Tornado records#Exceptional coincidences

The 2011 Super Outbreak was the largest tornado outbreak spawned by a single weather system in recorded history; it produced 367 tornadoes from April 25–28, with 223 of those in a single 24-hour period on April 27 from midnight to midnight CDT,{{cite web|url=http://wmo.asu.edu/tornado-largest-tornado-outbreak|title=Tornado: Largest Tornado Outbreak|work=World Weather / Climate Extremes Archive|publisher=Arizona State University|access-date=2013-09-10|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130926235427/http://wmo.asu.edu/tornado-largest-tornado-outbreak|archive-date=2013-09-26}} fifteen of which were violent EF4–EF5 tornadoes. 348 deaths occurred in that outbreak, of which 324 were tornado related. The outbreak largely contributed to the record for most tornadoes in the month of April with 780 tornadoes, almost triple the prior record (267 in April 1974). The overall record for a single month was 542 in May 2003, which was also broken.{{cite web|title=April 2011 tornado information|url=http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/april_2011_tornado_information.html|publisher=NOAA|access-date=2011-05-03|archive-date=2011-05-11|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110511082657/http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/april_2011_tornado_information.html|url-status=live}}

The infamous 1974 Super Outbreak of April 3–4, 1974, which spawned 148 confirmed tornadoes across eastern North America, held the record for the most prolific tornado outbreak in terms of overall tornadoes for many years, and still{{As of?|date=June 2024}} holds the record for most violent, long-track tornadoes (7 F5 and 23 F4 tornadoes). More significant tornadoes occurred within 24 hours than any other day on record.{{cite conference |first=Russell |last=Schneider |author2=H.E. Brooks |author3=J.T. Schaefer |title=Tornado Outbreak Day Sequences: historic events and climatology (1875–2003) |book-title=22nd Conf Severe Local Storms |publisher=American Meteorological Society |date=October 2004 |location=Hyannis, MA |url=http://ams.confex.com/ams/11aram22sls/techprogram/paper_81933.htm |access-date=2007-06-02 |archive-date=2011-06-09 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110609163511/http://ams.confex.com/ams/11aram22sls/techprogram/paper_81933.htm |url-status=live }} Due to a secular trend{{Clarify|date=June 2024}} in tornado reporting, the 2011 and 1974 tornado counts are not directly comparable.

Most tornado outbreaks in North America occur in the spring, but there is a secondary peak of tornado activity in the fall. It is historically less consistent from year to year but can include exceptionally large or intense outbreaks. In 1992, an estimated 95 tornadoes broke out in a record 41 hours of continuous tornado activity from November 21 to 23. This is also among the largest-known outbreaks in areal expanse. Many other very large outbreaks have occurred in autumn, especially in October and November, such as the 2002 Veterans Day weekend outbreak, in which 83 tornadoes occurred from November 9 to 11, and November 17, 2013, when 73 tornadoes were produced in 11 hours.{{cite book |last=Grazulis |first=Thomas P. |author-link=Thomas P. Grazulis |title=Significant Tornadoes 1680–1991: A Chronology and Analysis of Events |date=July 1993 |publisher=The Tornado Project of Environmental Films |isbn=1-879362-03-1 |location=St. Johnsbury, VT}}

The greatest number of tornadoes spawned from a hurricane is 120 from Hurricane Ivan in September 2004, followed by Hurricane Beulah with 115 in September 1967, and 103 from Hurricane Frances in September 2004 (a couple weeks before Ivan).{{cite journal|last=Edwards|first=Roger|author-link=Roger Edwards (meteorologist)|title=Tropical Cyclone Tornadoes: A Review of Knowledge in Research and Prediction|journal=e-Journal of Severe Storms Meteorology|year=2012|volume=7|issue=6|page=3|url=http://www.spc.noaa.gov/publications/edwards/ejssmtct.pdf|access-date=2013-05-22|doi=10.55599/ejssm.v7i6.42|doi-access=free|archive-date=2013-05-10|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130510042401/http://www.spc.noaa.gov/publications/edwards/ejssmtct.pdf|url-status=live}} Hurricanes prior to the 1990s, when tornado records were more sparse, perhaps produced more tornadoes than were officially documented.

On average, 1,200 tornadoes happen in a year in the United States. The most confirmed tornadoes in a single year was in 2004,{{Cite web |title=U.S. Annual Tornado Maps (1952-2011) |url=https://www.spc.noaa.gov/wcm/annualtornadomaps/2004.png |access-date=2023-01-09 |website=SPC |archive-date=2023-01-09 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230109184735/https://www.spc.noaa.gov/wcm/annualtornadomaps/2004.png |url-status=live }} which had 1817 confirmed tornadoes. This was mostly boosted by a large tornado outbreak sequence in May 2004, where 509 tornadoes occurred. It also had help from a very active fall and winter tornado season.

Officially, the deadliest single tornado occurred on April 26, 1989 in Bangladesh, where a large tornado took at least 1,300 lives.{{cite web|last=Grazulis |first=Tom |author-link=Thomas P. Grazulis |title=Tornadoes in Bangladesh |work=Worldwide Tornadoes |publisher=The Tornado Project |year=2000 |url=http://www.tornadoproject.com/alltorns/bangladesh.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120919111413/http://www.tornadoproject.com/alltorns/bangladesh.htm |archive-date=2012-09-19 }} In 2022, this tornado's death toll was challenged in a database of Bangladeshi tornadoes maintained by Dr. Fahim Sufi with the Australian Government, claiming that the April 14, 1969, Dhaka tornado, which killed 922 people, was the deadliest in Bangladesh, with the Jamalpur tornado killing only 570.{{cite journal |author1=Fahim Sufi |author2=Edris Alam |author3=Musleh Alsulami |editor1-last=Ishizaka |editor1-first=Alessio |title=A New Decision Support System for Analyzing Factors of Tornado Related Deaths in Bangladesh |journal=Sustainability |date=22 May 2022 |volume=14 |issue=10 |page=6303 |doi=10.3390/su14106303 |url=https://www.academia.edu/84087463 |access-date=12 August 2023 |publisher=Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute |language=English |doi-access=free |bibcode=2022Sust...14.6303S |archive-date=9 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230909162342/https://www.academia.edu/84087463 |url-status=live }}

The Tri-State tornado of March 18, 1925, killed 695 people in Missouri (11), Illinois (613), and Indiana (71). The outbreak it occurred with was also the deadliest known tornado outbreak, with a combined death toll of 747 across the Mississippi River Valley.{{cite web|url=https://www.weather.gov/pah/1925Tornado_ss|title=NOAA/NWS 1925 Tri-State Tornado Web Site—Startling Statistics|publisher=National Weather Service|access-date=June 17, 2019|archive-date=March 20, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160320194752/https://www.weather.gov/pah/1925Tornado_ss|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=https://www.factsjustforkids.com/weather-facts/tornado-facts-for-kids/tornado-history/1925-tri-state-tornado.html|title=Tri-State Tornado Facts|website=factsjustforkids.com|access-date=June 17, 2019|archive-date=June 17, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190617205052/https://www.factsjustforkids.com/weather-facts/tornado-facts-for-kids/tornado-history/1925-tri-state-tornado.html|url-status=live}}

The original Fujita scale, developed by Ted Fujita, has never been used to assign a final rating over F5 intensity;{{efn |The Fujita scale historically only ever assigned final ratings from F0 through F5, however, did account for ratings up to F12. Ratings above F6 were never seriously considered.Fujita, T. Theodore (February 1971) [https://swco-ir.tdl.org/handle/10605/261875 "Proposed characterization of tornadoes and hurricanes by area and intensity"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230512210113/https://swco-ir.tdl.org/handle/10605/261875 |date=2023-05-12 }}. SMRP (Satellite and Mesometeorology Research Project) Research Paper 91 (Department of the Geophysical Sciences, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, USA) 42 pages.}} however, two tornadoes, the 1970 Lubbock tornado and 1974 Xenia tornado, were initially given F6 ratings by Fujita himself, but both were eventually downgraded to F5 ratings.{{cite journal |author1=Roger Edwards (SPC) |author2=Matthew S. Elliott (SPC) |author3=Patrick T. Marsh (SPC |author4=Douglas A. Speheger (NWS) |title=Errors, Oddities and Artifacts in U.S. Tornado Data, 1995–2021 |journal=Storm Prediction Center Publications |pages=1–10 |url=https://www.spc.noaa.gov/publications/edwards/oddities.pdf |access-date=11 January 2023 |archive-date=11 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230111015141/https://www.spc.noaa.gov/publications/edwards/oddities.pdf |url-status=live }}{{cite web |url=https://www.weather.gov/media/ohx/PDF/fujita_april31974.pdf |last=Fujita |first=T. Theodore |author-link=Ted Fujita |title=Jumbo Tornado Outbreak of 3 April 1974 |year=1974 |access-date=23 June 2024 |archive-date=1 October 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201001234232/https://www.weather.gov/media/ohx/PDF/fujita_april31974.pdf |url-status=live }} The 1976 Jordan tornado was described by Fujita as the most intense tornado damage he had surveyed up to that point.{{cite conference |url=https://ams.confex.com/ams/26SLS/webprogram/Paper212341.html |title=Revisiting the 1976 Jordan Iowa F5 tornado: A case of subtle forcing with extreme sensitivity of WRF simulations to initial conditions |first1=William A. |last1=Gallus Jr. |date=7 November 2012 |conference=26th Conference on Severe Local Storms |publisher=American Meteorological Society }}

A more recent example of extreme damage was at the Double Creek Estates of Jarrell, Texas; the 1997 Jarrell tornado stalled over the area at peak F5 intensity, destroying every home in the subdivision, and killing 27. Extreme ground scouring and high-end F5 damage was surveyed.{{cite web |url=https://www.wunderground.com/cat6/twenty-years-look-back-jarrell-tornado-catastrophe |title=Twenty Years On: A Look Back at the Jarrell Tornado Catastrophe |publisher=Weather Underground |date=26 May 2017 |access-date=24 June 2024 |archive-date=17 November 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231117174410/https://www.wunderground.com/cat6/twenty-years-look-back-jarrell-tornado-catastrophe |url-status=live }} The 2008 Parkersburg tornado was reported by mayor Bob Haylock to have been so intense that a majority of the fatalities out of Parkersburg were from people taking shelter in basements underground.{{cite web |url=https://www.fosters.com/story/news/2008/05/27/iowa-town-measures-loss-after/52398834007/ |title=Iowa town measures the loss after deadly tornado |publisher=Foster's Daily Democrat |date=27 May 2008 |access-date=24 June 2024 |archive-date=24 June 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240624195120/https://www.fosters.com/story/news/2008/05/27/iowa-town-measures-loss-after/52398834007/ |url-status=live }} The 2011 Philadelphia, Mississippi tornado caused extreme ground scouring across its path; up to {{cvt|.5|meters|feet}} of soil was removed from the environment, presumably from intense subvortices.{{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 |pages=1041–1062 |doi=10.1175/BAMS-D-11-00229.1 |bibcode=2014BAMS...95.1041K |s2cid=22335326 }}

The 1896 St. Louis–East St. Louis tornado on May 27, incurred the most damages adjusted for inflation, with an estimated $5.36 billion (2022 USD). In raw numbers, the Joplin tornado of May 22, 2011, is considered the costliest tornado in recent history, with damage totals at $3.71 billion (2022 USD). Until April 2011, the Bridge Creek–Moore tornado of May 3, 1999, was the most costly, which was later surpassed by the 2011 Tuscaloosa–Birmingham tornado, with a damage total of $3.18 billion (2022 USD).{{cite journal |last=Brooks |first=Harold E. |author-link=Harold E. Brooks |author2=Charles A. Doswell III |title=Normalized Damage from Major Tornadoes in the United States: 1890–1999 |journal=Weather and Forecasting |volume=16 |issue=1 |pages=168–176 |publisher=American Meteorological Society |date=February 2001 |doi=10.1175/1520-0434(2001)016<0168:NDFMTI>2.0.CO;2 |bibcode = 2001WtFor..16..168B |url=https://zenodo.org/record/1234647 |doi-access=free }}

{{10 deadliest tornadoes worldwide}}

{{10 deadliest Canadian tornadoes}}

{{10 deadliest US tornadoes}}

{{25 deadliest US tornadoes}}

{{10 costliest US tornadoes}}

{{Deadliest tornadoes by state}}

{{main|List of tornadoes observed by mobile radars}}

During the F5 1999 Bridge Creek–Moore tornado on May 3, 1999, in the southern Oklahoma City metro area, a Doppler on Wheels situated near the tornado measured winds of {{convert|301|+/-|20|mph|km/h|abbr=on}} momentarily in a small area inside the funnel approximately {{convert|100|m|ft|abbr=on}} above ground level.{{cite web |last=Wurman |first=Joshua |author-link=Joshua Wurman |year=2007 |title=Doppler On Wheels |url=http://www.cswr.org/dow/DOW.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110719102124/http://www.cswr.org/dow/DOW.htm |archive-date=2011-07-19 |publisher=Center for Severe Weather Research}} The measured winds in this tornado have been updated to {{convert|321|mph|km/h}}.

On May 31, 2013, a tornado hit rural areas near El Reno, Oklahoma. The tornado was originally rated as an EF3 based on damage; however, after mobile radar data analysis was conducted, it was concluded to have been an EF5 due to a measured wind speed of greater than {{convert|296|mph|km/h|abbr=on}}, second only to the Bridge Creek–Moore tornado. Revised RaXPol analysis found winds of {{convert|302|+/-|34|mph|km/h|abbr=on}} well above ground level and ≥{{convert|291|mph|km/h|abbr=on}} below {{convert|10|m|ft|abbr=on}} with some subvortices moving at {{convert|175|mph|km/h|abbr=on}}.{{cite journal |author=Snyder, Jeff |author2=Bluestein, H. B. |date=2014 |title=Some Considerations for the Use of High-Resolution Mobile Radar Data in Tornado Intensity Determination |url=https://zenodo.org/record/1234617 |journal=Weather Forecast. |volume=29 |issue=4 |pages=799–827 |bibcode=2014WtFor..29..799S |doi=10.1175/WAF-D-14-00026.1 |s2cid=122669043 |doi-access=free |access-date=2019-06-27 |archive-date=2020-09-06 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200906161038/https://zenodo.org/record/1234617 |url-status=live }} These winds may possibly be as high or higher than the winds recorded on May 3, 1999. Despite the recorded windspeed, the El Reno tornado was later downgraded back to EF3 due to the fact that no EF5 damage was found, likely due to the lack of sufficient damage indicators in the largely-rural area west of Oklahoma City.{{cite news |last=Samenow |first=Jason |date=June 4, 2013 |title=Deadly El Reno, Okla. tornado was widest ever measured on Earth, had nearly 300 mph winds |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/capital-weather-gang/wp/2013/06/04/deadly-el-reno-okla-tornado-was-widest-ever-measured-on-earth-had-nearly-300-mph-winds/ |newspaper=The Washington Post |access-date=September 17, 2017 |archive-date=May 9, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150509032931/http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/capital-weather-gang/wp/2013/06/04/deadly-el-reno-okla-tornado-was-widest-ever-measured-on-earth-had-nearly-300-mph-winds/ |url-status=live }}{{cite news |last=Wright |first=Celine |date=June 4, 2013 |title=Discovery Channel to air special for fallen 'Storm Chasers' |url=http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/tv/showtracker/la-et-st-discovery-channel-to-host-special-for-storm-chasers20130604,0,3911911.story |work=Los Angeles Times |access-date=June 5, 2013 |archive-date=December 25, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131225014237/http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/tv/showtracker/la-et-st-discovery-channel-to-host-special-for-storm-chasers20130604,0,3911911.story |url-status=live }}

During the Greenfield, Iowa EF4 on May 21, 2024, Doppler on Wheels recorded wind speeds of {{Convert|263–271|mph|km/h|abbr=on}} in a very small swath inside the funnel approximately {{Convert|100-106|ft|m|abbr=on}} above radar level as the tornado went through town. After doing some mathematical and physics-based calculations, the researchers determined those measured winds were equivalent to {{Convert|309–318|mph|km/h|abbr=on}}. The calculated minimum wind threshold as stated beats both the 1999 Bridge Creek–Moore tornado and the 2013 El Reno, Oklahoma tornado for minimum possible maximum windspeed; however, the highest confirmed peak windspeeds are lower than the 1999 tornado.{{cite web |last1=Wurman |first1=Joshua |author1-link=Joshua Wurman |last2=Kosiba |first2=Karen |date=22 June 2024 |title=As the 2024 #BEST field season ends, a glimpse into the data collection during the Greenfield, IA tornado. Peak wind speeds as high as 309-318 mph were calculated in a narrow region 100-160 feet ARL. These are among the highest wind speeds ever determined using DOW data. |url=https://x.com/dowfacility/status/1804575739330613507 |access-date=22 June 2024 |website=𝕏 (Formerly Twitter) |publisher=Doppler on Wheels |format=Post on 𝕏 |location=University of Illinois |archive-date=22 May 2024 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20240522183736/https://x.com/DOWFacility/status/1793317945294094337 |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |date=23 June 2024 |title=Flexible Array of Radars and Mesonets (FARM) statement concerning preliminary peak wind speed determinations based on Doppler On Wheels (DOW) data obtained in the Greenfield, Iowa tornado of 21 May 2024 |url=http://publish.illinois.edu/dowfacility-upgrade/files/2024/06/best-greenfield-windspeed-note-2024-0623bp2.pdf |website=Illinois edu |access-date=23 June 2024 |archive-date=24 June 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240624040232/http://publish.illinois.edu/dowfacility-upgrade/files/2024/06/best-greenfield-windspeed-note-2024-0623bp2.pdf |url-status=live }}

Winds were measured at {{convert|262|-|280|mph|km/h|abbr=on}} using portable Doppler weather radar in the Red Rock, Oklahoma, tornado during the April 26, 1991, tornado outbreak in north-central Oklahoma. Though these winds are possibly indicative of F5 intensity, this particular tornado's path never encountered any significant structures and caused minimal damage, so it was rated F4.{{cite journal |last=Bluestein |first=Howard B. |author-link=Howard B. Bluestein |author2=J.G. Ladue |author3=H. Stein |author4=D. Speheger |author5=W.P. Unruh |title=Doppler Radar Wind Spectra of Supercell Tornadoes |journal=Monthly Weather Review |volume=121 |issue=8 |pages=2200–22 |publisher=American Meteorological Society |date=August 1993 |doi=10.1175/1520-0493(1993)121<2200:DRWSOS>2.0.CO;2 |bibcode = 1993MWRv..121.2200B |doi-access=free }}

While never observed, these tornadoes are believed to have had winds of {{convert|300|mph|km/h}} or above, which would make them among the strongest tornadoes in history. There is a questionable analysis of the 1917 Mattoon/Charleston tornado{{efn|The paper states that the storm was a single tornado; later analysis suggests it was most likely a tornado family that traveled 287 miles across Missouri and Illinois.}} published in the Geographical Review in 1917 that stated the tornado had strong "inflowing wind, which probably exceeded {{cvt|400|mph|km/h}}".{{cite journal |journal=Geographical Review |volume=4 |doi=10.2307/207291 |date=August 1917 |author=J. P. Carey |title=The Central Illinois Tornado of May 26, 1917 |issue=2 |pages=122–130 |jstor=207291 |bibcode=1917GeoRv...4..122C }} A 1968 Weather Bureau review of the 1968 Hansell-Charles City tornado found intense ground scouring, and initial estimates for wind speeds reached {{convert|528|mph|km/h|abbr=on}}; these figures were revised down to {{convert|200–300|mph|km/h|abbr=on}}.

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File:Radar collage of a long-lived supercell radar on December 10-11, 2021.png that spawned the record-breaking tornado family on December 10–11, 2021]] The longest-known track for a single tornado is the Tri-State tornado, occurring on March 18, 1925, with a path length of {{convert|151|to|235|mi|km|abbr=on}}. For years there was debate whether the originally-recognized path length of {{convert|219|mi|abbr=on}} over 3.5 hours was from one tornado or a series. Some very long track (VLT) tornadoes were later determined to be successive tornadoes spawned by the same supercell thunderstorm, which are known as a tornado family. The Tri-State tornado, however, appeared to have no gaps in the damage. A six-year reanalysis study by a team of severe convective storm meteorologists found insufficient evidence to make firm conclusions but does conclude that it is likely that the beginning and ending of the path was resultant of separate tornadoes comprising a tornado family. It also found that the tornado began {{convert|15|mi|abbr=on}} to the west and ended {{convert|1|mi|abbr=on}} farther east than previously known, bringing the total path to {{convert|235|mi|abbr=on}}.{{citation needed|date=December 2022}} The {{convert|174|mi|abbr=on}} segment from central Madison County, Missouri, to Pike County, Indiana, is likely one continuous tornado, and the {{convert|151|mi|abbr=on}} segment from central Bollinger County, Missouri, to western Pike County, Indiana, is very likely a single continuous tornado. Another significant tornado was found about {{convert|65|mi|abbr=on}} east-northeast of the end of aforementioned segment(s) of the Tri-State tornado family and is likely another member of the family. Its path length of {{convert|20|mi|abbr=on}} over about 20 minutes makes the known tornado family path length total to {{convert|320|mi|abbr=on}} over about {{frac|5|1|2}} hours.{{cite journal |last = Johns |first = Robert H. |author-link = Robert H. Johns |author2 = D. W. Burgess |author3 = C. A. Doswell III |author4 = M. S. Gilmore |author5 = J. A. Hart |author6 = S. F. Piltz |title = The 1925 Tri-State Tornado Damage Path and Associated Storm System |journal = e-Journal of Severe Storms Meteorology |volume = 8 |issue = 2 |year = 2013 |url = http://www.ejssm.org/ojs/index.php/ejssm/issue/view/44 |access-date = 2014-04-02 |archive-date = 2013-06-15 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130615230624/http://www.ejssm.org/ojs/index.php/ejssm/issue/view/44 |url-status = live }} Grazulis in 2001 wrote that the first {{convert|60|mi|abbr=on}} of the (originally recognized) track is probably the result of two or more tornadoes and that a path length of {{convert|157|mi|abbr=on}} was seemingly continuous.{{cite book |last = Grazulis |first = Thomas P. |author-link= Thomas P. Grazulis |title = The Tornado: Nature's Ultimate Windstorm |publisher = University of Oklahoma Press |year = 2001 |location = Norman, OK |url =https://archive.org/details/tornadonaturesul0000graz|url-access = registration |isbn = 0-8061-3258-2 }}

The 2021 Western Kentucky tornado on December 10, 2021 is the longest confirmed track of a tornado.{{cite web |title=The Violent Tornado Outbreak of December 10-11, 2021 |url=https://www.weather.gov/pah/December-10th-11th-2021-Tornado |publisher=National Weather Service Paducah, Kentucky}} This violent tornado tracked {{cvt|165.7|mi|km}} through the states of Tennessee and Kentucky during a very intense late-season outbreak. The tornado was spawned by a very long-tracked supercell that previously dropped another violent tornado in Arkansas, Missouri and Tennessee, and initial media reports referred to the entire event as the "Quad-state Tornado", which would have had a path of {{cvt|230|mi|km}}.{{cite web |last1=Prociv |first1=Kathy |last2=Acevedo |first2=Nicole |date=11 December 2021 |title='Quad-State Tornado' crossed four states in four hours, a rare December tornado |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/weather/quad-state-tornado-crossed-four-states-four-hours-leaving-trail-death-rcna8465 |publisher=NBC News}}

On March 22, 1953, a tornado touched down near Leesville, Louisiana at 21:00 UTC; the tornado continued into far-northwest Mississippi, before dissipating north of Leland, killing two and injuring 22. The tornado was rated F2 on the Fujita scale. It traveled for {{convert|234.7|mi|abbr=on}}, making it possibly the longest tracked tornado in history, though it is likely that the path consisted of multiple different tornadoes as part of a tornado family.{{Cite web |title=Tornado Archive Data Explorer – Tornado Archive |url=https://tornadoarchive.com/home/tornado-archive-data-explorer/ |access-date=2024-02-21 |language=en-US |archive-date=2024-02-22 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240222023047/https://tornadoarchive.com/home/tornado-archive-data-explorer/ |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |last=Stewart |first=Steve W. |date=2019-12-18 |title=NWS determines deadly tornado was a 400 yard-wide EF-3, 2nd longest in LA history |url=https://www.kjas.com/news/local_news/article_958f3fd0-21bd-11ea-8aaa-bfd45f40c4e3.html |access-date=2024-02-21 |website=KJAS.COM |language=en |archive-date=2024-02-21 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240221101623/https://www.kjas.com/news/local_news/article_958f3fd0-21bd-11ea-8aaa-bfd45f40c4e3.html |url-status=live }}

What at one time was thought to be the record holder for the longest tornado path is now thought to be the longest tornado family, with a track of at least {{convert|293|mi|km}} on May 26, 1917, from the Missouri border across Illinois into Indiana. It caused severe damage and mass casualties in Charleston and Mattoon, Illinois.

What was probably the longest track supercell thunderstorm tracked {{convert|790|mi|km}} across 6 states in 17.5 hours on March 12, 2006, as part of the March 2006 tornado outbreak sequence. It began in Noble County, Oklahoma, and ended in Jackson County, Michigan, producing many tornadoes in Missouri and Illinois.{{cite conference |first=Jason T. |last=Martinelli |title=A detailed analysis of an extremely long-tracked supercell |book-title=Preprints of the 33rd Conference on Radar Meteorology |publisher=American Meteorological Society and Australian Bureau of Meteorology Research Centre |date=August 2007 |location=Cairns, Australia |url=http://ams.confex.com/ams/33Radar/techprogram/paper_123052.htm |access-date=2007-06-02 |archive-date=2007-09-26 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070926231051/http://ams.confex.com/ams/33Radar/techprogram/paper_123052.htm |url-status=live }}

{{main|List of tornadoes by width}}

Officially, the widest tornado on record is the El Reno, Oklahoma tornado of May 31, 2013, with a width of {{convert|2.6|mi|km}} at its peak. This is the width found by the National Weather Service based on preliminary data from University of Oklahoma RaXPol mobile radar that also sampled winds of {{convert|296|mph|km/h|abbr=on}}, which was used to upgrade the tornado to EF5.{{cite web |title=The May 31-June 1, 2013 Tornado and Flash Flooding Event |url=http://www.srh.noaa.gov/oun/?n=events-20130531 |publisher=National Weather Service in Norman, Oklahoma |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130708005949/http://www.srh.noaa.gov/oun/?n=events-20130531 |archive-date=8 July 2013 |url-status=dead}} However, it was revealed that these winds did not impact any structures, and as a result the tornado was downgraded to EF3 based on damage.{{cite web|title=Event Details|url=http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/stormevents/eventdetails.jsp?id=453682|publisher=National Climatic Data Center|access-date=1 October 2013|archive-date=28 September 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130928090455/http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/stormevents/eventdetails.jsp?id=453682|url-status=live}}

The F4 Hallam, Nebraska, tornado during the outbreak of May 22, 2004, was the previous official record holder for the widest tornado, surveyed at {{convert|2.5|mi|km}} wide. A similar size tornado struck Edmonson, Texas on May 31, 1968, when a damage path width between {{convert|2|and|3|mi|km}} was recorded from an F3 tornado.{{cite web|title=May 1968 Storm Data |publisher=National Climatic Data Center |url=http://www7.ncdc.noaa.gov/IPS/sd/sd.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110503214406/http://www7.ncdc.noaa.gov/IPS/sd/sd.html |archive-date=May 3, 2011 }} Another tornado with a similar width struck Maxton and Red Springs during the March 28, 1984, Carolina Tornado Outbreak; this tornado had a width of 2.5 miles wide at one point. Rated as F4, the tornado resulted in 3 fatalities and 280 injuries.{{Cite web |last=US Department of Commerce |first=NOAA |title=Carolinas Tornado Outbreak: March 28, 1984 |url=https://www.weather.gov/ilm/CarolinasOutbreak |access-date=2023-05-04 |website=www.weather.gov |language=EN-US |archive-date=2023-05-04 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230504092933/https://www.weather.gov/ilm/CarolinasOutbreak |url-status=live }} The EF4 Jiangsu tornado on June 23, 2016, also had a peak width of 4.1 km wide (2.5 miles).{{Cite web|url=https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Location-and-pathway-of-the-Funing-tornado-23-June-2016-A-Location-of-Funing-county_fig3_320313500|title=Figure 1. Location and pathway of the Funing tornado, 23 June 2016. (A).|access-date=2 July 2023|archive-date=2 July 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230702191939/https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Location-and-pathway-of-the-Funing-tornado-23-June-2016-A-Location-of-Funing-county_fig3_320313500|url-status=live}}{{Cite web |title=The Deadliest Tornado (EF4) in the Past 40 Years in China |url=http://twister.caps.ou.edu/papers/MengEtal_WAF2018.pdf |access-date=2023-07-02 |archive-date=2023-04-22 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230422125635/https://twister.caps.ou.edu/papers/MengEtal_WAF2018.pdf |url-status=live }}

On May 3, 1999, a Doppler On Wheels (DOW) mobile radar observed an F4 tornado as it crossed Mulhall during the 1999 Oklahoma Tornado Outbreak, which also produced the Bridge Creek–Moore tornado. The DOW documented the largest-ever-observed core flow circulation with a distance of {{convert|abbr=on|1600|m}} between peak velocities on either side of the tornado, and a roughly {{convert|abbr=on|7|km}} width of peak wind gusts exceeding {{convert|abbr=on|43|m/s|mph}}, making the Mulhall tornado the largest tornado ever measured quantitatively.

On April 21, 1946, a tornado struck the area in and around Timber Lake, South Dakota. The U.S. Weather Bureau published a paper in 1946 stating the width of this tornado was {{convert|4|mi|km}}, which would make this the widest tornado ever documented in history. However, this is outside the period of reliable documentation accepted by the National Weather Service, which is 1950–present.{{cite journal |journal=Monthly Weather Review |date=1 April 1946 |volume=74 |issue=4 |page=73 |doi=10.1175/1520-0493(1946)074<0073:SLSFA>2.0.CO;2 |doi-access=free |title=Severe Local Storms for April 1946 |bibcode=1946MWRv...74...73. }}

On May 19, 2024, a large multiple-vortex tornado tracked {{cvt|15|mi|km}} over rural areas near Custer City, Oklahoma. While the tornado is believed to only have been about 1 mile wide, the maximum width of its tornadic windfield and accompanying damage was nearly {{cvt|3|mi|km}}, making it one of the largest recorded damage paths of any tornado.{{cite web |url=https://www.weather.gov/oun/events-20240519 |publisher=National Weather Service Norman, Oklahoma |date=21 May 2024 |title=The May 19, 2024 Severe Weather Event }}

The smallest and shortest-lived tornado on record to produce surveyable damage was an EF1 tornado on the western side of Broken Bow, Nebraska on July 16, 2024. Spawned from an outflow-driven supercell, a very brief tornado, seen by a chaser and a surveillance camera, was recorded on the ground for only two seconds, having a listed maximum width of only {{convert|1|yards|meters}} and a listed path length of {{cvt|0.01|miles|meters}}. Despite this, it was powerful enough to lift and throw a {{cvt|800|lbs|kg}} trailer into a nearby parked car.{{cite web |url=https://mesonet.agron.iastate.edu/wx/afos/p.php?pil=PNSLBF&e=202407181542 |title=NWS DAMAGE SURVEY FOR JULY 16, 2024 CUSTER COUNTY WIND AND TORNADO EVENT |date=18 July 2024 |publisher=National Weather Service North Platte, Nebraska }}

File:Pilger, NE tornadoes.jpg on June 16, 2014. The leftmost tornado would achieve the highest forward speed in history.]]

The highest accepted forward speed of an intense tornado on record was {{convert|75|mph|km/h|abbr=on}} from the 1974 Guin tornado that tore across northwestern Alabama. Other weak tornadoes have approached or exceeded this speed, but this is the fastest forward movement observed in a major tornado. The 1977 Birmingham tornado had an average forward speed of {{convert|60|mph|km/h|abbr=on}},{{cite web|editor-last1=Grazulis|editor-first1=Thomas P.|editor-last2=Grazulis|editor-first2=Doris|date=1998|url=http://www.tornadoproject.com/past/othralts.htm|title=Other Disastrous Birmingham Area Tornadoes|publisher=The Tornado Project of Environmental Films|location=St. Johnsbury, Vermont|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110603234750/http://www.tornadoproject.com/past/othralts.htm |archive-date=3 June 2011|accessdate=5 July 2024 }} as did the 2021 Western Kentucky tornado.{{cite journal |last1=Marshall |first1=Timothy |title=Damage Survey of the Mayfield, KY Tornado: 10 December 2021 |journal=30th Conference of Severe Local Storms |date=January 2022 |url=https://www.academia.edu/90132303 |access-date=17 November 2022 |archive-date=13 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230213085034/https://www.academia.edu/90132303 |url-status=live }}

Weaker tornadoes and tornadovortices have been recorded exceeding these speeds. Subvortices of the 2013 El Reno tornado were recorded to travel at speeds of {{cvt|175|mph|km/h}} as they orbited the main vortex; the fastest speed a separate tornado-producing mesocyclone has been recorded to travel at was determined via photogrammetry to be the junior EF4 of the 2014 Pilger, Nebraska, tornado family, travelling at {{cvt|94.6|mph|km/h}} for five seconds near the very end of its lifespan.{{cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gMws8ueXJ7U |people=Hank Schyma, Dr. Anton Seimon, Dr. Tracie Seimon, Skip Talbot |date=3 December 2020 |access-date=8 December 2024 |publisher=Pecos Hank |website=youtube.com |format=YouTube video |title= FASTEST MOVING TORNADO - New World Record }} These figures have not been acknowledged by the National Weather Service.

Calculations of highest speeds from the National Centers for Environmental Information Storm Events Database gives a high average forward speed of a significant tornado just west of Galt, Iowa, on December 15, 2021, of between {{cvt|70.91|mph|km/h|abbr=on}} and {{convert|88.65|mph|km/h|abbr=on}}.{{cite web |title=Storm Event Database 2021-12-15 18:19 CST-6 |url=https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/stormevents/eventdetails.jsp?id=993708 |publisher=National Centers for Environmental Information |access-date=8 January 2023 |archive-date=2023-01-08 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230108015837/https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/stormevents/eventdetails.jsp?id=993708 |url-status=live }} This tornado occurred during the December 2021 Midwest derecho and tornado outbreak, and was accompanied by straight-line winds approaching {{cvt|80|mph|km/h}}. A faster range can be calculated on an EF1 tornado south of Taylorville, Illinois on March 31, 2023, which traveled {{cvt|1.74|mi|km}} between 18:13 and 18:14, giving a range of forward speeds between {{cvt|52.2|mph|km/h}} and {{cvt|104.4|mph|km/h}}.{{cite report |url=https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/stormevents/eventdetails.jsp?id=1083270 |title=Storm Events Database (DVN survey HEWITTSVILLE, 2023-03-31 18:13 CST-6) |publisher=National Centers for Environmental Information |access-date=8 December 2024 }} Due to significant variability caused by the unspecific nature of the timestamps provided, these speed figures are unofficial.

A pressure deficit of {{convert|100|mb|inHg|sigfig=3}} was observed when a violent tornado near Manchester, South Dakota on June 24, 2003, passed directly over an in-situ probe deployed by storm chasing researcher Tim Samaras.{{cite conference |first=Julian J. |last=Lee |author2=T. P. Samaras |author3=C. R. Young |title=Pressure Measurements at the ground in an F-4 tornado |book-title=22nd Conf Severe Local Storms |publisher=American Meteorological Society |date=October 2004 |location=Hyannis, Massachusetts |url=http://ams.confex.com/ams/11aram22sls/techprogram/paper_81700.htm |access-date=2007-06-23 |archive-date=2011-06-09 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110609164901/http://ams.confex.com/ams/11aram22sls/techprogram/paper_81700.htm |url-status=live }} In less than a minute, the pressure dropped to {{convert|850|mb|inHg|sigfig=4}}, which are the greatest pressure decline and the lowest pressure ever recorded at the Earth's surface when adjusted to sea level.{{cite web |title = World: Lowest Sea Level Air Pressure (excluding tornadoes) |work = World Weather / Climate Extremes Archive |publisher = Arizona State University |url = http://wmo.asu.edu/world-lowest-sea-level-air-pressure-excluding-tornadoes |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20071112001042/http://wmo.asu.edu/world-lowest-sea-level-air-pressure-excluding-tornadoes |archive-date = 2007-11-12 }}{{cite journal |last = Cerveny |first = Randall S. |author2=J. Lawrimore |author3=R. Edwards |author4=C. Landsea |title = Extreme Weather Records: Compilation, Adjudication, and Publication |journal = Bull. Am. Meteorol. Soc. |volume = 88 |issue = 6 |pages = 853–60 |date = 2007 |doi = 10.1175/BAMS-88-6-853 |bibcode = 2007BAMS...88..853C |doi-access = free }}

On April 21, 2007, a {{convert|194|mb|inHg|sigfig=3|adj=on}} pressure deficit was reported when a tornado struck a storm chasing vehicle in Tulia, Texas.{{cite journal |last= Blair |first= Scott F. |author2=D.R. Deroche |author3=A.E. Pietrycha |title= In Situ Observations of the 21 April 2007 Tulia, Texas Tornado |journal= Electronic Journal of Severe Storms Meteorology |volume= 3 |issue= 3 |pages= 1–27 |year= 2008 |url= |doi=10.55599/ejssm.v3i3.16|doi-access=free }} The tornado caused EF2 damage as it passed through Tulia. The reported pressure drop far exceeds that which would be expected based on theoretical calculations.{{cite journal|last1=Lee|first1=Wen-Chau|last2=Wurman|first2=Joshua|date=July 2005|title=Diagnosed Three-Dimensional Axisymmetric Structure of the Mulhall Tornado on 3 May 1999|journal=Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences|volume=62|issue=7|pages=2373–2393|doi=10.1175/JAS3489.1|doi-access=free|bibcode = 2005JAtS...62.2373L}}

There is a questionable and unofficial citizen's barometer measurement of a {{convert|192|mb|inHg|sigfig=3|adj=on}} drop around Minneapolis in 1904.{{cite conference |first=Tim M. |last=Samaras |author-link=Timothy M. Samaras |title=A historical perspective of In-Situ observations within Tornado Cores |book-title=Preprints of the 22nd Conference on Severe Local Storms |publisher=American Meteorological Society |date=October 2004 |location=Hyannis, MA |url=http://ams.confex.com/ams/11aram22sls/techprogram/paper_81153.htm |access-date=2007-06-03 |archive-date=2011-01-15 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110115081005/http://ams.confex.com/ams/11aram22sls/techprogram/paper_81153.htm |url-status=live }}

• The earliest recorded tornado in Europe struck Freising (Germany) in 788.Dr. R. Hennig, Katalog bemerkenswerter Witterungsereignisse. Berlin 1904; Originalquellen: Aventinus (Turmair), Johannes (gest. 1534): Annales Boiorum. Mit Nachtrag. Leipzig 1710; Annales Fuldenses, Chronik des Klosters Fulda. Bei Marquard Freher: Germanicarum rerum scriptores ua Frankfurt aM 1600–1611){{Cite web |title=Tornadoliste Deutschland |url=https://tornadoliste.de/788 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181211010300/https://tornadoliste.de/788 |archive-date=2018-12-11}}
• The earliest-known Irish tornado appeared on April 30, 1054, in Rostella, near Kilbeggan. The earliest-known British tornado hit central London on October 23, 1091, and was especially destructive.{{cite web|url=http://www.torro.org.uk/whirlwind_info.php|title=TORRO – British & European Tornado Extremes|website=www.torro.org.uk|access-date=2019-05-08|archive-date=2015-08-02|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150802020732/http://www.torro.org.uk/site/whirlwind_info.php|url-status=dead}}

• An apparent tornado is recorded to have struck Tlatelolco (present day Mexico City), on August 21, 1521, two days before the Aztec capital's fall to Cortés. Many other tornadoes are documented historically within the Basin of Mexico.{{Cite journal |last = Fuentes |first = Oscar Velasco |title = The Earliest Documented Tornado in the Americas: Tlatelolco, August 1521 |journal = Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society |volume = 91 |issue = 11 |pages = 1515–23 |date = November 2010 |doi = 10.1175/2010BAMS2874.1|bibcode = 2010BAMS...91.1515F |doi-access = free }}

• August 1671 – Rehoboth, Massachusetts{{cite book |last= Grazulis |first= Thomas P. |author-link= Thomas P. Grazulis |title= The Tornado: Nature's Ultimate Windstorm |url= https://archive.org/details/tornadonaturesul0000graz |url-access= registration |publisher= University of Oklahoma Press |year= 2001 |location= Norman, OK |isbn= 0-8061-3258-2 }}{{cite news|last=Erck|first=Amy|title=Answers archive: Tornado history, climatology|url=https://www.usatoday.com/weather/resources/askjack/watorhty.htm|work=USA Today Weather|publisher=USA Today|access-date=9 July 2012|date=December 26, 2005|archive-date=20 April 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120420001509/http://www.usatoday.com/weather/resources/askjack/watorhty.htm|url-status=live}}
• July 8, 1680 – Cambridge, Massachusetts – 1 death{{cite web|last=Baker|first=Tim|title=Tornado History|url=http://www.tornadochaser.net/history.html|publisher=tornadochaser.net|access-date=9 July 2012|archive-date=8 July 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120708090515/http://www.tornadochaser.net/history.html|url-status=live}}

• An apparent tornado caused severe damage in Heian-kyō in modern-day Kyoto on 1 June 1180,{{efn|Gregorian calendar date. 25 May in the Julian calendar, and the 29th day of the fourth month, Jishō 4 in the old Japanese calendar.}} which was recorded by Japanese author Kamo no Chōmei, who personally experienced the tornado.{{cite web|url=https://www2.yamanashi-ken.ac.jp/~itoyo/hojoki/hojoki2.htm|title=方丈記第二段|trans-title=Hōjōki Section Two|language=ja|publisher=Yamanashi Prefectural University|access-date=2024-06-28|archive-date=2023-05-28|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230528230052/http://www2.yamanashi-ken.ac.jp/~itoyo/hojoki/hojoki2.htm|url-status=live}}{{cite journal|title=災害に対する日本人のメンタリティ|language=ja|trans-title=The Mentality of the Japanese towards Disasters|last=Ōba|first=Hirokazu|year=2005|volume=36|pages=58–69|journal=危険と管理|publisher=Japan Risk Management Society|url=https://www.jstage.jst.go.jp/article/jarms/36/0/36_58/_pdf/-char/ja|doi=10.32300/jarms.0.36_58|access-date=2024-06-28|archive-date=2024-06-28|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240628161913/https://www.jstage.jst.go.jp/article/jarms/36/0/36_58/_pdf/-char/ja|url-status=live}}
• The earliest recorded tornado in continental Asia struck near the city of Calcutta in present-day West Bengal, India, in 1838. It was described as moving remarkably slow across its {{convert|16|mile|adj=on}} path southeast over the span of 2 to 3 hours. It was recorded to cause significant damage to the area, including {{convert|3.5|lb|adj=on}} hail being observed at the Dum Dum weather observatory.{{Cite web|url=http://bangladeshtornadoes.org/climo/calc1888.html|title=Cal1888|access-date=2021-05-19|archive-date=2021-04-18|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210418154450/http://bangladeshtornadoes.org/climo/calc1888.html|url-status=live}}

A few scientists in Europe,{{cite journal |last = Antonescu |first = Bogdan |author2 = D. M. Schultz |author3 = F. Lomas |author4 = T. Kühne |title = Tornadoes in Europe: synthesis of the observational datasets |journal = Mon. Wea. Rev. |volume = 144 |issue = 8 |pages = 2445–2480 |date = 2016 |doi = 10.1175/MWR-D-15-0298.1 |bibcode = 2016MWRv..144.2445A |doi-access = free }} the US, and elsewhere documented the occurrence of tornadoes in the late 18th and early-mid 19th centuries to try to discern patterns of distribution and sometimes with inferences about formative processes and dynamics.

For intensive studies of tornadoes, these are the earliest known publications:

• 1765: German scientist Gottlob Burchard Genzmer published a detailed survey of the damage path of an extremely violent tornado which occurred near Woldegk, Germany, on 29 June 1764. It covers the entire 33 km (18.6 mi) long track and also includes eyewitness reports as well as an analysis of the debris and hail fallout areas. Genzmer calls the event an "Orcan" and only compares it to waterspouts or dust devils. Based on the damage survey, modern day meteorologists from the ESSL gave an roughly estimated rating of F5.{{Cite web |title='Umständliche und zuverläßige Beschreibung des Orcans, welcher den 29ten Jun. 1764 einen Strich von etlichen Meilen im Stargardischen Kreise des Herzogthums Mecklenburg gewaltig verwüstet hat' - Digitalisat {{!}} MDZ |url=https://www.digitale-sammlungen.de/de/view/bsb11110409?page=5 |access-date=2022-12-12 |website=www.digitale-sammlungen.de |archive-date=2022-12-12 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221212210644/https://www.digitale-sammlungen.de/de/view/bsb11110409?page=5 |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |title=European Severe Weather Database |url=https://eswd.eu/cgi-bin/eswd.cgi |access-date=2022-12-12 |website=eswd.eu |archive-date=2020-08-15 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200815123540/https://eswd.eu/cgi-bin/eswd.cgi |url-status=live }}
• 1839–41: A detailed survey of the damage path of the significant tornado that struck New Brunswick, New Jersey, on 19 June 1835, was published. This tornado is also considered the deadliest tornado in New Jersey history. The path was surveyed by many scientists on account of its location between New York City and Philadelphia, including early tornado theorists James Pollard Espy and William Charles Redfield. Scientists disagreed whether there was whirling, convergent, or rotational motion. A conclusion that remains accurate today is that the most intense damage tends to be on the right side of a tornado (with respect to direction of forward movement), which was found to be generally easterly.{{cite journal |last = Beck |first = Lewis C. |title = Note on the New Brunswick Tornado, or Water Spout of 1835 |journal = American Journal of Science and Arts |volume = 36 |pages = 115–118 |date = July 1839 }}{{cite journal |last = Redfield |first = W. C. |title = Whirling Action of the New Brunswick Tornado |journal = American Railroad Journal |volume = 12 |pages = 345–352 |date = June 1841 }}
• 1840: The earliest known intensive study of a tornadic event published in Europe, by French scientist Athanase Peltier.{{cite book |last = Peltier |first = Athanase |title = Météorologie: Observations et recherches expérimentales sur les causes qui concourent à la formation des trombes |publisher = H. Cousin |location = Paris |date = 1840 |oclc = 457395666 |language = fr }}
• 1865: The first in India and earliest known scientific survey of a tornado that analyzed structure and dynamics was published in 1865 by Indian scientist Chunder Sikur Chatterjee. The path damage survey of a tornado that occurred at Pundooah (now Pandua), Hugli district, West Bengal, India, was documented on maps and revealed multiple vortices, the tornadocyclone, and direction of rotation,{{cite journal |last = De |first = S. |author2 = A. K. Sahai |title = Was the earliest documented account of tornado dynamics published by an Indian scientist in an Indian journal? |journal = Weather |date = 2019 |volume = 75 |issue = 4 |pages = 120–123 |doi = 10.1002/wea.3485 |s2cid = 149888981 }} predating work by John Park Finley, Alfred Wegener, Johannes Letzmann, and Ted Fujita.

{{See also|EF5 drought}}

Before the Greensburg EF5 tornado on May 4, 2007, it had been eight years and one day since the United States had a confirmed F5/EF5 tornado. Prior to Greensburg, the last confirmed F5/EF5 had hit the southern Oklahoma City metro area and surrounding communities on May 3, 1999. This stretch was later surpassed by an ongoing drought which began on May 20, 2013; it is now the longest interval without an F5/EF5 tornado since official records began in 1950.

2018 was the only year since official records began in 1950 that no tornado in the United States was rated in the violent class (F4/EF4+).{{cite news |last = Livingston |first = Ian |title = 2018 will be the first year with no violent tornadoes in the United States |newspaper = The Washington Post |date = December 26, 2018 |url = https://www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2018/12/26/will-be-first-year-with-no-violent-tornadoes-united-states/ |access-date = February 11, 2019 |archive-date = February 12, 2019 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190212011223/https://www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2018/12/26/will-be-first-year-with-no-violent-tornadoes-united-states/ |url-status = live }}

Matt Suter of Fordland, Missouri holds the record for the longest-known distance traveled by anyone picked up by a tornado who survived the ordeal. On March 12, 2006, he was carried {{convert|1307|ft|m}}, {{convert|13|ft|m}} shy of {{convert|1/4|mi|m|spell=in}}, according to National Weather Service measurements.{{cite news |date=March 22, 2006 |title=Mo. Teen Survives Tornado, Confronts Media Storm |work=USA Today |agency=Associated Press |url=https://www.usatoday.com/weather/storms/2006-03-22-tornado-survivor_x.htm |url-status=dead |access-date=May 25, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080316221045/https://www.usatoday.com/weather/storms/2006-03-22-tornado-survivor_x.htm |archive-date=March 16, 2008}}{{Cite news |last=Forbes |first=Greg |date=March 20, 2006 |title=HE SURVIVED A RIDE IN A TORNADO! |work=The Weather Channel |url=http://www.weather.com/blog/weather/8_8982.html?from=blog_permalink_mainindex&ref=%2Fblog%2Fweather%2F&loc=interstitialskip |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121023050804/http://www.weather.com/blog/weather/8_8982.html?from=blog_permalink_mainindex&ref=%2Fblog%2Fweather%2F&loc=interstitialskip |archive-date=October 23, 2012}}

While not officially reported as the longest distance, both the National Weather Service and tornado expert Thomas P. Grazulis document that the 1976 Brownwood, Texas, F5 tornado picked up and threw two teenagers {{convert|1000|yd|m}}, with both surviving.{{cite journal |author1=National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration |author2=National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service |author3=National Climatic Data Center |editor1-last=Potter |editor1-first=Thomas D. |title=Storm Data and Unusual Weather Phenomena |journal=Storm Data |date=April 1976 |volume=18 |issue=4 |page=14 |publisher=United States Department of Commerce |language=English}}{{cite book |last1=Grazulis |first1=Thomas P. |title=Significant Tornadoes 1680–1991 |date=July 1993 |publisher=The Tornado Project of Environmental Films |location=St. Johnsbury, VT |isbn=978-1-879362-03-1 |page=578}}{{cite web |author1=National Climatic Data Center |author2=National Centers for Environmental Information |title=Texas Event Report: F5 Tornado (Brown County) |url=https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/stormevents/eventdetails.jsp?id=10129516 |website=Storm Event Database |publisher=National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration |access-date=22 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230922035027/https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/stormevents/eventdetails.jsp?id=10129516 |archive-date=22 September 2023 |language=English |url-status=live}}

{{more citations needed section|date=November 2023}}

On March 22, 2022, an EF3 tornado struck Arabi, Louisiana, a census-designated place in the New Orleans metropolitan area. On December 14 of that year, another tornado, rated EF2, affected many of the same areas, with the two tornado tracks overlapping in parts of Terrytown and Arabi.{{Cite news |last=Lucie |first=Devon |date=December 14, 2022 |title=Comparison: Arabi tornado took eerily similar path to storm earlier this year |url=https://www.wdsu.com/article/arabi-tornado-paths-compared/42248796 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221215074029/https://www.wdsu.com/article/arabi-tornado-paths-compared/42248796 |archive-date=December 15, 2022 |access-date=December 16, 2022 |work=WDSU |language=en}}

The unincorporated community of Barnsley, Kentucky was hit twice by intense tornadoes less than three years apart from each other.

The violent 2021 Western Kentucky tornado hit the community, destroying numerous homes, and in 2024, the city was struck again by an EF3 tornado that impacted many of the same areas. Certain areas in Barnsley were affected by both tornadoes.{{cite web |date=28 May 2024 |title=Kentucky families struggling after being hit for a second time by a tornado in the same locations |url=https://apnews.com/article/kentucky-tornado-severe-weather-b8fd3a678e00fc09ea303c72d7b9d9ad |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240611123046/https://apnews.com/article/kentucky-tornado-severe-weather-b8fd3a678e00fc09ea303c72d7b9d9ad |archive-date=11 June 2024 |access-date=26 June 2024 |publisher=Associated Press}}

On April 30, 1940, two separate tornadoes, less than two hours apart, struck the communities of Chaffee, Kelso and Illmo, Missouri. Thomas P. Grazulis rated both tornadoes F2 on the Fujita scale and both tornadoes killed one person near Kelso.

Chicago is the largest city in the state of Illinois and the third most populated in the United States, and had only seen six tornadoes between 1954 and 2023.{{cite web |date=16 July 2024 |title=Rare tornado impacted Chicago's Near West Side and Loop Monday, NWS confirms |url=https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/rare-tornado-touch-down-chicago-near-west-side-loop-monday/3491732/ |publisher=WMAQ-TV}} However, on July 14 and 15, 2024, back-to-back outbreaks of weak (EF0 and EF1) tornadoes produced six within the city limits in a span of under 48 hours. The July 15 event, prompted by a derecho, spawned 32 tornadoes in the National Weather Service Chicago, Illinois area of responsibility, tying the one-year record of 32 in a single day. The forecast area typically only sees 15 tornadoes per year.{{cite web |last1=Wetli |first1=Patty |date=3 September 2024 |title=Summer 2024 in Chicago Was One for the Weather Record Books — Not for Heat but for Tornadoes |url=https://news.wttw.com/2024/09/03/summer-2024-chicago-was-one-weather-record-books-not-heat-tornadoes |access-date=7 September 2024 |publisher=WTTW}}

The small town of Codell, Kansas, was hit by a tornado on the same date (May 20) three consecutive years: 1916, 1917, and 1918.{{cite web |title=Tornado Climatology |work=A Severe Weather Primer: Questions and Answers about Tornadoes |url=http://www.nssl.noaa.gov/primer/tornado/tor_climatology.html |access-date=2007-03-09 |archive-date=2012-03-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120320044359/http://www.nssl.noaa.gov/primer/tornado/tor_climatology.html |url-status=dead }}[http://www.tornadofacts.net/tornado-fun-facts.php Fun Tornado Facts] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402170835/http://www.tornadofacts.net/tornado-fun-facts.php |date=2015-04-02 }} – Interesting and Fun Tornado Facts The United States has about 100,000 thunderstorms per year; less than 1% produce a tornado. The odds of this coincidence occurring again are extremely small.

The small town of Dolores, Uruguay, has been hit multiple times by intense tornadoes.

On November 25, 1985, the city was hit by an intense tornado rated as an F3.{{Cite web |title=A 35 años del tornado que destruyó buena parte de Dolores |url=https://www.entrelineas.info/articulo/1066/29628/a-35-anos-del-tornado-que-destruyo-buena-parte-de-dolores |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231107020015/https://www.entrelineas.info/articulo/1066/29628/a-35-anos-del-tornado-que-destruyo-buena-parte-de-dolores |archive-date=2023-11-07 |access-date=2023-11-07}} On December 8, 2012, 27 years later, another intense tornado occurred in the outskirts of the city. On April 15, 2016, an EF3 tornado destroyed large portions of the city.{{Cite news |title=Deadly tornado rips through Uruguay town |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-latin-america-36065602 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231107020014/https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-latin-america-36065602 |archive-date=2023-11-07 |access-date=2023-11-07 |work=BBC News}}{{Cite web |title=Tornado de Dolores tuvo velocidad de 251 a 330 km/Hora {{pipe}} Portal Universidad de la República |url=http://www.universidad.edu.uy/prensa/renderItem/itemId/38803 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211206142510/http://www.universidad.edu.uy/prensa/renderItem/itemId/38803 |archive-date=2021-12-06 |access-date=2023-11-07}}

{{See also|2002 La Plata tornado|Tornado outbreak of April 27–28, 2002}}

La Plata is a town in Charles County, Maryland, located well outside the climatologically favored area for tornadoes, let alone violent ones. Despite that, it has been struck several times.

On November 9, 1926, it was struck by a high-end F3 to F4 tornado that killed 13 school children, 4 townspeople, and injured some 65 others.{{Cite news |title=The Washington Post, tornadoes in La Plata. |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/local/2002/04/30/not-la-platas-first-or-worst/63f19869-bd28-4934-8ab3-356c5dfa6562/ |newspaper=The Washington Post}}{{Cite web |date=28 April 2022 |title=1926 Tornado La Plata |url=https://wtop.com/maryland/2022/04/20-years-after-deadly-tornado-la-plata-set-to-commemorate-tragedy-recovery/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240628161923/https://wtop.com/maryland/2022/04/20-years-after-deadly-tornado-la-plata-set-to-commemorate-tragedy-recovery/ |archive-date=28 June 2024 |access-date=28 April 2024}}

67 years later on July 27, 1994, it was struck again by two nonfatal twisters that came only 11 minutes apart. The first of them was rated F2, which is already uncommon for that greater area.

On April 28, 2002, La Plata was struck by another violent and extremely fast-moving F4 tornado that initially received a preliminary rating of F5, making it, for a brief period, the easternmost F5 tornado in the United States. Not only that, but shortly before the F4 passed through downtown La Plata, eyewitness accounts indicated that a second F2 tornado formed a quarter of a mile south of the primary one. Between 7:02 and 7:07 p.m., both tornadoes crossed through the heart of La Plata, devastating the town.{{Cite web |title=La Plata MD F4 Tornado - 20 Years Later |url=https://www.weather.gov/lwx/events_20020428 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231219020004/http://www.weather.gov/lwx/events_20020428 |archive-date=2023-12-19 |access-date=2024-04-28}}

The most recent tornado to have struck the town was an EF1 on February 25th, 2017.

{{see also|List of tornadoes in Cleveland County, Oklahoma}}

The southern Oklahoma City suburb of Moore, Oklahoma, was hit by violent tornadoes (which have ratings of at least F/EF4) in 1999, 2003, 2010, and 2013. The 1999 and 2013 events were rated F5 and EF5, respectively.

In total, about 25 tornadoes have struck within the immediate vicinity of Moore since 1890, the most recent of which was an EF-3 tornado occurring during the overnight hours of November 3, 2024, which passed through northeastern Moore. It injured six before lifting less than 2 miles away from Tinker Air Force Base.{{cite report|author=National Weather Service in Norman, Oklahoma|title=Oklahoma Event Report: EF3 Tornado|url=https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/stormevents/eventdetails.jsp?id=1224841|publisher=National Centers for Environmental Information|year=2024|access-date=February 18, 2024}}

A lesser-known hotspot for tornadic activity is Shreveport and its neighbouring town, Bossier City, Louisiana.

Downtown Shreveport has been hit multiple times by powerful tornadoes, including once in February 1912 (rated F3),{{cite web |title=This Day in Weather History: February 20th |url=https://www.weather.gov/abr/This_Day_in_Weather_History_Feb_20 |access-date=22 July 2024 |publisher=National Weather Service Aberdeen, South Dakota}} April 1964 (rated F3),{{cite web |title=Storm Events Database |url=https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/stormevents/eventdetails.jsp?id=10029718 |publisher=National Centers for Environmental Information}} April 1978 (rated F2),{{cite web |title=Storm Events Database |url=https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/stormevents/eventdetails.jsp?id=10032233 |publisher=National Centers for Environmental Information}} December 1978 (rated F4),{{cite web |last=Edwards |first=Roger |author-link=Roger Edwards (meteorologist) |author2=J. Schaefer |title=Downtown Tornadoes |url=http://www.spc.noaa.gov/faq/tornado/downtown.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060215154556/http://www.spc.noaa.gov/faq/tornado/downtown.html |archive-date=2006-02-15 |access-date=2006-03-28 |publisher=Storm Prediction Center}} April 2000 (rated F1),{{cite web |title=Storm Events Database |url=https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/stormevents/eventdetails.jsp?id=5139986 |publisher=National Centers for Environmental Information}} April 2009 (rated EF2),{{cite web |title=Storm Events Database |url=https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/stormevents/eventdetails.jsp?id=154454 |publisher=National Centers for Environmental Information}} October 2009 (rated EF2),{{cite web |title=Storm Events Database |url=https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/stormevents/eventdetails.jsp?id=197786 |publisher=National Centers for Environmental Information}} and April 2018 (rated EF1).{{cite web |title=Storm Events Database |url=https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/stormevents/eventdetails.jsp?id=743585 |publisher=National Centers for Environmental Information}}

Ted Fujita documented that five cities had been hit by more than one tornado during the Super Outbreak: Etowah, Tennessee, Livingston, Tennessee, Cleveland, Tennessee, Tanner, Alabama, and Harvest, Alabama.{{cite report |url=https://www.weather.gov/media/iln/events/19740403/FujitaStats.pdf |title=Statistics of April 3–4, 1974 tornadoes |first1=T. Theodore |last1=Fujita |authorlink=Ted Fujita }}

Tanner, a small town in northern Alabama, was hit by an F5 tornado on April 3, 1974 and was struck again 45 minutes later by a second F5 (however, the rating is disputed and it may have been high-end F4), demolishing what remained of the town.

Thirty-seven years later, on April 27, 2011 (the largest and deadliest outbreak since 1974), Tanner was hit yet again by the EF5 2011 Hackleburg–Phil Campbell tornado, which produced high-end EF4 damage in the southern portion of town.

The suburban community of Harvest, Alabama, just to the northeast, also sustained major impacts from all three Tanner tornadoes, and was also hit by destructive tornadoes in 1995 and 2012.

{{See also|1948 Tinker Air Force Base tornadoes}}

On March 20, 1948, an unpredicted line of storms hit the area, producing an F3 tornado that hit areas of south Oklahoma City, hitting Tinker Air Force Base at the end of its life, damaging many aircraft. This caused a 3-day investigation at the base on why it was so poorly forecasted.

On March 25, meteorologists noted that conditions were very similar to March 20 and issued a forecast for thunderstorms. As the day wore on and conditions became more favorable (with a developing squall line detected on radar), meteorologists Ernest J. Fawbush and Robert C. Miller issued the first ever official tornado forecast. That night, another F3 tornado struck the base, though was less damaging thanks to the advance warning. This was the first successful tornado forecast in history, even though much of it was due to chance.{{Cite web |date=2007-06-22 |title=Tinker Airmen first to predict tornadoes |url=https://www.tinker.af.mil/News/Article-Display/Article/388450/tinker-airmen-first-to-predict-tornadoes/ |access-date=2024-09-06 |website=Tinker Air Force Base |language=en-US}}

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{{reflist|2}}

• [http://www.cimms.ou.edu/~doswell/tornado_records/tornado_records.html More on tornadoes: Records, the Fujita scale, and our observations] by Chuck Doswell
• [http://wmo.asu.edu/#tornado Tornado Records from the Global Weather & Climate Extremes] (World Meteorological Organization)

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