldo | Columbia | 1428 | 1 mile (1.6 km) | Several houses sustained minor roof damage. | |
EF1 | SW of Norphlet | Union | 1512 | 1.25 miles (2.01 km) | Numerous houses, barns, outbuildings and a gas station were damaged. | |
Kentucky | ||||||
EF1 | S of Slater | Ballard | 1518 | 3.7 miles (6.0 km) | Two barns were destroyed and trees were snapped or uprooted. | |
EF2 | E of Slater | Ballard | 1520 | 7 miles (11 km) | A house was heavily damaged and several others sustained minor damage. Numerous farm buildings and sheds were destroyed and two mobile homes were flipped. One person was injured. | |
EF0 | SW of Heath | McCracken | 1630 | 0.5 miles (800 m) | A metal farm building was damaged and two vehicles were heavily damaged. Several trees were snapped. | |
EF1 | SE of Greenville | Muhlenberg | 1655 | 7.5 miles (12.1 km) | Severe damage at a mobile home park where three people were injured. | |
EF2 | SE of Hopkinsville | Christian | 1704 | 4.5 miles (7.2 km) | A large industrial factory was heavily damaged, where seven people were injured. Two barns were flattened and two houses were also damaged. | |
EF1 | NW of Sugar Grove | Butler | 1726 | 3.4 miles (5.5 km) | Several houses were damaged, including a house that lost its roof and a mobile home that was removed from its foundation. Trees were also snapped. | |
EF1 | SW of Caneyville | Grayson | 1738 | 2 miles (3.2 km) | Three large grain bins were thrown on a mining company site with damage to other buildings. Two mobile homes were also damaged. | |
EF1 | Caneyville | Grayson | 1741 | 1 mile (1.6 km) | A house and a barn sustained roof damage and many trees were uprooted or snapped. | |
EF1 | ENE of Hestand | Monroe | 1955 | 0.25 miles (400 m) | A large barn was heavily damaged and trees were snapped by this brief tornado. | |
EF1 | SW of Albany | Clinton | 2014 | 350 yards (320 m) | Brief tornado destroyed a shed and damaged a barn and a house. | |
EF0 | SW of Cumberland City | Clinton | 2016 | 250 yards (230 m) | Brief tornado uprooted numerous trees. | |
EF1 | NW of Williamsburg | Whitley | 2103 | 1.75 miles (2.82 km) | Several barns and outbuildings were damaged and many trees were snapped or knocked down. | |
EF1 | S of Teaberry | Floyd | 2221 | 0.4 miles (640 m) | Brief tornado destroyed a mobile home and knocked down about 100 trees. | |
Tennessee | ||||||
EF1 | Waverly area | Humphreys | 1819 | 2.9 miles (4.7 km) | Several businesses were damaged in town, and many trees were knocked down. Some of the trees landed on houses and vehicles with damage to them. | |
EF1 | Dickson area | Dickson | 1843 | 7.3 miles (11.7 km) | Several buildings were damaged, including the fire station in Tennessee City. Many trees were uprooted or snapped and barns and outbuildings were destroyed. | |
EF0 | SSW of Ashland City | Cheatham | 1852 | 1 mile (1.6 km) | Dozens of trees were snapped and uprooted. | |
EF1 | Smyrna | Davidson, Rutherford | 1900 | 4.19 miles (6.74 km) | Tornado touched down near Cane Ridge Park, damaging many trees and power lines along the track. Vehicles were thrown on Interstate 24 but no injuries were reported. Several houses sustained minor damage. | |
EF0 | NE of Athens | McMinn | 2236 | 0.1 miles (160 m) | Very brief tornado with damage limited to a few trees. | |
Ohio | ||||||
EF0 | NE of Kirkersville | Licking | 1946 | 1 mile (1.6 km) | A few houses were damaged, a building lost its roof and some trees were knocked down. | |
Louisiana | ||||||
EF1 | SE of Georgetown | Grant | 1942 | 9.5 miles (15.3 km) | Numerous houses were damaged and many trees were snapped or uprooted. | |
EF2 | W of Enterprise | La Salle, Catahoula | 1958 | 12.9 miles (20.8 km) | A hunting camp was heavily damaged. Severe damage to trees and power poles. | |
EF2 | N of St. Joseph | Tensas, Claiborne (MS) | 2043 | 27 miles (43 km) | Numerous houses were heavily damaged or destroyed and the parish's water system was heavily impacted by a long track, large wedge tornado. One person was injured. | |
EF1 | Franklinton | Washington | 2340 | 400 yards (370 m) | One home sustained major roof damage, and there was minor roof damage to two mobile homes. Several large trees were completely uprooted. | |
EF1 | S of Killian | Livingston | 2342 | 0.5 miles (800 m) | One house sustained roof damage and numerous trees were snapped. | |
EF0 | N of Gramercy | St. James | 2350 | 1 mile (1.6 km) | A carport was lifted, significantly damaging a house. | |
EF1 | SW of Bogalusa | Washington | 0001 | 400 yards (370 m) | A mobile home was damaged and numerous trees were knocked down. | |
Mississippi | ||||||
EF1 | N of Utica | Hinds | 2142 | 3.5 miles (5.6 km) | Many pine trees were snapped and two outbuildings were destroyed. | |
EF1 | Braxton area | Simpson | 2236 | 8 miles (13 km) | Large but relatively weak tornado with widespread tree damage, a few of the trees landed on houses. | |
EF1 | N of Ruth | Lincoln, Lawrence | 2248 | 16.5 miles (26.6 km) | Many houses were damaged along with a church, a gas station and a fire station. Extensive tree damage along the path. | |
EF1 | SE of Poplarville | Pearl River | 0043 | 400 yards (370 m) | A house lost its roof and numerous trees were uprooted. | |
EF1 | N of Neely | Greene | 0049 | 22 miles (35 km) | Long track tornado with widespread damage. Possibly one or multiple tornadoes. | |
EF1 | E of Ocean Springs | Jackson | 0145 | 200 yards (180 m) | Brief tornado damaged two houses and two commercial buildings. | |
Georgia | ||||||
EF1 | WSW of Ellijay | Gilmer | 0133 | 0.5 miles (800 m) | Hundreds of trees were knocked down, a few landing on houses. Tornado embedded in larger microburst. | |
EF1 | W of Ellijay | Gilmer | 0134 | 0.5 miles (800 m) | A chicken house and an outbuilding were destroyed and trees were snapped. | |
Sources:
NWS Paducah, NWS Louisville, NWS Nashville, NWS Wilmington, OH, NWS Jackson, MS, NWS Jackson, KY, NWS New Orleans/Baton Rouge, NWS Mobile, NWS Little Rock, NWS Peachtree City, NWS Shreveport, NWS Morristown |
List of reported tornadoes - Tuesday, April 5, 2011 | ||||||
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North Carolina | ||||||
EF1 | E of Ararat | Surry | 0525 | 2.7 miles (4.3 km) | Numerous trees were felled by the tornado, many of which fell on homes. A few structures lost their roofs and several carports collapsed. Overall, 35 to 40 homes were damaged and losses reached $1 million.[7] | |
Georgia | ||||||
EF1 | WNW of Walden | Bibb | 0530 | 1.1 miles (1.8 km) | A brief tornado damaged nine homes, one of which was shifted off its foundation, and felled about 100 trees.[8] | |
EF2 | WSW of Dubois | Dodge | 0639 | 3 miles (4.8 km) | 1 death - A small but strong tornado destroyed a double-wide mobile home with three people inside. One of the occupants was killed while the other two were injured. Before dissipating, the tornado damaged another mobile home and uprooted several trees.[9] | |
Maryland | ||||||
EF0 | WNW of Mattawoman | Charles | 0848 | 0.1 miles (0.16 km) | A brief tornado knocked a large pine tree onto a house and damaged several fences.[10] | |
EF0 | E of Collington | Prince George's, Anne Arundel | 0855 | 1.3 miles (2.1 km) | A brief tornado snapped or felled several trees.[11][12] | |
Sources:
NWS Paducah, NWS Louisville, NWS Nashville, NWS Wilmington, OH, NWS Jackson, MS, NWS Jackson, KY, NWS New Orleans/Baton Rouge, NWS Mobile, NWS Little Rock, NWS Peachtree City, NWS Shreveport, NWS Morristown, NWS Baltimore / Washington, D.C. |
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