April 14–16, 2011 tornado outbreak
Encyclopedia
One of the largest single-system tornado outbreak
s (at the time) in United States
history occurred from April 14 to 16, 2011, resulting in 178 confirmed tornadoes across 16 states and severe destruction on all three days of the outbreak. A total of 38 people were killed from tornadoes and an additional five people were killed as a result of straight-line winds associated with the storm system. The outbreak of severe weather and tornadoes has led to 43 deaths in the Southern United States. This was the largest number of fatalities in an outbreak in the United States since the 2008 Super Tuesday tornado outbreak
. This outbreak was significantly exceeded less than two weeks later by an even larger tornado outbreak
, which killed at least 344 people.
moved east to the central and southern Great Plains
region during the afternoon and to the mid and lower Mississippi River Valley during the overnight hours. The system was accompanied by strong winds in the middle and high levels of the atmosphere along with cold upper air temperatures. With these elements coming together with moisture moving north from the Gulf of Mexico
, it resulted in conditions favorable for severe weather
. A moderate risk of severe weather was issued for that day by the Storm Prediction Center
as a result across eastern Oklahoma and neighboring parts of Arkansas
, Kansas
, Missouri
and Texas
. With a dryline extending from southern Kansas to Texas, thunderstorms began developing along the dryline across north and south central areas of Oklahoma by 3:10 pm CDT (2010 UTC
). These storms would form into supercell
s and move into eastern Oklahoma by 4:00 pm CDT (2100 UTC).
Storm chasers
in the region reported multiple funnel clouds and two touchdowns, neither of which resulted in damage. Several tornadoes were confirmed through storm chaser video and local emergency management services. A large, intense tornado later caused severe damage in the towns of Atoka
and Tushka
. In both towns, many houses were destroyed or flattened from what was at times a double tornado with two well-defined vortices. Numerous injuries were reported in the latter of these areas. Two died and 43 more were injured in Tushka. In Arkansas
, strong winds produced by thunderstorms killed at least seven people. Of those deaths, five were confirmed to have been from straight-line winds and two were as a result of a weak tornado embedded in an overnight squall line
that tracked across the state.
and Mississippi
. During the pre-dawn hours into the morning of April 15, tornadic activity temporarily waned with only isolated activity. However, by late that morning, supercell thunderstorms developed again over parts of Mississippi, and tornadoes began to touch down again. A tornado emergency
was declared for the northern Jackson
metropolitan area shortly after 11:00 am CDT (1600 UTC), as a result of a widely photographed tornado that moved through parts of the city and the adjoining city of Clinton
. The destructive tornado moved across the area producing severe damage and numerous injuries according to WLBT
coverage. That afternoon, Mississippi State University
spotters confirmed another large tornado in east-central Mississippi and west-central Alabama and the second tornado emergency of the outbreak was issued. ABC 33/40
coverage reported that the tornado was 3/4 mile (1.2 km) in width. Another tornado slammed into Tuscaloosa, Alabama
that afternoon, which was shown on the ABC 33/40 camera, similar to an infamous 2000 tornado.
Two additional tornado emergencies were also issued that afternoon for other storms in Attala County, Mississippi
and Choctaw County, Alabama
, and a fifth such issuance occurred near Leakesville, Mississippi
that evening. Local storm reports report at least 7 fatalities from the storms on April 15.
as the cold front tracked eastward and a mesolow developed across the Appalachians. As storms began moving into areas of strong atmospheric instability, a PDS
Tornado Watch was issued shortly after noon and a high risk, the first of 2011, was issued shortly thereafter at 12:30 pm EDT (1630 UTC) for central and eastern
North Carolina
and immediate adjacent areas in South Carolina
and Virginia
. A squall line descended the Blue Ridge
, and rapidly intensified along the Interstate 77
corridor.
As this line tracked eastward, wind damage was reported in Salisbury
and Lexington
, where tree and roof damage was widespread. The Salisbury storm - an EF1 - became the first confirmed tornado from the outbreak in North Carolina, followed shortly thereafter by tornadoes near Monroe
(EF0) and north of Burlington
(EF1). The Burlington area supercell was the first of what would turn out to be many multi-tornado, long-track supercells, producing additional tornadoes near Roxboro
and South Hill, Virginia
.
Moving rapidly to the east, the squall line entered areas that had experienced sunnier weather earlier in the day, and the squall line began to rapidly fragment into powerful discrete supercells by early afternoon. Explosive wind shear also made the atmosphere extremely prime for tornadic development. At about 3:15 pm EDT (1915 UTC), a tornado emergency - the sixth of the outbreak - was issued for an especially intense tornado in the Raleigh-Durham metropolitan area. This cell had developed in Moore County
, and had first produced a destructive tornado - a "high-end" EF3 - in the city of Sanford
. A very prominent hook echo
was easily visible on local radar returns, with a hail core and debris aloft also reflected in radar imagery.
This storm, which may have been a mile wide, tracked through the southeast edge of downtown Raleigh
, on a southwest-to-northeast trajectory that passed through miles of suburbs surrounding the city. While damage in Wake County
fluctuated between EF0 and EF2, it was accompanied by debris fallout from the Sanford area, when the storm was far more violent. Tracking through Raleigh, the tornado crossed three interstate highways, and narrowly missed a nuclear power plant as it moved from southwest to northeast through the densely populated (900,000+ population) county. The campus of Shaw University
in downtown Raleigh was so severely damaged that classes were suspended for the remainder of the semester.
Soon afterwards, two additional tornado emergencies were issued farther south and east, as radar images of the developing supercells indicated very prominent hook echo
es. Of the larger cities in eastern North Carolina Fayetteville
, Goldsboro
, Jacksonville
, and Wilson
all endured direct hits from EF2 or EF3 tornadoes. A tornado or tornado family
that began in the city of Fayetteville, briefly closed interstate 95 in Johnston County
, due to debris blocking the highway.
Late in the outbreak and farther into northeastern North Carolina, another EF3 tornado in Askewville, North Carolina
, in rural Bertie County
caused 12 fatalities and extensive damage in the towns of Askewville and Colerain
, just west of the Chowan River
. Additional destructive tornadoes - produced by the same line of supercells - caused damage northwest of the Charleston
metropolitan area, and at several locations in the northeastern part of South Carolina
, including Dillon County and multiple locations in Georgetown County.
Tornadoes also struck several locations in Virginia, including a destructive tornado in Gloucester County
and a brief tornado 300 miles to the west in Rockbridge County
. A tornado touched down in the switchyard of the Surry Nuclear Power Plant
in southeastern Virginia, cutting off external power to the plant and leading its two reactors to trip
. Because of this, a NRC Unusual Event, the lowest level of emergency, was declared. Diesel backup power was restored after a brief outage and the shutdown and cooling of the plant proceeded as designed with no physical damage to the reactors or release of radiation. A fuel oil leak occurred at an above-ground storage tank near the station's garage. The supercells finally emerged into the Atlantic Ocean
late that evening, ending the tornado outbreak after over 52 hours.
es (two of which were PDS watches) and two severe thunderstorm watch
es.
in Lee County
. A Lowe's Home Improvement Warehouse store in Sanford
was badly damaged, however, there were no fatalities or serious injuries there as staff spotted the approaching storm, and rushed staff and customers to safety in time. Several retailers adjacent to Lowe's were also heavily damaged. In a nearby residential area, 2 people were killed, and 30 homes were destroyed. Aerial footage broadcast on WRAL
showed a very wide debris path through the area. The most severe damage was in this area, rated as a high-end EF3, where three other warehouses were destroyed and two apartment buildings lost their upper levels.
Generally maintaining its size and strength, the storm then paralleled U.S. Route 1
, tracking near the unincorporated community of Moncure
, in the southeast corner of Chatham County
. As the storm continued into southwestern Wake County
, a tornado emergency
was issued for areas downstream, including the city of Raleigh. Shaw University
and St. Augustine's College
, as well as Historic Oakwood Cemetery
, were heavily damaged as the storm passed directly over both campuses.
Moving into the suburban southwest of Wake County
, numerous houses were reported to have been damaged and several people were injured according to WRAL
news coverage. In addition, debris tossed by the tornado was picked up by radar and pieces of destroyed homes were reported to have fallen in the adjacent towns of Apex
and Cary
. The tornado continued to track northeast, in the direction of downtown Raleigh
; by this time a very sharply defined hook echo
was visible on local radar. Severe damage was reported to many commercial businesses in the South Saunders Street
area south of downtown near Interstate 40
. Many local thoroughfares and neighborhoods were rendered impassable due to building debris, tree damage, and downed power lines. Live WRAL camera footage showed a rain-wrapped tornado approach the city from the southwest and cross I-40
at South Saunders Street, accompanied by power flashes and flying debris. Early reports suggest that many houses were heavily damaged, including a solid brick house which was flattened. Damage in the downtown area was rated EF1.
Still on the ground, it continued to track northeast through the northeastern suburbs, tracking along Capital Boulevard / U.S. Route 1
and U.S. Route 401
before tracking through a mobile home park at 4:05 pm EDT, producing severe damage, and killing at least four people. The tornado passed near suburban Rolesville
, before nearing the Franklin County
line at about 4:10 pm where it lifted. The tornado was on the ground for an estimated 63 miles (101 km) and the tornado was about 530 yards (475 m) in width at its peak. The parent supercell tracked from Moore County, North Carolina
to Franklin County to near Gloucester, Virginia, where it entered the Chesapeake Bay
. Later tornadoes in Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina
, Smithfield, Virginia
, and Gloucester, Virginia were all produced by this same long-lived supercell, which also generated reports of other types of damage throughout its entire lifespan.
Damage from the tornado was estimated to be at least $215 million, with $115 million in Raleigh and $100 million in Sanford.
, 6 miles northeast of Raeford
. The tornado damaged homes in Hoke County near the Johnson Mill Road community but did not actually touch ground until after it crossed the Hoke County border. The strengthening storm entered the Cumberland County
and the city of Fayetteville
, near US Highway 401, and tracked NE through parts of Fort Bragg and Spring Lake
. Most damage in this early stage of the storm fluctuated between EF0 and EF2 in intensity.
One person was killed, and at least 85 injuries were reported in Cumberland County
. In Fayetteville, the worst damage appeared to be located between Yadkin Road and the entrance to Fort Bragg, in the northwest part of the city, where a small area of EF3 damage was seen. The Goodyear Plant sustained heavy damage, and locations near Pine Forest High School were also very heavily damaged. Womack Army Medical Center was operating on emergency backup power after power was cut to much of Fort Bragg. With a damage path up to a mile in width, 150 houses in northwest Fayetteville were destroyed, with at least an equal number damaged.
Several houses were then destroyed between Spring Lake and Linden
, as the storm grew into a large wedge tornado reported by motorists along the Interstate 95
corridor. The storm - consistently generating EF2 damage - then tracked along I-95 through Dunn
and Benson
, where television footage revealed a broad, multiple-vortex tornado structure. Two people were ultimately killed by the tornado - one of the fatalities was in Cumberland County
and the other was in Dunn
in Harnett County
, where a strip mall was destroyed.
Highways were blocked near Four Oaks
, including Interstate 95, for a brief period of time. Flying debris was reported in Smithfield
just before the tornado dissipated, after generating a continual 65 mile-long (105 km)damage path. The parent supercell almost immediately produced additional tornadoes in Johnston
and Wilson
Counties, leaving additional damage in Micro
and Wilson
, tracking along Interstate 95 much of that distance.
Damage in Johnston County reached $25 million, with 135 homes destroyed.
. The twister traveled to the northeast on an 18.8 miles (30.3 km) long path, and grew up to ½-¾ miles wide at times, before lifting approximately three miles east of Harrellsville, North Carolina
.
Bertie County
emergency officials reported widespread catastrophic damage in the Askewville area, as 67 homes and 37 mobile homes were destroyed, with some homes ripped off their foundations. One business was also destroyed, and 19 other structures sustained lesser damage. There had also been some damage done to emergency vehicles as officials tried to clear the roadways in the damage path. The tornado destroyed seven mobile homes at Jake's Trailer Park, located off of Askewville Road, injuring two people. This long-track tornado was the deadliest of the entire outbreak, killing 11 people (including a family of three and another couple) when the tornado hit the town of Colerain
, and injuring at least 50 other people along its entire path. On April 20, one of the injured people died at Pitt Memorial Hospital
, increasing the death toll from the tornado to 12. The tornado was rated an EF3 by the National Weather Service.
Bertie County was also struck by the 1984 Carolinas tornado outbreak, and on April 19, 1943, an F3 tornado destroyed every building in the town of Roxobel
, in the western part of the county.
with high winds and moderate to heavy snow—up to 16 inches (40 cm)—occurred on the back side of the main low pressure area, particularly across western Kansas
and Nebraska
and parts of South Dakota
. Several major highways, including Interstate 70
and Interstate 80
, were closed as a result and travelers were stranded in numerous communities. Heavy snow and isolated freezing rain
was also reported across parts of the Upper Midwest
, particularly in Minnesota
and western Wisconsin
.
In the Northeastern U.S., as was seen in Northern New York State, there were very high winds, sometimes gusting upwards of 70 miles per hour (31.3 m/s) associated with the massive storms that were active on April 16.
for the entire state. North Carolina governor Bev Perdue
did likewise as a result. 26 counties in Oklahoma and 14 counties in Mississippi were also placed under a state of emergency.
that occurred on February 5 and 6, 2008, when 57 people were killed across four states. In North Carolina, the outbreak was the state's largest since March 1984. Describing the outbreak, AccuWeather
meteorologist Henry Margusity said, "There has not been a tornado outbreak in history over three days with this many tornadoes spawned by a single storm system".
Tornado events of this magnitude are rare in North Carolina
, with outbreaks on February 19, 1884 and March 28, 1984 the only historical precedents for outbreaks of this size, scale, and level of overall widespread damage. A March 31, 1973 outbreak produced over 25 tornadoes in the state, but all but one of those storms produced only F0 or F1 damage. The May 1989 tornado outbreak produced fewer, but more intense storms. More recently, an outbreak on May 17, 1998 produced 18 tornadoes in the state, including one F4 and one F3, but other storms in that outbreak were much weaker and short-lived.
Tornado outbreak
While there is no single agreed upon definition, generally at least 6-10 tornadoes produced by the same synoptic scale weather system is considered a tornado outbreak. The tornadoes usually occur within the same day, or continue into the early morning hours of the succeeding day, and within the...
s (at the time) in United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
history occurred from April 14 to 16, 2011, resulting in 178 confirmed tornadoes across 16 states and severe destruction on all three days of the outbreak. A total of 38 people were killed from tornadoes and an additional five people were killed as a result of straight-line winds associated with the storm system. The outbreak of severe weather and tornadoes has led to 43 deaths in the Southern United States. This was the largest number of fatalities in an outbreak in the United States since the 2008 Super Tuesday tornado outbreak
2008 Super Tuesday tornado outbreak
The 2008 Super Tuesday tornado outbreak was a deadly tornado outbreak which affected the Southern United States and the lower Ohio Valley on February 5 and 6, 2008. The event began on Super Tuesday, while 24 U.S. states were holding primary elections and caucuses to select the presidential...
. This outbreak was significantly exceeded less than two weeks later by an even larger tornado outbreak
April 25–28, 2011 tornado outbreak
An extremely large and violent tornado outbreak, the largest tornado outbreak ever recorded, and popularly known as the 2011 Super Outbreak, occurred from April 25 to 28, 2011. The outbreak affected the Southern, Midwestern, and Northeastern United States, leaving catastrophic destruction in...
, which killed at least 344 people.
April 14
On April 14, a strong storm system in the southern section of the Rocky MountainsRocky Mountains
The Rocky Mountains are a major mountain range in western North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch more than from the northernmost part of British Columbia, in western Canada, to New Mexico, in the southwestern United States...
moved east to the central and southern Great Plains
Great Plains
The Great Plains are a broad expanse of flat land, much of it covered in prairie, steppe and grassland, which lies west of the Mississippi River and east of the Rocky Mountains in the United States and Canada. This area covers parts of the U.S...
region during the afternoon and to the mid and lower Mississippi River Valley during the overnight hours. The system was accompanied by strong winds in the middle and high levels of the atmosphere along with cold upper air temperatures. With these elements coming together with moisture moving north from the Gulf of Mexico
Gulf of Mexico
The Gulf of Mexico is a partially landlocked ocean basin largely surrounded by the North American continent and the island of Cuba. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States, on the southwest and south by Mexico, and on the southeast by Cuba. In...
, it resulted in conditions favorable for severe weather
Severe weather
Severe weather phenomena are weather conditions that are hazardous to human life and property.- Examples Include :Severe weather can occur under a variety of situations, but three characteristics are generally needed: a temperature or moisture boundary, moisture, and , instability in the...
. A moderate risk of severe weather was issued for that day by the Storm Prediction Center
Storm Prediction Center
The Storm Prediction Center , located in Norman, Oklahoma, is tasked with forecasting the risk of severe thunderstorms and tornadoes in the contiguous United States. The agency issues convective outlooks, mesoscale discussions, and watches as a part of this process...
as a result across eastern Oklahoma and neighboring parts of Arkansas
Arkansas
Arkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States. Its name is an Algonquian name of the Quapaw Indians. Arkansas shares borders with six states , and its eastern border is largely defined by the Mississippi River...
, Kansas
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
, Missouri
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
and Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
. With a dryline extending from southern Kansas to Texas, thunderstorms began developing along the dryline across north and south central areas of Oklahoma by 3:10 pm CDT (2010 UTC
Coordinated Universal Time
Coordinated Universal Time is the primary time standard by which the world regulates clocks and time. It is one of several closely related successors to Greenwich Mean Time. Computer servers, online services and other entities that rely on having a universally accepted time use UTC for that purpose...
). These storms would form into supercell
Supercell
A supercell is a thunderstorm that is characterized by the presence of a mesocyclone: a deep, continuously-rotating updraft. For this reason, these storms are sometimes referred to as rotating thunderstorms...
s and move into eastern Oklahoma by 4:00 pm CDT (2100 UTC).
Storm chasers
Storm chasing
Storm chasing is broadly defined as the pursuit of any severe weather condition, regardless of motive, which can be curiosity, adventure, scientific exploration or for news professions/media coverage....
in the region reported multiple funnel clouds and two touchdowns, neither of which resulted in damage. Several tornadoes were confirmed through storm chaser video and local emergency management services. A large, intense tornado later caused severe damage in the towns of Atoka
Atoka, Oklahoma
Atoka is a city in Atoka County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 3,052 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Atoka County.-Geography:Atoka is located at ....
and Tushka
Tushka, Oklahoma
Tushka is a town in Atoka County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 345 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Tushka is located at ....
. In both towns, many houses were destroyed or flattened from what was at times a double tornado with two well-defined vortices. Numerous injuries were reported in the latter of these areas. Two died and 43 more were injured in Tushka. In Arkansas
Arkansas
Arkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States. Its name is an Algonquian name of the Quapaw Indians. Arkansas shares borders with six states , and its eastern border is largely defined by the Mississippi River...
, strong winds produced by thunderstorms killed at least seven people. Of those deaths, five were confirmed to have been from straight-line winds and two were as a result of a weak tornado embedded in an overnight squall line
Squall line
A squall line is a line of severe thunderstorms that can form along or ahead of a cold front. In the early 20th century, the term was used as a synonym for cold front. It contains heavy precipitation, hail, frequent lightning, strong straight-line winds, and possibly tornadoes and waterspouts....
that tracked across the state.
April 15
A moderate risk of severe weather also existed for April 15 across much of AlabamaAlabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
and Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
. During the pre-dawn hours into the morning of April 15, tornadic activity temporarily waned with only isolated activity. However, by late that morning, supercell thunderstorms developed again over parts of Mississippi, and tornadoes began to touch down again. A tornado emergency
Tornado emergency
A Tornado Emergency is enhanced wording of tornado warnings used by the National Weather Service in the United States during significant tornado occurrences in highly populated areas...
was declared for the northern Jackson
Jackson, Mississippi
Jackson is the capital and the most populous city of the US state of Mississippi. It is one of two county seats of Hinds County ,. The population of the city declined from 184,256 at the 2000 census to 173,514 at the 2010 census...
metropolitan area shortly after 11:00 am CDT (1600 UTC), as a result of a widely photographed tornado that moved through parts of the city and the adjoining city of Clinton
Clinton, Mississippi
Clinton is a city in Hinds County, Mississippi, United States. Situated in the Jackson metropolitan area, it is the tenth largest city in Mississippi. The population was 23,347 at the 2000 United States Census.-History:...
. The destructive tornado moved across the area producing severe damage and numerous injuries according to WLBT
WLBT
WLBT, virtual channel 3 , is the NBC-affiliated television station in Jackson, Mississippi, and it is owned by Raycom Media. WLBT transmits its signal from an antenna, 624 meters in height, located near Raymond.-History:...
coverage. That afternoon, Mississippi State University
Mississippi State University
The Mississippi State University of Agriculture and Applied Science commonly known as Mississippi State University is a land-grant university located in Oktibbeha County, Mississippi, United States, partially in the town of Starkville and partially in an unincorporated area...
spotters confirmed another large tornado in east-central Mississippi and west-central Alabama and the second tornado emergency of the outbreak was issued. ABC 33/40
WBMA-LP
WBMA-LD, channel 58, is the ABC television affiliate for Birmingham and central Alabama. Its transmitter is located in Birmingham, while its studio is in Hoover, a suburb of Birmingham....
coverage reported that the tornado was 3/4 mile (1.2 km) in width. Another tornado slammed into Tuscaloosa, Alabama
Tuscaloosa, Alabama
Tuscaloosa is a city in and the seat of Tuscaloosa County in west central Alabama . Located on the Black Warrior River, it is the fifth-largest city in Alabama, with a population of 90,468 in 2010...
that afternoon, which was shown on the ABC 33/40 camera, similar to an infamous 2000 tornado.
Two additional tornado emergencies were also issued that afternoon for other storms in Attala County, Mississippi
Attala County, Mississippi
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 19,661 people, 7,567 households, and 5,380 families residing in the county. The population density was 27 people per square mile . There were 8,639 housing units at an average density of 12 per square mile...
and Choctaw County, Alabama
Choctaw County, Alabama
Choctaw County is a county of the U.S. state of Alabama. It was established on December 29, 1847 and named for the Choctaw tribe of American Indians. As of 2010 the population was 13,859. The county seat is Butler.- History :...
, and a fifth such issuance occurred near Leakesville, Mississippi
Leakesville, Mississippi
Leakesville is a town located along the Chickasawhay River in Greene County, Mississippi, United States located around the junction of route 57 and route 63. As of the 2000 census, the town population was 1,026...
that evening. Local storm reports report at least 7 fatalities from the storms on April 15.
April 16
The next day, a moderate risk of severe weather was issued for April 16 for the Carolinas and southern VirginiaVirginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
as the cold front tracked eastward and a mesolow developed across the Appalachians. As storms began moving into areas of strong atmospheric instability, a PDS
Particularly dangerous situation
A particularly dangerous situation is a type of enhanced wording first used by the National Weather Service's Storm Prediction Center in Norman, Oklahoma on certain severe weather watches...
Tornado Watch was issued shortly after noon and a high risk, the first of 2011, was issued shortly thereafter at 12:30 pm EDT (1630 UTC) for central and eastern
Eastern North Carolina
Eastern North Carolina is the region encompassing the eastern tier of North Carolina. It is known geographically as the state's Coastal Plain region. Primary subregions of Eastern North Carolina include the Fayetteville Metropolitan Area, the Lower Cape Fear , the Sandhills, the Inner Banks and...
North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
and immediate adjacent areas in South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
and Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
. A squall line descended the Blue Ridge
Blue Ridge Mountains
The Blue Ridge Mountains are a physiographic province of the larger Appalachian Mountains range. This province consists of northern and southern physiographic regions, which divide near the Roanoke River gap. The mountain range is located in the eastern United States, starting at its southern-most...
, and rapidly intensified along the Interstate 77
Interstate 77
Interstate 77 is an Interstate Highway in the eastern United States. It traverses diverse terrain, from the mountainous state of West Virginia to the rolling farmlands of North Carolina and Ohio. It largely supplants the old U.S...
corridor.
As this line tracked eastward, wind damage was reported in Salisbury
Salisbury, North Carolina
Salisbury is a city in Rowan County in North Carolina, a state of the United States of America. The population was 33,663 in the 2010 Census . It is the county seat of Rowan County...
and Lexington
Lexington, North Carolina
Lexington is the county seat of Davidson County, North Carolina, United States. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 19,953. It is located in central North Carolina, twenty miles south of Winston-Salem. Major highways include I-85, U.S. Route 29, U.S. Route 70, U.S. Route 52 ...
, where tree and roof damage was widespread. The Salisbury storm - an EF1 - became the first confirmed tornado from the outbreak in North Carolina, followed shortly thereafter by tornadoes near Monroe
Monroe, North Carolina
Monroe is a city in Union County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 36,397 as of the 2010 census. It is the seat of government of Union County and is also part of the Charlotte-Gastonia-Rock Hill, NC-SC Metropolitan area.-Geography:...
(EF0) and north of Burlington
Burlington, North Carolina
Burlington is a city in Alamance and Guilford counties in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is the principal city of the Burlington, North Carolina Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Alamance County, in which most of the city is located. The population was 49,963 at the 2010...
(EF1). The Burlington area supercell was the first of what would turn out to be many multi-tornado, long-track supercells, producing additional tornadoes near Roxboro
Roxboro, North Carolina
Roxboro is a city and the county seat of Person County, North Carolina. As of the 2010 census, the city of Roxboro has a population of 8,362. The city is 30 miles north of Durham, NC. It is part of the Durham-Chapel Hill Metropolitan Area.-History:...
and South Hill, Virginia
South Hill, Virginia
South Hill is a town in Mecklenburg County, Virginia, United States. As of the 2006 census, the town population was 4,608. Located on major Interstate and U.S. highways, it has a full service hospital , a tobacco market, and several hotels. South Hill has a close relationship with the neighboring...
.
Moving rapidly to the east, the squall line entered areas that had experienced sunnier weather earlier in the day, and the squall line began to rapidly fragment into powerful discrete supercells by early afternoon. Explosive wind shear also made the atmosphere extremely prime for tornadic development. At about 3:15 pm EDT (1915 UTC), a tornado emergency - the sixth of the outbreak - was issued for an especially intense tornado in the Raleigh-Durham metropolitan area. This cell had developed in Moore County
Moore County, North Carolina
Moore County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of 2000, the population was 74,769. Its county seat is Carthage.- History :The county was formed in 1784 from Cumberland County...
, and had first produced a destructive tornado - a "high-end" EF3 - in the city of Sanford
Sanford, North Carolina
Sanford is a city in Lee County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 23,220 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Lee County.-Geography:Sanford is located at ....
. A very prominent hook echo
Hook echo
The hook echo is one of the classical hallmarks of tornado-producing supercell thunderstorms as seen on a weather radar. The echo is produced by rain, hail, or even debris being wrapped around the supercell...
was easily visible on local radar returns, with a hail core and debris aloft also reflected in radar imagery.
This storm, which may have been a mile wide, tracked through the southeast edge of downtown Raleigh
Raleigh, North Carolina
Raleigh is the capital and the second largest city in the state of North Carolina as well as the seat of Wake County. Raleigh is known as the "City of Oaks" for its many oak trees. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city's 2010 population was 403,892, over an area of , making Raleigh...
, on a southwest-to-northeast trajectory that passed through miles of suburbs surrounding the city. While damage in Wake County
Wake County, North Carolina
Wake County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2010 census, the population was 900,993 making it North Carolina's second most populated county...
fluctuated between EF0 and EF2, it was accompanied by debris fallout from the Sanford area, when the storm was far more violent. Tracking through Raleigh, the tornado crossed three interstate highways, and narrowly missed a nuclear power plant as it moved from southwest to northeast through the densely populated (900,000+ population) county. The campus of Shaw University
Shaw University
Shaw University, founded as Raleigh Institute, is a private liberal arts institution and historically black university in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States. Founded in 1865, it is the oldest HBCU in the Southern United States....
in downtown Raleigh was so severely damaged that classes were suspended for the remainder of the semester.
Soon afterwards, two additional tornado emergencies were issued farther south and east, as radar images of the developing supercells indicated very prominent hook echo
Hook echo
The hook echo is one of the classical hallmarks of tornado-producing supercell thunderstorms as seen on a weather radar. The echo is produced by rain, hail, or even debris being wrapped around the supercell...
es. Of the larger cities in eastern North Carolina Fayetteville
Fayetteville, North Carolina
Fayetteville is a city located in Cumberland County, North Carolina, United States. It is the county seat of Cumberland County, and is best known as the home of Fort Bragg, a U.S. Army post located northwest of the city....
, Goldsboro
Goldsboro, North Carolina
Goldsboro is a city in Wayne County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 37,597 at the 2008 census estimate. It is the principal city of and is included in the Goldsboro, North Carolina Metropolitan Statistical Area. The nearby town of Waynesboro was founded in 1787 and Goldsboro was...
, Jacksonville
Jacksonville, North Carolina
Jacksonville, North Carolina, is a city in Onslow County, North Carolina, United States. As of the 2010 United States census, the population stood at 70,145, which makes Jacksonville the 14th largest city in North Carolina...
, and Wilson
Wilson, North Carolina
Wilson is a city and the county seat of Wilson County in the Coastal Plain region of the U.S. state of North Carolina. The 18th largest city in the state, Wilson had a population of 49,167 according to the 2010 census.- Geography :...
all endured direct hits from EF2 or EF3 tornadoes. A tornado or tornado family
Tornado family
A tornado family is a series of tornadoes spawned by the same supercell. These families form a line of successive or parallel tornado paths and can cover a short span or a vast distance. Tornado families are sometimes mistaken as a single continuous tornado, especially prior to the 1970s...
that began in the city of Fayetteville, briefly closed interstate 95 in Johnston County
Johnston County, North Carolina
-Major highways:* Interstate 40* Interstate 95* U.S. Highway 70* U.S. Highway 301* U.S. Highway 701-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 121,965 people, 46,595 households, and 33,688 families residing in the county. The population density was 154 people per square mile . There were...
, due to debris blocking the highway.
Late in the outbreak and farther into northeastern North Carolina, another EF3 tornado in Askewville, North Carolina
Askewville, North Carolina
Askewville is a town in Bertie County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 180 at the 2000 census. The town was hit by a tornado on April 16, 2011 leaving 12 people dead and over 50 people injured.-Geography:...
, in rural Bertie County
Bertie County, North Carolina
-External links:**...
caused 12 fatalities and extensive damage in the towns of Askewville and Colerain
Colerain, North Carolina
Colerain is a town in Bertie County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 201 at the 2008 census.-Geography:Colerain is located at ....
, just west of the Chowan River
Chowan River
The Chowan River is a blackwater river formed with the merging of Virginia's Blackwater and Nottoway rivers near the stateline between Virginia and North Carolina. According to the USGS a variant name is Choan River....
. Additional destructive tornadoes - produced by the same line of supercells - caused damage northwest of the Charleston
Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston is the second largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It was made the county seat of Charleston County in 1901 when Charleston County was founded. The city's original name was Charles Towne in 1670, and it moved to its present location from a location on the west bank of the...
metropolitan area, and at several locations in the northeastern part of South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
, including Dillon County and multiple locations in Georgetown County.
Tornadoes also struck several locations in Virginia, including a destructive tornado in Gloucester County
Gloucester County, Virginia
Gloucester County is within the Commonwealth of Virginia in the Hampton Roads metropolitan area in the USA. Formed in 1651 in the Virginia Colony, the county was named for Henry Stuart, Duke of Gloucester, third son of King Charles I of Great Britain. Located in the Middle Peninsula region, it...
and a brief tornado 300 miles to the west in Rockbridge County
Rockbridge County, Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 20,808 people, 8,486 households, and 6,075 families residing in the county. The population density was 35 people per square mile . There were 9,550 housing units at an average density of 16 per square mile...
. A tornado touched down in the switchyard of the Surry Nuclear Power Plant
Surry Nuclear Power Plant
Surry Power Station is a nuclear power plant located in Surry County in southeastern Virginia. The power station lies on an 840-acre site adjacent to the James River across from Jamestown, slightly upriver from Smithfield and Newport News...
in southeastern Virginia, cutting off external power to the plant and leading its two reactors to trip
Scram
A scram or SCRAM is an emergency shutdown of a nuclear reactor – though the term has been extended to cover shutdowns of other complex operations, such as server farms and even large model railroads...
. Because of this, a NRC Unusual Event, the lowest level of emergency, was declared. Diesel backup power was restored after a brief outage and the shutdown and cooling of the plant proceeded as designed with no physical damage to the reactors or release of radiation. A fuel oil leak occurred at an above-ground storage tank near the station's garage. The supercells finally emerged into the Atlantic Ocean
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
late that evening, ending the tornado outbreak after over 52 hours.
Outbreak summary
Over the four days, a total of 19 watches were issued by the Storm Prediction Center, including 17 tornado watchTornado watch
A tornado watch is issued when conditions are right for a tornado to form. Since any thunderstorm capable of producing a tornado is defined as severe, a tornado watch is also automatically a severe thunderstorm watch...
es (two of which were PDS watches) and two severe thunderstorm watch
Severe thunderstorm watch
[File:Annual_severe_thunderstorm_watch_frequency_in_the_United_States.svg|thumb|right|300px|Map of average annual severe thunderstorm watches in the United States between 1999 and 2008.Legend:...
es.
Tornadoes
Raleigh/Sanford area tornado
At 2:53 pm EDT (1853 UTC) on April 16, a moderately large and very intense tornado developed around Sanford, North CarolinaSanford, North Carolina
Sanford is a city in Lee County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 23,220 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Lee County.-Geography:Sanford is located at ....
in Lee County
Lee County, North Carolina
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 49,040 people, 18,466 households, and 13,369 families residing in the county. The population density was 191 people per square mile . There were 19,909 housing units at an average density of 77 per square mile...
. A Lowe's Home Improvement Warehouse store in Sanford
Sanford, North Carolina
Sanford is a city in Lee County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 23,220 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Lee County.-Geography:Sanford is located at ....
was badly damaged, however, there were no fatalities or serious injuries there as staff spotted the approaching storm, and rushed staff and customers to safety in time. Several retailers adjacent to Lowe's were also heavily damaged. In a nearby residential area, 2 people were killed, and 30 homes were destroyed. Aerial footage broadcast on WRAL
WRAL-TV
WRAL-TV, virtual channel 5 , is a television station in Raleigh, North Carolina. WRAL-TV has been the flagship station of Capitol Broadcasting Company since its inception, and is currently the CBS affiliate for the Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill/Fayetteville area, known collectively as the Triangle...
showed a very wide debris path through the area. The most severe damage was in this area, rated as a high-end EF3, where three other warehouses were destroyed and two apartment buildings lost their upper levels.
Generally maintaining its size and strength, the storm then paralleled U.S. Route 1
U.S. Route 1
U.S. Route 1 is a major north–south U.S. Highway that serves the East Coast of the United States. It runs 2,377 miles from Fort Kent, Maine at the Canadian border south to Key West, Florida. U.S. 1 generally parallels Interstate 95, though it is significantly farther west between...
, tracking near the unincorporated community of Moncure
Moncure, North Carolina
Moncure is a small unincorporated rural community in southeastern Chatham County, North Carolina. The community is located near the confluence of the Deep and Haw Rivers, which forms the Cape Fear River. Moncure once served as the western-most inland port in the state, linked all the way to the...
, in the southeast corner of Chatham County
Chatham County, North Carolina
Chatham County is a county located in the Piedmont area of the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of 2000, the population was 49,329. Its county seat is Pittsboro.-History:...
. As the storm continued into southwestern Wake County
Wake County, North Carolina
Wake County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2010 census, the population was 900,993 making it North Carolina's second most populated county...
, a tornado emergency
Tornado emergency
A Tornado Emergency is enhanced wording of tornado warnings used by the National Weather Service in the United States during significant tornado occurrences in highly populated areas...
was issued for areas downstream, including the city of Raleigh. Shaw University
Shaw University
Shaw University, founded as Raleigh Institute, is a private liberal arts institution and historically black university in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States. Founded in 1865, it is the oldest HBCU in the Southern United States....
and St. Augustine's College
, as well as Historic Oakwood Cemetery
Historic Oakwood Cemetery
Historic Oakwood Cemetery was founded in 1869 in Raleigh, North Carolina near the North Carolina State Capitol in Historic Oakwood. Historic Oakwood Cemetery contains two special areas within its , the Confederate Cemetery, located on the original two and one-half acres , and the Hebrew Cemetery,...
, were heavily damaged as the storm passed directly over both campuses.
Moving into the suburban southwest of Wake County
Wake County, North Carolina
Wake County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2010 census, the population was 900,993 making it North Carolina's second most populated county...
, numerous houses were reported to have been damaged and several people were injured according to WRAL
WRAL-TV
WRAL-TV, virtual channel 5 , is a television station in Raleigh, North Carolina. WRAL-TV has been the flagship station of Capitol Broadcasting Company since its inception, and is currently the CBS affiliate for the Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill/Fayetteville area, known collectively as the Triangle...
news coverage. In addition, debris tossed by the tornado was picked up by radar and pieces of destroyed homes were reported to have fallen in the adjacent towns of Apex
Apex, North Carolina
Apex is a town in Wake County, North Carolina and a suburb of Raleigh. The population was 37,476 according to the 2010 census., wakegov.com-Geography:Apex is located at ....
and Cary
Cary, North Carolina
Cary is a large town and suburb of Raleigh, North Carolina in Wake and Chatham counties in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located almost entirely in Wake County, it is the second largest municipality in that county and the third largest municipality in The Triangle after Raleigh and Durham...
. The tornado continued to track northeast, in the direction of downtown Raleigh
Raleigh, North Carolina
Raleigh is the capital and the second largest city in the state of North Carolina as well as the seat of Wake County. Raleigh is known as the "City of Oaks" for its many oak trees. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city's 2010 population was 403,892, over an area of , making Raleigh...
; by this time a very sharply defined hook echo
Hook echo
The hook echo is one of the classical hallmarks of tornado-producing supercell thunderstorms as seen on a weather radar. The echo is produced by rain, hail, or even debris being wrapped around the supercell...
was visible on local radar. Severe damage was reported to many commercial businesses in the South Saunders Street
U.S. Route 70
U.S. Route 70 is an east–west United States highway that runs for 2,385 miles from eastern North Carolina to east-central Arizona. As can be derived from its number, it is a major east–west highway of the Southern and Southwestern United States...
area south of downtown near Interstate 40
Interstate 40
Interstate 40 is the third-longest major east–west Interstate Highway in the United States, after I-90 and I-80. Its western end is at Interstate 15 in Barstow, California; its eastern end is at a concurrency of U.S. Route 117 and North Carolina Highway 132 in Wilmington, North Carolina...
. Many local thoroughfares and neighborhoods were rendered impassable due to building debris, tree damage, and downed power lines. Live WRAL camera footage showed a rain-wrapped tornado approach the city from the southwest and cross I-40
Interstate 40
Interstate 40 is the third-longest major east–west Interstate Highway in the United States, after I-90 and I-80. Its western end is at Interstate 15 in Barstow, California; its eastern end is at a concurrency of U.S. Route 117 and North Carolina Highway 132 in Wilmington, North Carolina...
at South Saunders Street, accompanied by power flashes and flying debris. Early reports suggest that many houses were heavily damaged, including a solid brick house which was flattened. Damage in the downtown area was rated EF1.
Still on the ground, it continued to track northeast through the northeastern suburbs, tracking along Capital Boulevard / U.S. Route 1
U.S. Route 1
U.S. Route 1 is a major north–south U.S. Highway that serves the East Coast of the United States. It runs 2,377 miles from Fort Kent, Maine at the Canadian border south to Key West, Florida. U.S. 1 generally parallels Interstate 95, though it is significantly farther west between...
and U.S. Route 401
U.S. Route 401
U.S. Route 401 is an north–south United States highway, a spur of U.S. Route 1, that traverses along the fall line from Sumter, South Carolina to Interstate 85 near Wise, North Carolina.-Route description:...
before tracking through a mobile home park at 4:05 pm EDT, producing severe damage, and killing at least four people. The tornado passed near suburban Rolesville
Rolesville, North Carolina
Rolesville is a small town nestled in northeastern Wake County, North Carolina, United States just outside the capital city of Raleigh. It is the second oldest town in Wake County and one of the fastest growing towns in the State of North Carolina for the past several years.In 2012, Rolesville...
, before nearing the Franklin County
Franklin County, North Carolina
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 47,260 people, 17,843 households, and 12,882 families residing in the county. The population density was 96 people per square mile . There were 20,364 housing units at an average density of 41 per square mile...
line at about 4:10 pm where it lifted. The tornado was on the ground for an estimated 63 miles (101 km) and the tornado was about 530 yards (475 m) in width at its peak. The parent supercell tracked from Moore County, North Carolina
Moore County, North Carolina
Moore County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of 2000, the population was 74,769. Its county seat is Carthage.- History :The county was formed in 1784 from Cumberland County...
to Franklin County to near Gloucester, Virginia, where it entered the Chesapeake Bay
Chesapeake Bay
The Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuary in the United States. It lies off the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by Maryland and Virginia. The Chesapeake Bay's drainage basin covers in the District of Columbia and parts of six states: New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and West...
. Later tornadoes in Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina
Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina
Roanoke Rapids is a city in Halifax County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 16,957 at the 2000 census. It is the principal city of the Roanoke Rapids Micropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:...
, Smithfield, Virginia
Smithfield, Virginia
Smithfield is a town in Isle of Wight County, in the South Hampton Roads subregion of the Hampton Roads region of Virginia in the United States. The population was 8,089 at the 2010 census....
, and Gloucester, Virginia were all produced by this same long-lived supercell, which also generated reports of other types of damage throughout its entire lifespan.
Damage from the tornado was estimated to be at least $215 million, with $115 million in Raleigh and $100 million in Sanford.
Fayetteville / Interstate 95 tornado and supercell
Another intense tornado formed at 3:40 pm EDT (1940 UTC) in the Wayside community in Hoke CountyHoke County, North Carolina
-Demographics:As of the census of 2010, there were 46,952 people, 11,373 households, and 8,745 families residing in the county. The population density was 86 people per square mile . There were 12,518 housing units at an average density of 32 per square mile...
, 6 miles northeast of Raeford
Raeford, North Carolina
Raeford is a city in Hoke County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 3,386 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Hoke County. The county was named after Confederate General Robert F. Hoke, as Tar Heel native....
. The tornado damaged homes in Hoke County near the Johnson Mill Road community but did not actually touch ground until after it crossed the Hoke County border. The strengthening storm entered the Cumberland County
Cumberland County, North Carolina
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 302,963 people, 107,358 households, and 77,619 families residing in the county. The population density was 464 people per square mile . There were 118,425 housing units at an average density of 181 per square mile...
and the city of Fayetteville
Fayetteville, North Carolina
Fayetteville is a city located in Cumberland County, North Carolina, United States. It is the county seat of Cumberland County, and is best known as the home of Fort Bragg, a U.S. Army post located northwest of the city....
, near US Highway 401, and tracked NE through parts of Fort Bragg and Spring Lake
Spring Lake, North Carolina
Spring Lake is a town in Cumberland County, North Carolina, United States. The 2010 census recorded the population at 11,964 people.- History :...
. Most damage in this early stage of the storm fluctuated between EF0 and EF2 in intensity.
One person was killed, and at least 85 injuries were reported in Cumberland County
Cumberland County, North Carolina
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 302,963 people, 107,358 households, and 77,619 families residing in the county. The population density was 464 people per square mile . There were 118,425 housing units at an average density of 181 per square mile...
. In Fayetteville, the worst damage appeared to be located between Yadkin Road and the entrance to Fort Bragg, in the northwest part of the city, where a small area of EF3 damage was seen. The Goodyear Plant sustained heavy damage, and locations near Pine Forest High School were also very heavily damaged. Womack Army Medical Center was operating on emergency backup power after power was cut to much of Fort Bragg. With a damage path up to a mile in width, 150 houses in northwest Fayetteville were destroyed, with at least an equal number damaged.
Several houses were then destroyed between Spring Lake and Linden
Linden, North Carolina
Linden is a town in Cumberland County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 127 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Linden is located at ....
, as the storm grew into a large wedge tornado reported by motorists along the Interstate 95
Interstate 95
Interstate 95 is the main highway on the East Coast of the United States, running parallel to the Atlantic Ocean from Maine to Florida and serving some of the most populated urban areas in the country, including Boston, Providence, New Haven, New York City, Newark, Philadelphia, Baltimore,...
corridor. The storm - consistently generating EF2 damage - then tracked along I-95 through Dunn
Dunn, North Carolina
Dunn is a city in Harnett County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 9,196 at the 2000 census.It is the birthplace of early an rock and roll guitar player, Link Wray, and General William C. Lee, father of the American Army Airborne. The city's slogan is "It's all right here." The...
and Benson
Benson, North Carolina
Benson is a town located in Johnston County, North Carolina. The town lies at the intersection of Interstates 95 and 40. Each year Benson celebrates Mule Days the 4th Saturday of September, a festival that attracts over 60,000 people each year...
, where television footage revealed a broad, multiple-vortex tornado structure. Two people were ultimately killed by the tornado - one of the fatalities was in Cumberland County
Cumberland County, North Carolina
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 302,963 people, 107,358 households, and 77,619 families residing in the county. The population density was 464 people per square mile . There were 118,425 housing units at an average density of 181 per square mile...
and the other was in Dunn
Dunn, North Carolina
Dunn is a city in Harnett County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 9,196 at the 2000 census.It is the birthplace of early an rock and roll guitar player, Link Wray, and General William C. Lee, father of the American Army Airborne. The city's slogan is "It's all right here." The...
in Harnett County
Harnett County, North Carolina
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 91,025 people, 33,800 households, and 24,099 families residing in the county. The population density was 153 people per square mile . There were 38,605 housing units at an average density of 65 per square mile...
, where a strip mall was destroyed.
Highways were blocked near Four Oaks
Four Oaks, North Carolina
Four Oaks is a town in Johnston County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 1,818 at the 2007 census.-History:Four Oaks was named by Colonel R. R. Bridgers in 1886 for an unusual sight that graced the land upon which he found himself. In 1850, 37 years before there was a town of Four...
, including Interstate 95, for a brief period of time. Flying debris was reported in Smithfield
Smithfield, North Carolina
Smithfield is a town in Johnston County, North Carolina, United States. In 2008, the estimated population was 12,965. It is the county seat of Johnston County...
just before the tornado dissipated, after generating a continual 65 mile-long (105 km)damage path. The parent supercell almost immediately produced additional tornadoes in Johnston
Johnston County, North Carolina
-Major highways:* Interstate 40* Interstate 95* U.S. Highway 70* U.S. Highway 301* U.S. Highway 701-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 121,965 people, 46,595 households, and 33,688 families residing in the county. The population density was 154 people per square mile . There were...
and Wilson
Wilson County, North Carolina
-Demographics:As of the census of 2006, there 73,814 people, 28,613 households, and 19,771 families residing in the county. The population density was 199 people per square mile . There were 30,729 housing units at an average density of 83 per square mile...
Counties, leaving additional damage in Micro
Micro, North Carolina
Micro is a town in Johnston County, North Carolina, United States. The 2008 estimated population was 537.-Geography:Micro is located at .According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of , all of it land....
and Wilson
Wilson, North Carolina
Wilson is a city and the county seat of Wilson County in the Coastal Plain region of the U.S. state of North Carolina. The 18th largest city in the state, Wilson had a population of 49,167 according to the 2010 census.- Geography :...
, tracking along Interstate 95 much of that distance.
Damage in Johnston County reached $25 million, with 135 homes destroyed.
Askewville tornado
At around 6:55 p.m. EDT (2255 UTC) on April 16, a long-track tornado touched down one mile south of Askewville, North CarolinaAskewville, North Carolina
Askewville is a town in Bertie County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 180 at the 2000 census. The town was hit by a tornado on April 16, 2011 leaving 12 people dead and over 50 people injured.-Geography:...
. The twister traveled to the northeast on an 18.8 miles (30.3 km) long path, and grew up to ½-¾ miles wide at times, before lifting approximately three miles east of Harrellsville, North Carolina
Harrellsville, North Carolina
Harrellsville is a town in Hertford County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 102 at the year 2000 census.-Geography:Harrellsville is located at ....
.
Bertie County
Bertie County, North Carolina
-External links:**...
emergency officials reported widespread catastrophic damage in the Askewville area, as 67 homes and 37 mobile homes were destroyed, with some homes ripped off their foundations. One business was also destroyed, and 19 other structures sustained lesser damage. There had also been some damage done to emergency vehicles as officials tried to clear the roadways in the damage path. The tornado destroyed seven mobile homes at Jake's Trailer Park, located off of Askewville Road, injuring two people. This long-track tornado was the deadliest of the entire outbreak, killing 11 people (including a family of three and another couple) when the tornado hit the town of Colerain
Colerain, North Carolina
Colerain is a town in Bertie County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 201 at the 2008 census.-Geography:Colerain is located at ....
, and injuring at least 50 other people along its entire path. On April 20, one of the injured people died at Pitt Memorial Hospital
Pitt County Memorial Hospital
Pitt County Memorial Hospital is a hospital located in Greenville, North Carolina. It is the flagship teaching hospital for the University Health Systems of Eastern Carolina and is affiliated with the Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina University. PCMH is the only trauma center east of...
, increasing the death toll from the tornado to 12. The tornado was rated an EF3 by the National Weather Service.
Bertie County was also struck by the 1984 Carolinas tornado outbreak, and on April 19, 1943, an F3 tornado destroyed every building in the town of Roxobel
Roxobel, North Carolina
Roxobel is a town in northwestern Bertie County, North Carolina, United States. It dates to 1724 and was originally known as Cotten's Cross Roads. After several name changes, it has remained Roxobel since 1849. The population was 263 at the 2000 census...
, in the western part of the county.
Non-tornadic events
A late-season blizzardBlizzard
A blizzard is a severe snowstorm characterized by strong winds. By definition, the difference between blizzard and a snowstorm is the strength of the wind. To be a blizzard, a snow storm must have winds in excess of with blowing or drifting snow which reduces visibility to 400 meters or ¼ mile or...
with high winds and moderate to heavy snow—up to 16 inches (40 cm)—occurred on the back side of the main low pressure area, particularly across western Kansas
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
and Nebraska
Nebraska
Nebraska is a state on the Great Plains of the Midwestern United States. The state's capital is Lincoln and its largest city is Omaha, on the Missouri River....
and parts of South Dakota
South Dakota
South Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is named after the Lakota and Dakota Sioux American Indian tribes. Once a part of Dakota Territory, South Dakota became a state on November 2, 1889. The state has an area of and an estimated population of just over...
. Several major highways, including Interstate 70
Interstate 70
Interstate 70 is an Interstate Highway in the United States that runs from Interstate 15 near Cove Fort, Utah, to a Park and Ride near Baltimore, Maryland. It was the first Interstate Highway project in the United States. I-70 approximately traces the path of U.S. Route 40 east of the Rocky...
and Interstate 80
Interstate 80
Interstate 80 is the second-longest Interstate Highway in the United States, following Interstate 90. It is a transcontinental artery running from downtown San Francisco, California to Teaneck, New Jersey in the New York City Metropolitan Area...
, were closed as a result and travelers were stranded in numerous communities. Heavy snow and isolated freezing rain
Freezing rain
Freezing rain is the name given to rain that falls when surface temperatures are below freezing. The raindrops become supercooled while passing through a sub-freezing layer of air, many hundred feet , just above the surface, and then freeze upon impact with any object they encounter. The resulting...
was also reported across parts of the Upper Midwest
Upper Midwest
The Upper Midwest is a region in the northern portion of the U.S. Census Bureau's Midwestern United States. It is largely a sub-region of the midwest. Although there are no uniformly agreed-upon boundaries, the region is most commonly used to refer to the states of Minnesota, Wisconsin, and...
, particularly in Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
and western Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
.
In the Northeastern U.S., as was seen in Northern New York State, there were very high winds, sometimes gusting upwards of 70 miles per hour (31.3 m/s) associated with the massive storms that were active on April 16.
Aftermath
In the wake of the destruction as a result of the storms and tornadoes, Alabama governor Robert J. Bentley declared a state of emergencyState of emergency
A state of emergency is a governmental declaration that may suspend some normal functions of the executive, legislative and judicial powers, alert citizens to change their normal behaviours, or order government agencies to implement emergency preparedness plans. It can also be used as a rationale...
for the entire state. North Carolina governor Bev Perdue
Bev Perdue
Beverly Eaves "Bev" Perdue is an American politician and member of the Democratic Party currently serving as the 73rd Governor of the U.S. state of North Carolina. She is the first female governor of North Carolina....
did likewise as a result. 26 counties in Oklahoma and 14 counties in Mississippi were also placed under a state of emergency.
Historical comparisons
The outbreak was the deadliest tornadic event in the United States since the 2008 Super Tuesday tornado outbreak2008 Super Tuesday tornado outbreak
The 2008 Super Tuesday tornado outbreak was a deadly tornado outbreak which affected the Southern United States and the lower Ohio Valley on February 5 and 6, 2008. The event began on Super Tuesday, while 24 U.S. states were holding primary elections and caucuses to select the presidential...
that occurred on February 5 and 6, 2008, when 57 people were killed across four states. In North Carolina, the outbreak was the state's largest since March 1984. Describing the outbreak, AccuWeather
AccuWeather
AccuWeather is an American media company that provides for-profit weather forecasting services worldwide.AccuWeather was founded in 1962 by Joel N. Myers, then a Penn State graduate student working on degrees in meteorology. His first customer was a gas company in Pennsylvania. While running the...
meteorologist Henry Margusity said, "There has not been a tornado outbreak in history over three days with this many tornadoes spawned by a single storm system".
Tornado events of this magnitude are rare in North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
, with outbreaks on February 19, 1884 and March 28, 1984 the only historical precedents for outbreaks of this size, scale, and level of overall widespread damage. A March 31, 1973 outbreak produced over 25 tornadoes in the state, but all but one of those storms produced only F0 or F1 damage. The May 1989 tornado outbreak produced fewer, but more intense storms. More recently, an outbreak on May 17, 1998 produced 18 tornadoes in the state, including one F4 and one F3, but other storms in that outbreak were much weaker and short-lived.
See also
External links
- TornadoVideos.Net: Destructive Tornado near Jackson, MS! - Video of the Jackson, Mississippi tornado, uploaded to YouTubeYouTubeYouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
by TornadoVideos.Net - Gallery of tornado damage in North Carolina from WRAL-TVWRAL-TVWRAL-TV, virtual channel 5 , is a television station in Raleigh, North Carolina. WRAL-TV has been the flagship station of Capitol Broadcasting Company since its inception, and is currently the CBS affiliate for the Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill/Fayetteville area, known collectively as the Triangle...