New April Tornado Outbreak Information

From NOAA:

"I observed some of the devastating tornado damage with a NOAA forensic meteorology team in Tuscaloosa, Ala. Aerial and ground surveys document the strength of the storm and provide information to improve future warnings. The damage is heartbreaking; the human stories are both tragic and heroic. I'm immensely proud of the spectacular job our National Weather Service teams did to warn communities and save lives."
Dr. Jane Lubchenco, NOAA administrator



NOAA's preliminary estimate is that there were 305 tornadoes during the entire outbreak from 8:00 a.m. EDT April 25 to 8:00 a.m. April 28, 2011.

 The NWS Storm Prediction Center issued severe weather outlooks five days in advance and tornado watches hours in advance.  NWS Weather Forecast Offices issued life-saving tornado warnings, with an average lead-time of 24 minutes. NWS issued warnings for more than 90 percent of these tornadoes.

NWS decision support for this event has been extensive. NWS Weather Forecast Offices in the affected areas of Arkansas, Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia advertised the potential for severe weather in the Tuesday through Wednesday timeframe since late last week. Local offices provided direct decision support services to meet the specific needs of local emergency manager partners and the general public. NWS Weather Forecast Offices issued Hazardous Weather Outlooks up to six days in advance noting the greater threat of strong, long-track tornadoes was expected.

The largest previous number of tornadoes on record in one event occurred from April 3-4, 1974, with 148 tornadoes.

NOAA will conduct a detailed analysis of tornado numbers using all available data to make any final determinations about records. This typically takes months to complete.  There were approximately 318 fatalities during the entire outbreak from April 25 to April 28

There were approximately 309 fatalities during the 24-hour-period from 8:00 a.m. April 27 to 8:00 a.m. April 28. This is currently the fifth deadliest day of tornadoes on record.

Ongoing (preliminary) List of Tornadoes by EF Rating (EF0 to EF5):
EF-5 2
EF-4 12
EF-3 21
EF-2 47
EF-1 62
EF-0 57

Total: 201

The Tuscaloosa-Birmingham tornado during the April 2011 event caused at least 65 fatalities. This tornado had a maximum width of 1.5 miles and a track 80 miles long. These are the most fatalities from a single tornado in the United States since May 25, 1955, when 80 people were killed in a tornado in southern Kansas with 75 of those deaths in Udall, Kansas.

The deadliest single tornado on record in the United States was the Tri-State tornado (Mo., Ill., Ind.) on March 18, 1925, when 695 died.

According to National Weather Service Weather Forecast Office Storm Survey teams, from 8 a.m. April 27 to 8 a.m. April 28 there were 20+ killer tornadoes in five states--Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee and Virginia--that caused 309+ fatalities.

Note: All numbers are based on combined NOAA and historical research records and current fatality estimates. The historical research records extend back to 1680.