:2011 Ringgold–Apison tornado

{{Short description|EF4 tornado in Georgia and Tennessee, U.S.}}

{{good article}}

{{Infobox weather event

| image = {{multiple image | border = infobox | perrow = 1/2 | total_width = 300 | image1 = Ringgold tornado CCTV.jpg | image2 = EF4 tornado damage Ringgold, GA tornado 04.jpg | image3 = 2011 Ringgold tornado path.jpg}}

| width =

| alt = Top: A dark and curving tornado crosses a highway, with headlight visible directly under it.

Bottom: A white home that sustained damage from the tornado; the wood frame of the left-most side of the home is destroyed.

| caption = Clockwork from top: A CCTV still of the tornado (top-left, dark cloud) in Ringgold; track map of the Ringgold portion of the tornado; EF4-rated damage to a home along Cherokee Valley Road northeast of Ringgold, Georgia

| duration = 52 minutes

| formed = April 27, 2011, 8:15 p.m. EDT (UTC−04:00)

| dissipated = April 27, 2011, 9:07 p.m. EDT (UTC−04:00)

}}{{Infobox weather event/Tornado

| path-length = {{convert|54.75|mi|km}}

| winds = {{convert|190|mph|km/h|abbr=on}}

| fujita-scale = EF4

}}{{Infobox weather event/Effects

| deaths = 20–24 (+1 indirect){{NoteTag|An unborn infant was killed in the tornado, although it is not counted as a direct death.}}

| injuries = 335

| economic-losses = >$88 million (2024 USD)

| areas = Catoosa County in Georgia and Hamilton, Bradley, Polk and McMinn counties in Tennessee

}}{{Infobox weather event/Footer

| part = the 2011 Super Outbreak and Tornadoes of 2011

}}In the evening hours of April 27, 2011, a violent and long-tracked multi-vortex tornado impacted several communities along a {{Convert|54|mi|km}} path through northern Georgia and southeast Tennessee, including Ringgold, Georgia, Apison, Tennessee and Cleveland, Tennessee. The tornado, which was on the ground for 52 minutes and became known as the Ringgold–Apison tornado or The Monster,{{Cite web |date=2020-04-27 |title=9 years ago today, a tornado nearly destroyed a Georgia town |url=https://www.wsbtv.com/news/local/9-years-ago-today-tornado-nearly-destroyed-georgia-town/XOV6IYCMIRAX3FAB7MNQQH3AEU/ |access-date=2025-01-12 |website=WSB-TV |language=en}} killed over twenty people while having windspeeds that were estimated to have been as high as {{Convert|190|mph|km/h}}. The tornado was part of the largest outbreak of tornadoes in recorded history, and was the deadliest to hit Georgia during the outbreak.

The tornado touched down in rural Catoosa County, Georgia near Rock Spring, where it slowly intensified and damaged trees before crossing Jackson Lake and entering into Ringgold, where it damaged several commercial buildings and later residential homes. Nine people were killed in Ringgold as the tornado devastated the town at EF3 intensity, and hundreds of buildings were destroyed before the tornado crossed into Hamilton County, Tennessee before impacting Apison, where eight people were killed and EF4 damage was inflicted to several homes.

Meteorological synopsis

{{Main|2011 Super Outbreak#Meteorological synopsis}}

=Setup=

The environmental conditions leading up to the 2011 Super Outbreak were among the "most conducive to violent tornadoes ever documented".{{cite journal|author=Kevin R. Knupp|display-authors=etal|journal=Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society|publisher=American Meteorological Society|date=July 2014|title=Meteorological Overview of the Devastating 27 April 2011 Tornado Outbreak|volume=95|issue=7|doi=10.1175/BAMS-D-11-00229.1|pages=1,041–1,062|bibcode=2014BAMS...95.1041K|s2cid=22335326 }} On April 25, a vigorous upper-level shortwave trough moved into the Southern Plains states.{{cite report|author=Ryan E. Jewell|publisher=Storm Prediction Center|date=April 25, 2011|accessdate=May 15, 2016|title=Apr 25, 2011 0600 UTC Day 1 Convective Outlook|url=http://www.spc.noaa.gov/products/outlook/archive/2011/day1otlk_20110425_1200.html|location=Norman, Oklahoma}} Ample instability, low-level moisture, and wind shear all fueled a significant tornado outbreak from Texas to Tennessee; at least 64 tornadoes touched down on this day. An area of low pressure consolidated over Texas on April 26 and traveled east while the aforementioned shortwave trough traversed the Mississippi and Ohio River valleys.{{cite report|author=Ryan E. Jewell|publisher=Storm Prediction Center|date=April 26, 2011|accessdate=May 15, 2016|title=Apr 26, 2011 0600 UTC Day 1 Convective Outlook|url=http://www.spc.noaa.gov/products/outlook/archive/2011/day1otlk_20110426_1200.html|location=Norman, Oklahoma}} Another 50 tornadoes touched down on this day. The multi-day outbreak culminated on April 27 with the most violent day of tornadic activity since the 1974 Super Outbreak. Multiple episodes of tornadic activity ensued with two waves of mesoscale convective systems in the morning hours followed by a widespread outbreak of supercells from Mississippi to North Carolina during the afternoon into the evening.

Tornadic activity on April 27 was precipitated by a 995 mbar (hPa; 29.39 inHg) surface low situated over Kentucky and a deep, negatively tilted (aligned northwest to southeast) trough over Arkansas and Louisiana. A strong southwesterly surface jet intersected these systems at a 60° angle, an ageostrophic flow that led to storm-relative helicity values in excess of 500 m2s−2—indicative of extreme wind shear and a very high potential for rotating updrafts within supercells. Ample moisture from the Gulf of Mexico was brought north across the Deep South, leading to daytime high temperatures of {{convert|25|to|27|C|F|abbr=on|order=flip}} and dewpoints of {{convert|19|to|22|C|F|abbr=on|order=flip}}. Furthermore, convective available potential energy (CAPE) values reached 2,500–3,000 J/kg−1.

=Forecast=

{{Multiple image

| direction = vertical

| image1 = Day11630UTCOlook.gif

| caption1 = The National Weather Service Storm Prediction Center's Day 1 Convective Outlook for April 27, showing the Categorical Graphic

| image2 = Day1probotlk 20110427 tornado.png

| caption2 = The probability of a tornado within 25 miles of a point (cross-hatched area: 10% or greater probability of EF2+ tornadoes)

| alt1 = The National Weather Service Storm Prediction Center outlined a high risk area for severe weather over central Alabama on this map.

| alt2 = This version of the map shows a 45% probability of a tornado within 25 miles of a given point in the highest risk area, and a 10% chance of a significant tornado.

}}

On the morning of April 27, a strong cold front with several areas of embedded low pressure extended from the Texas Hill Country northeastward towards the Arklatex and the Ozarks, and later into the lower Ohio Valley. Warm moist air was in place due to strong southerly flow ahead of the front over Mississippi, Alabama, and Tennessee. An upper level disturbance sparked a broad area of showers and thunderstorms as it moved across the frontal boundary on the previous evening. The eastern edge of the line of showers and storms continued to move eastward, in concert with the upper disturbance, reaching the northwest Alabama border around 2:00 a.m. CDT.{{Cite web |last=US Department of Commerce |first=NOAA |title=Weather Setup: April 27th, 2011 Historic Tornado Outbreak |url=https://www.weather.gov/hun/hunsur_2011-04-27_setup |access-date=2024-11-07 |website=National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association |language=EN-US}}{{source-attribution}}

This produced the last and most violent round of severe weather, which began around 2:30 p.m. CDT for northern Alabama as supercells began to line up to the southwest of the area. During the early afternoon hours, the potential for destructive tornadoes was highlighted by the Storm Prediction Center's upgrade to a high risk for severe weather around 1:00 p.m. CDT. This prompted a particularly dangerous situation (PDS) tornado watch, which was issued for northern Alabama and portions of southern Tennessee at 1:45 p.m. CDT. The bulletin that accompanied the watch read:{{Cite web |last=Center |first=Storm Prediction |title=Storm Prediction Center Tornado/Severe Thunderstorm Watch Page |url=https://www.spc.noaa.gov/products/watch/2011/ww0235.html |access-date=2024-11-07 |website=Storm Prediction Center |language=EN-US}}

{{Blockquote|text=THE NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF: MUCH OF ALABAMA, NORTHWEST GEORGIA, SOUTHEAST MISSISSIPPI, SOUTHERN MIDDLE TENNESSEE, EFFECTIVE THIS WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING FROM 145 PM UNTIL 1000 PM CDT.

{{red|...THIS IS A PARTICULARLY DANGEROUS SITUATION...}}

DESTRUCTIVE TORNADOES...LARGE HAIL TO 4 INCHES IN DIAMETER. THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS TO 80 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS.}}

The potential for tornadoes ramped up from noon through 9:00 p.m. CDT. Tornadoes continued tracking through central Alabama that afternoon and into the early evening hours. A dangerous and destructive tornado struck the city of Cullman, Alabama, at around 3:00 p.m. CDT (20:00 UTC). This large, multiple-vortex tornado was captured on several tower cameras from television stations, such as Fox affiliate WBRC (channel 6) and ABC affiliate WBMA-LD/WCFT-TV/WJSU-TV (channels 58, 33, and 40) both out of Birmingham. Tornadoes continued touching down further to the northeast as the sun set, particularly in Georgia. This included the Ringgold tornado.{{Cite web |title=Remembering the April 27th and 28th, 2011 Tornado Outbreak |url=https://www.weather.gov/ffc/20110427_svrstorms |access-date=2025-01-11 |website=National Weather Service |language=EN-US}}

Tornado summary

= Track to Ringgold =

The tornado first touched down at approximately 8:15 p.m. EDT to the west of Rock Spring. The tornado downed several power lines and uprooted small trees as it moved through the town, eventually crossing Will Potts Road into Catoosa County, where EF0 damage was recorded.{{Cite web |title=Damage Assessment Toolkit |url=https://apps.dat.noaa.gov/StormDamage/DamageViewer/ |access-date=2025-01-11 |website=NOAA}} The tornado reached EF1 intensity for the first time as it crossed the Jackson Lake, where it damaged trees. The tornado then destroyed a garage west of Brock Circle in rural Catoosa County, and several homes sustained minor damage. The tornado grew to {{Convert|710|yd|km}} near Holcomb Road, where it damaged several homes and blew in the doors of the Heritage Propane building.{{Cite web |date=2020-04-27 |title=9 years ago today, a tornado nearly destroyed a Georgia town |url=https://www.wsbtv.com/news/local/9-years-ago-today-tornado-nearly-destroyed-georgia-town/XOV6IYCMIRAX3FAB7MNQQH3AEU/ |access-date=2025-01-11 |website=WSB-TV Channel 2 - Atlanta |language=en}}

The tornado destroyed several buildings in a strip mall; damage to the strip mall was later determined to be from a small subvortex of the main tornado. The sub-vortex also struck a parking lot and a drive-thru restaurant, tossing cars and de-roofing the building.{{Cite web |title=Killer Tornadoes: Tales of Survival, Tragedy From Southeast Hit by Twisters |url=https://abcnews.go.com/US/alabama-tornadoes-2011-tales-survival-tragedy-southeast-hit/story?id=13479401 |access-date=2025-01-11 |website=ABC News |language=en}} Several people that were inside of the building sheltered in food coolers that were located in the latter half of the building; at least one person was cut by glass as the tornado moved through the building.{{Cite news |last=undefined |title=April 2011: Ringgold bore Georgia's brunt of the tornado |url=https://www.ajc.com/news/local/ringgold-bore-georgia-brunt-the-storm/1Wc6pQTHfthBLDk3NrBM8N/ |access-date=2025-01-11 |work=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution |language=English |issn=1539-7459}}

The Highland Pharmacy, located next to the Food Lion building, was heavily damaged by the tornado, with the front-facing wall of the building collapsing onto the strip's parking lot. A Shell gas station nearby was also struck by the tornado as it moved to the northeast at {{Convert|60|mph|km/h}}. The roof of the gas station was found to the southeast of its original location, and pieces of metal from the building were found wrapped around trees to the east.{{Cite web |last=Citizen |first=Charles Oliver The Daily |date=2016-04-28 |title=Five years later, residents in Ringgold, Ga., recall deadly tornado |url=https://www.dailycitizen.news/news/ga_fl_news/five-years-later-residents-in-ringgold-ga-recall-deadly-tornado/article_f6a75f98-0d4c-11e6-a11e-0fe2f25faad8.html |access-date=2025-01-11 |website=The Daily Citizen |language=en}}File:Ringgold tornado damage.jpgEF3 damage was first observed as the tornado crossed Frontage Road and hit a hotel, where the company's sign was lifted from its pole and tossed to the northeast.{{Cite web |date=2011-11-03 |title=Judge orders five Ringgold hotels destroyed by April 27 tornado to begin cleanup |url=https://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2011/nov/03/judge-orders-hotels-to-begin-cleanup/ |access-date=2025-01-11 |website=The Times Free Press |language=en}}{{Cite web |date=2011-11-23 |title=Judge orders razing of tornado-damaged hotel in Ringgold |url=https://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2011/nov/23/judge-orders-razing-of-tornado-damaged-hotel-in/ |access-date=2025-01-11 |website=Times Free Press |language=en}} On Exit 348 Interstate 75, the tornado moved through a row of restaurants, including a Ruby Tuesday. Several people who were eating at the restaurant sheltered in the kitchen area as the roof collapsed inward, falling on the dining area. A Red Roof Inn located a short distance away sustained heavy roof damage by the tornado, and headstones were broken and thrown at a cemetery nearby. A furniture store nearby was also heavily damaged, and the awning above the entrance was destroyed.{{Cite web |date=2021-04-27 |title=Ringgold rebuilds: Georgia town marks 10 years since devastating tornado |url=https://www.wsbtv.com/news/local/atlanta/ringgold-rebuilds-georgia-town-marks-10-years-since-devastating-tornado/LTCKHU4GFZCSJA4M4MI756C2HM/ |access-date=2025-01-11 |website=WSB-TV Channel 2 - Atlanta |language=en}}

= Heavy damage in downtown Ringgold =

The tornado continued to move to the northeast as it hit the southern portions of Clark Field, before entering the downtown district of Ringgold. The tornado took its first life on Clark Circle, where the home of Rhea McClanahan was swept away, resulting in his death.{{Cite web |last=Press |first=Associated |date=2011-04-30 |title=Catoosa family of 4 among 15 killed in Georgia storms |url=https://www.dailycitizen.news/news/local_news/catoosa-family-of-4-among-15-killed-in-georgia-storms/article_23c883bf-634c-56ca-8c6e-d66f743fb8de.html |access-date=2025-01-11 |website=The Daily Citizen |language=en}}{{Cite web |date=2011-05-02 |title=Tornado Victim: Rhea McClanahan Was Marine Who Became A Principal |url=https://www.chattanoogan.com/2011/5/2/200293/Tornado-Victim-Rhea-McClanahan-Was.aspx |access-date=2025-01-11 |website=The Chattanoogan |language=en}} Several homes on Spark Street were also destroyed by the tornado as it moved past. A building on the corner of Nashville Street and Clark Circle was heavily damaged, and a church nearby was completely destroyed. As the tornado struck a laundromat, the ceiling of the building fell on several people who were sheltering under tables, but none were injured.{{Cite web |date=2021-04-30 |title=Ringgold remembers: City holds ceremony marking 10th anniversary of devastating tornado |url=https://www.northwestgeorgianews.com/catoosa_walker_news/ringgold-remembers-city-holds-ceremony-marking-10th-anniversary-of-devastating-tornado/article_e42beee2-a9c3-11eb-bd17-bfd494c7ff44.html |access-date=2025-01-11 |website=Northwest Georgia News |language=en}}

The Ringgold High and Middle schools, located to the north of the town's center, took a direct hit by the tornado. Six tennis courts that were positioned in a grid patten on the main campus were ripped from the ground, and the nets were picked up by the winds of the tornado and tossed. Light poles that were located near the complex's football field were tipped over, and light towers that illuminated the field were bent and fell on the field. The tornado uprooted trees and heavily damaged homes as it moved past Ooltewah-Ringgold Road, before running directly on top of Cherokee Valley Road, and later crossing Swallow Lane, where numerous homes were de-roofed and sustained other forms of damage, and a further twelve were completely destroyed.

The first indication of EF4 intensity was observed as the tornado crossed Council Lane, where two homes were obliterated. Trees nearby were also debarked, and a short distance away several other homes were destroyed. The tornado grew to a width of {{Convert|1400|yd|km}} as it moved through a neighborhood located near Friendship Road, where 20 homes were destroyed and deep cycloidal ground scouring was documented. A pickup truck located in the area was lofted by the tornado and thrown {{Convert|40|yd|m}} away. The tornado continued to heavily granulate debris at is moved to the northeast, as more vehicles were lofted. A family of four were killed in a home as they tried to take shelter in a closet.

= Hamilton County and damage near Apison =

After crossing Ware Road and London Lane, the tornado moved into Hamilton County, Tennessee, immediately destroying a home and snapping trees as it moved closer to Apison. At this point in its life, the tornado was approximately {{Convert|1350|yd|km}} in width. The tornado continued to produce EF4-consistent damage as it moved across Bill Jones Road, where it obliterated a multi-story brick building and dropped a {{Convert|1200|lb|oz}} gun safe on a family who was sheltering inside of a closet in a nearby home.{{Cite web |last=Marchand |first=Katherine |date=2016-04-27 |title=Apison tornado survivor remembers the storm 5 years later |url=https://newschannel9.com/news/april-outbreak-2011/apison-tornado-survivor-remembers-the-storm-5-years-later |access-date=2025-01-11 |website=WTVC |language=en}} Despite several members of the family sustaining serious injuries, all survived the tornado.File:Apison, TN tornado damage.PNGThe tornado then moved through the southern end of Apison,{{Cite web |date=2011-04-29 |title=Tornado That Hit Ringgold, Apison, Bradley Was Almost EF5 |url=https://www.chattanoogan.com/2011/4/29/200039/Tornado-That-Hit-Ringgold-Apison.aspx |access-date=2025-01-11 |website=The Chattanoogan |language=en}}{{Cite web |last=Glenn |first=David |date=2016-04-26 |title=6 years later: a look back at the April 27th, 2011 tornado outbreak |url=https://newschannel9.com/weather/stormtrack-9-blog/5-years-later-a-look-back-at-the-april-27th-2011-tornado-outbreak |access-date=2025-01-11 |website=WTVC |language=en}} where 18 homes were destroyed on Apison Pike and two other nearby roads. Vehicles in the area were lofted by the tornado and found approximately {{Convert|100|yd|m}} from their original locations. Eight people were killed within a few minutes of the tornado impacting Apison,{{Cite web |date=2011-04-28 |title=8 Dead, 28 Injured At Apison As Tornado Roars Through; Governor Surveys Damage |url=https://www.chattanoogan.com/2011/4/28/199939/8-Dead-28-Injured-At-Apison-As-Tornado.aspx |access-date=2025-01-11 |website=The Chattanoogan |language=en}} and extreme ground scouring occurred as the tornado continued to move to the northeast, where several more homes were destroyed along Alabama Road. In Hamilton County, the tornado produced a total of $20 million (2024 USD) in damages, and 56 homes were destroyed.{{Cite web |title=EF4 tornado on April 27, 2011 |url=https://data.knoxnews.com/tornado-archive/tennessee/300457/ |access-date=April 15, 2025 |website=Knox News}}

After devastating Apison, the tornado tracked into Bradley County, striking a neighborhood located on Wilhoit Drive. One home in the area was destroyed, and several others sustained varying levels of damage. More homes were swept away as the tornado crossed Tunnel Hill Road, and a Lincoln Town Car was lifted by the tornado and tossed approximately {{Convert|225|yd|m}} away before being dropped over a field. Two people were killed on Leadmine Valley Road as the tornado moved past, and several mobile homes were obliterated nearby.{{Cite web |date=2011-04-28 |title=Ringgold Has 8 Tornado Deaths: Bradley County 9 |url=https://www.chattanoogan.com/2011/4/28/199938/Ringgold-Has-8-Tornado-Deaths-Bradley.aspx |access-date=2025-04-15 |website=Chattanoogan Times |language=en}}

= Track through Cleveland and dissipation =

File:EF4 tornado damage Ringgold, GA tornado 02.jpg

The tornado killed four people along Blue Springs Road as it neared the town of Cleveland and surrounding areas, which had a combined population of 116,000 people in March 2011, a month before the tornado.{{Cite web |date=April 2012 |title=POPULATION IN TENNESSEE COMBINED STATISTICAL AREAS, 2010-2011 |url=https://archive.knoxplanning.org/locldata/popdata/tn_csa_pop.pdf |access-date=January 11, 2025 |website=U.S. Census Bureau}} A complex of trailers located to the northeast of Blue Springs Road was struck by the tornado, and several of the trailers were completely destroyed. A short distance away, the tornado narrowly avoided hitting the Blue Springs Elementary School, where a tree fell into the cafeteria. The school never reopened, and was demolished later the same year.{{Cite web |date=2011-07-17 |title=Blue Springs Elementary to be destroyed; new school planned |url=https://www.local3news.com/blue-springs-elementary-to-be-destroyed-new-school-planned/article_45366072-bbb2-5bef-a5b4-3f3242ca90ce.html |access-date=2025-01-11 |website=Local3News.com |language=en}}{{Cite web |date=2011-07-16 |title=Blue Springs Elementary School authorized for demolition |url=https://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2011/jul/16/school-going-down/ |access-date=2025-01-11 |website=The Times Free Press |language=en}} To the northeast, two children were killed as the tornado hit and obliterated a multi-story home; several others in the structure sustained serious injuries.{{Cite web |date=2011-05-01 |title=Tornado Victims Chase And Tammi Lynn Glasgow Died Together |url=https://www.chattanoogan.com/2011/5/1/200199/Tornado-Victims-Chase-And-Tammi-Lynn.aspx |access-date=2025-01-11 |website=The Chattanoogan |language=en}}

The tornado obliterated several other homes as it moved across the Brooklawn Trail, and passed through the Willbrook Circle neighborhood near U.S. Route 74 a short time later, where one person was killed. After the tornado, a man was arrested after he was found looting tornado-damaged homes in the neighborhood.{{Cite web |date=2011-06-01 |title=Bradley man arrested for stealing in tornado-damage area |url=https://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2011/jun/01/bradley-man-arrested-stealing-tornado-damage-area/ |access-date=2025-01-11 |website=Times Free Press |language=en}} A man in the English Oaks neighborhood, located to the northeast of Willbrook Circle, was injured when the tornado dropped a large block of concrete on the front porch of his home, which penetrated into the basement.

The tornado damaged over 800 trees as it passed through an area that was hit by an EF2 tornado earlier on April 27. On Benton Pike, a home was heavily damaged and de-roofed. The home was the last major structures to be hit by the now-weakening tornado in Bradley County. The tornado continued to the northeast, destroying a single mobile home before entering into Polk County, Tennessee, where the tornado inflicted minor damage to a home before moving into McMinn County. The tornado briefly regained strength as it moved over Piney Grove Road, where a home was destroyed. A man was injured inside of a trailer home on the road as the tornado moved through the area, and uprooted trees before dissipating at 9:07 p.m. EDT to the east of Huffman Avenue. The tornado was on the ground for a total of 52 minutes, and killed twenty people along a {{Convert|54.75|mi|km}} path that stretched over five counties through Georgia and Tennessee.{{Cite web |title=Remembering the April 27th and 28th, 2011 Tornado Outbreak |url=https://www.weather.gov/ffc/20110427_svrstorms |access-date=2025-04-15 |website=National Weather Service |language=EN-US}}

=Possible EF5 intensity=

On January 23, 2025, Anthony W. Lyza with the National Severe Storms Laboratory along with Harold E. Brooks and Makenzie J. Kroca with the University of Oklahoma’s School of Meteorology published a paper to the American Meteorological Society, where they stated the tornado in Apison was an "EF5 candidate" and opined that the EF5 starting wind speed should be {{convert|190|mph|km/h|abbr=on}} instead of {{convert|201|mph|km/h|abbr=on}}.{{cite journal |last1=Lyza |first1=Anthony W. |last2=Brooks |first2=Harold E. |last3=Krocak |first3=Makenzie J. |title=Where Have the EF5s Gone? A Closer Look at the “Drought” of the Most Violent Tornadoes in the United States |journal=Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society |date=23 January 2025 |doi=10.1175/BAMS-D-24-0066.1 |url=https://journals.ametsoc.org/view/journals/bams/aop/BAMS-D-24-0066.1/BAMS-D-24-0066.1.xml |access-date=2 February 2025 |publisher=American Meteorological Society|url-access=subscription }}

Aftermath

class="wikitable sortable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed floatright"

|+ border=1 class="nowrap" style="background: #ececec; border-spacing: 3px; border: 1px solid darkgray;" | List of confirmed fatalities from the tornado{{NoteTag|Due to discrepancies between official publications, some of these deaths may have been caused by other tornadoes.}}

!Name

!Age

!State

!County/City

Rhea McClanahan

|86

| rowspan="9" |GA

| rowspan="9" |Ringgold

Holly Readus

|26

Robert Jones

|47

Jack Estep

|61

Chris Black

|47

Pam Black

|46

Cody Black

|21

Chelsea Black

|16

Unborn infant

|0

Adam Carroll

|17

| rowspan="16" |TN

| rowspan="8" |Apison area

Bobby Raper

|63

Mary Raper

|60

Brenda Prescott

|56

Donald Christian

|70

Dorothy Christian

|62

Joann Darnell

|77

Joshua Poe

|31

Chase Glasgow

|0

| rowspan="8" |Cleveland

Eva Catlett

|67

Evelyn Johnson

|56

Kandice Satterfield

|40

Lisa Pack

|42

Rhonda Smith

|33

Tammi Glasgow

|42

Tommy Evans

|56

The tornado killed an estimated twenty to twenty-five people, the majority of which occurred in Tennessee. Discrepancies exist between the Storm Prediction Center's total fatality count of 20,{{Cite web |title=Cleveland EF4 tornado |url=https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/stormevents/eventdetails.jsp?id=294036 |access-date=2025-01-12 |website=Storm Prediction Center}}{{Cite web |title=Ringgold EF4 tornado |url=https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/stormevents/eventdetails.jsp?id=305268 |access-date=2025-01-12 |website=Storm Prediction Center}}{{Cite web |title=Apison EF4 tornado |url=https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/stormevents/eventdetails.jsp?id=296789 |access-date=2025-01-12 |website=Storm Prediction Center}} and the Storm Data publication for April 2011, which listed 21 fatalities. The tornado inflicted an estimated total in excess of $88 million (2024 USD) in damages to several communities.{{Cite web |date=2023-04-27 |title=Remembering the April 27 deadly storms 12 years later |url=https://www.local3news.com/local-news/remembering-the-april-27th-2011-deadly-storm-12-years-later/article_2abc26bc-e534-11ed-8cbe-d35ed4747936.html |access-date=2025-01-29 |website=Local3News |language=en}}

See also

References

= Notes =

{{Reflist|group=note}}

= Citations =

{{reflist}}

Sources

= Further reading =

  • {{Cite web |last=Narramore |first=Jen |date=January 6, 2024 |title=Overview of the Ringgold-Apison-Cleveland, GA-TN, EF4 tornado - April 27, 2011 |url=https://www.tornadotalk.com/overview-of-the-ringgold-apison-cleveland-ga-tn-ef4-tornado-april-27-2011/ |access-date=January 11, 2025 |website=TornadoTalk}}
  • {{Cite web |last=Narramore |first=Jen |date=January 6, 2024 |title=Ringgold, GA EF4 tornado - April 27, 2011 |url=https://www.tornadotalk.com/ringgold-ga-ef4-tornado-april-27-2011/ |access-date=January 11, 2025 |website=TornadoTalk |last2=Tucker |first2=Nelson |url-access=subscription |language=English}}
  • {{Cite web |last=Tucker |first=Nelson |date=January 6, 2024 |title=Apison-Cleveland, TN EF4 Tornado – April 27, 2011 |url=https://www.tornadotalk.com/ringgold-ga-ef4-tornado-april-27-2011/ |access-date=January 11, 2025 |website=TornadoTalk |last2=Narramore |first2=Jen |url-access=subscription |language=English}}

{{2011 Super Outbreak}}

Category:F4, EF4 and IF4 tornadoes

Category:Hamilton County, Tennessee

Category:Polk County, Tennessee

Category:McMinn County, Tennessee

Category:Catoosa County, Georgia

Category:April 2011 in the United States

Category:Tornadoes in Georgia (U.S. state)

Category:Tornadoes in Tennessee