This page documents the tornado

Tornado

A tornado is a violent, dangerous, rotating column of air that is in contact with both the surface of the earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. They are often referred to as a twister or a cyclone, although the word cyclone is used in meteorology in a wider...

es and tornado outbreak

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 of 1981, primarily in the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. Most tornadoes form in the U.S., although some events may take place internationally. Tornado statistics for older years like this often appear significantly lower than modern years due to fewer reports or confirmed tornadoes.

Synopsis

Numbers for 1981 were below average, both in terms of number of tornadoes and number of fatalities.

Events

January

Only two tornadoes touched down in January, both were rated F0 and took place in California.

February

The first fatal tornadoes of the year occurred during a relatively small outbreak between February 10 and 11. Two F2 tornadoes, one in Walker County, Texas

Walker County, Texas

Walker County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. In 2010, its population was 67,861. Its county seat is Huntsville.Initially, Walker County was named for Robert J. Walker, a legislator from Mississippi who introduced into the United States Congress the resolution to annex Texas...

 and the other in Hoke

Hoke 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...

/Cumberland Counties, North Carolina

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...

, killed one person. Eighty-two people were also injured during the course of the month.

March

Scattered tornado events took place in March, with a total of 33 events taking place. One person was killed by an F2 in Hertford County, North Carolina

Hertford County, North Carolina

-Townships:The county is divided into six townships:Ahoskie, Como, Harrellsville, Murfreesboro, St. Johns and Winton.-Towns:*Ahoskie*Cofield*Como*Harrellsville*Murfreesboro*Winton-Demographics:...

 on March 30.

April

Several small tornado outbreaks took place in April, producing 84 tornadoes. Most of the year's fatalities took place during the month, with 13 people perishing. On April 4 a rare anticyclonic tornado

April 4, 1981, West Bend tornado

The April 4, 1981, West Bend tornado was a fatal F4, anticyclonic tornado that struck the Wisconsin city of West Bend in the early morning hours of April 4, 1981. It killed 3 people, and injured another 53. The tornado was largely unexpected and the storm that produced it did not display features...

 struck West Bend

West Bend, Wisconsin

West Bend is a city in and the county seat of Washington County, Wisconsin, United States in southeastern Wisconsin. The population was estimated to be 29,894 in 2008...

, 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...

 killing three people. Five people were also killed in Tulsa, Oklahoma

Tulsa, Oklahoma

Tulsa is the second-largest city in the state of Oklahoma and 46th-largest city in the United States. With a population of 391,906 as of the 2010 census, it is the principal municipality of the Tulsa Metropolitan Area, a region with 937,478 residents in the MSA and 988,454 in the CSA. Tulsa's...

by an F3 on April 19.

June

There were 223 tornadoes in the US in June, resulting in eight fatalities. On June 13 and F3 tornado killed four people in Cardington, Ohio.

External links

• U.S. tornadoes in 1981 - Tornado History Project
• Tornado deaths monthly