October 24, 2001 Tornado Outbreak

Today marks the 10 year anniversary of the October 24, 2001 tornado outbreak.  This event produced 9 tornadoes in the state, killing 2 and injuring 19.

The first tornado, rated EF0, touched down in northern Warren county at 2:46 PM local time.  It was tracked by storm spotters and was on the ground for approximately one tenth of a mile and caused no damage.

The first in a series of several tornadoes to strike the northern part of the state struck La Porte county around 3:15 PM.  This twister sliced across the county from southwest to northeast and was up to a mile wide.  One woman was killed when her mobile home was destroyed. 

The next tornado touched down just southwest of Crumstown in St. Joseph county and moved northeast.  The most significant damage was across Crumstown, where EF3 damage with a path width up to 3/4 mile occurred. The tornado then moved to near the Michiana Regional Airport and across the Indiana Toll Road.  Two men were injured northwest of South Bend. One man later died from his injuries. 

Another tornado, an EF2 up to three quarters of a mile wide, touched down southeast of Mishawaka.  A separate EF1 tornado touched down about 4 miles northwest of Osceola.

An EF1 tornado touched down in extreme southeastern Marshall county and moved northeast across Kosciusko county and into Noble county where the tornado dissipated near Rome City.  The worst damage was north of Warsaw where 14 people were hurt at a factory when a wall collapsed.

The last tornado to strike northern Indiana touched down in Noble county east of Kendallville.  It produced some damage to homes and warehouses in and near the Kendallville East Industrial park.  The tornado then moved northeast into Dekalb county where EF2 damage occurred around Fairfield Center with significant damage to homes. Then tornado moved southeast of Ashley and then moved into Steuben county doing damage to a barn before lifting north of Steubenville.

Two other tornadoes hit southern Indiana.  An EF0 briefly touched down in Petersburg.  Two houses were unroofed and their windows were blown out.  Two car windshields were shattered by blowing debris.  Metal siding was deposited in power lines. The walls of two businesses were knocked down or cracked. 

The last tornado touched down at 5:29 PM.  It was an EF1 which struck northeast of Williams in Lawrence county, blowing off the roofs of 2 barns and a house.

A Look At Tornadoes Which Have Crossed Into Indiana

Since 1950, Indiana has been struck by nearly 1300 tornadoes.  A very high number - but not all - have occurred entirely within the state boundaries.  The focus of this post is those tornadoes that started in a neighboring state before crossing into Indiana.

In the past 60 years, I found nearly two dozen tornadoes that started in Illinois, Kentucky or Michigan.  I have mapped them and provided a list below.  The text only indicates the last county to be affected in the preceding state and the first county in our state.  The usual caveats apply - namely, paths may be inexact and some tornadoes may not have actually been on the ground as they crossed the state line (since older tornadoes tended to be listed as one long path instead of several smaller ones).

There are a few interesting things in the data.  One, Knox county has been hit by a half dozen twisters passing through from Illinois.  Another noteworthy discovery is that June 2, 1990 is the only day that has had 4 tornadoes pass from Illinois into Indiana.  That day of course owns the largest tornado outbreak in state history.  Also, the tornado that struck the Evansville area on November 6, 2005 tracked from Kentucky into Indiana back into Kentucky and finally back into Indiana due to the shape of the border along the Ohio River.

Tomorrow I will post the tornadoes that started in Indiana before crossing into another state.

   

April 17, 1922 Tornadoes

On April 17, 1922, multiple killer tornadoes struck Indiana.  One tornado nearly destroyed the tiny Warren county community of Hedrick before moving through Williamsport.  Another killer tornado struck Tipton and Madison counties, doing significant damage near Orestes.  Seventeen people died in all.

Here are the 500 mb and surface maps from that day.

Recalling The Nation's Biggest Tornado Outbreak On Record...The 1974 Super Outbreak

April 3, 1974 is a date that those in the weather community will always remember.  It was an unseasonably warm day as a strong low pressure moved through the Corn Belt.  This unseasonably warm air and a combination of several other factors would come together just right to produce a spectacular severe weather event, leaving hundreds dead, thousands wounded and an incredible amount of destruction across a number of states. 

The first tornado in the state touched down in Boone county in the early morning.  21 of the 148 tornadoes occurred here, including 1 F5 and the devastating Monticello tornado.  The thunderstorm cell which produced the Monticello tornado produced its first Indiana touchdown near the Illinois state line in rural Warren county.  This tornado died out but was followed by another touchdown in Warren county.  That tornado tracked northeastward into southeastern Benton county before dissipating near Otterbein.  Another tornado followed almost immediately, moving quickly northeast through the northwestern part of Tippecanoe county and into White county.  As the tornado passed northwest of Lafayette, the 2200z METAR from KLAF included a report of a tornado:

METAR KLAF 032200Z 16025G33KT 7SM TS SCT040 BKN070 OVC150 23/17 A2914 RMK TB44 W MOVG E LTGIC W-N PRESFRLAF3/16 STATE POLICE RPT AT 2151 5TORNADO SLP864 T02280172

The tornado continued through mostly rural areas of White county before taking aim on downtown Monticello.  Heavy damage occurred in Monticello with several fatalities.  But it was not done...

The tornado continued northeastward through Cass county and Fulton county, where it produced significant damage in Rochester.  It proceeded through Kosciusko, Noble and LaGrange counties before finally ending its incredible 109 mile reign of terror near Oliver Lake.  The same thunderstorm produced another weaker tornado near Plato, which would be the final tornado in Indiana from this particular thunderstorm.

In all, 47 Hoosiers died that tragic day with hundreds more injured.




Approximate Tornado Tracks