Select for larger. Tornado reports, warnings and convective watches for the week. Data via IEM and SPC. Note: Additional reports may filter in after this map was created, and reports do not necessarily indicate one tornado each or that there was a tornado. (Ian Livingston)
My posting on the site has been disjointed of late thanks to a near complete lack of time. It all began with a storm chasing trip… where we ran into the most active pattern of the season (finally!). Among the things that stretch taught me is that folks who chase AND post all the time must be very tired!
Well, I missed a lot by not doing Tornado Weekly (and slacking on the Perfect Year series–which I will return to–as well as current event items). Partly since it was fairly active in that stretch, during what has still been a sea of quiet times since last year, I was curious to go back and create the maps for the period.
While I was at it, I figured I might as well finish each week through June since we’d been running them through the first half of the peak season, and I’d personally like that record for my own remembrance.
Below is a look at the maps, plus a bit of a sprinkling about the bigger events.
May 12-18
With wintry weather finally giving in, more active times got underway. The period was defined by two larger but localized events on the 15th in TX and the 18th in KS. Among a swarm of tornadoes across north Texas, an EF-4 hit Granbury, TX, killing at least 6. The week closed with the beginning of a tornado outbreak sequence that focused on central Kansas. Among a number of tornadoes that day was an EF4 near Rozel, KS that we saw on our first day of this year’s chase.
May 19-25
The same large-scale system responsible for the tornado event on the 18th plagued the Plains for several more days afterwards. Though overall numbers were not huge as far as tornado outbreaks go, both the 19th and 20th delivered devastating events. On the 19th an EF4 struck Shawnee while other tornadoes impacted parts of Wichita and other spots in the region. The 20th brought an EF5 to Moore, Oklahoma, where 23 died, among other tornadoes. In the wake of the system several quieter days were followed by a handful of tornadoes to close the week.
May 26-June 1
What may end up as the most active week of the year (see the Wiki entry), threats ramped up through much of the final week of May. Notable tornado events included an EF3 that the TIV team took head on in northern Kansas, additional tornado events the next day including the Bennington, Kansas EF4, and of course the El Reno tornado. The event on May 31 was responsible for more than 20 deaths across Oklahoma, including several highly respected storm chasers. The El Reno tornado reached a maximum width of 2.6 miles, making it the widest on record, in addition to its preliminary EF5 rating.
June 2-8
June began on a rather inauspicious note over the High Plains (where activity is often prevalent by this time in the season). The main interest when it came to tornadoes was Tropical Storm Andrea. The tropical storm came ashore in Florida and then tracked up the southeast coast. Along its path up to about a dozen tornadoes were reported.
June 9-15
The story of the second full week of June was arguably the “low-end derecho” series that occurred on June 12 and June 13. This storm system was mainly responsible for damaging winds, but on the 13th several weak long-track tornadoes touched down in the Mid-Atlantic. One EF0 went on to have an 18 mile track near Washington, D.C. — among the lengthiest tracks on record in that area. Additionally, a tornado touched down in Oregon, the first in over two years in that state.
June 16-22
A trough over the Pacific Northwest sent several waves out into the northern Plains in a fairly typical severe weather week for mid-June. The biggest tornado story of the week was the tornado that touched down at Denver International Airport on the 18th. A photogenic waterspout was seen near Grande Isle, Louisiana the next day and it came ashore as a weak tornado. Though summer is the time for tornado threats to stretch from coast to coast, after such a long absence of tornadoes in Oregon, it was perhaps odd the state was visited again so soon after the last time.
A late-June smattering of tornadoes was spread across the country in the final full week of the month. Oregon continued to show off it’s weak tornado production power of late, with yet another event dropping a tornado in the state. Tornadoes were confirmed in the Dakotas as well, a typical zone for this time of year. An EF1 also touched down in Pennsylvania, and it caused some damage.
—
Note: Not all severe thunderstorm watch counties are shown as the maps are meant to focus on the tornado aspect, but include thunderstorm watches because tornadoes often occur in them. Reports are reports, not tornadoes! Filtered reports from SPC are shown in all maps.
Links to violent tornado vids clipped at top: Granbury, Rozel, Shawnee, Moore, Bennington, El Reno.
In a field historically dominated by men, Jen Walton has emerged as a transformative figure…
Jason Persoff, MD, SFHM, is recognized globally for his expertise in storm chasing. He earned…
Tornado numbers were near or above average. A chase season peak in June provided numerous…
One of the more widespread tornado outbreaks in years, from Iowa and Illinois to Arkansas.
The active start of the year could be a sign, but a mid-March pattern change…
A near average year for tornadoes across the country, with a cool season bend. We've…
View Comments
"Among the things that stretch taught me is that folks who chase AND post all the time must be very tired!"
I've been thinking that too! I don't know how people do it.
Great summary--thanks for putting that together.
Jeremy