1Most severe tornado damage; see Enhanced Fujita scale 2Time from first tornado to last tornado
From April 4–5, 2011, a large-scale damaging wind event and tornado outbreak affected the Southern and Eastern parts of the United States. The system produced a large serial derecho windstorm that caused thousands of reports of wind damage and several embedded tornadoes. Power outages were extensive across the area and tree damage was severe. Several people were killed and injured by falling trees and branches as the storm passed through. Damaging tornadoes touched down in Arkansas, Kentucky, and Mississippi. The storm continued into the early hours of the morning causing more wind damage along the East Coast along with a few more tornadoes. It is reportedly one of the most prolific damaging wind events on record. The outbreak was the first in a series of devastating tornado outbreaks in the month of April 2011, which would culminate near the end of the month with the largest tornado outbreak ever recorded.
Meteorological synopsis
Several storms started to develop in the evening on April 3. Storms in Kansas, Missouri, Iowa, and Illinois brought severe thunderstorms to the areas. A tornado watch was issued for Iowa and Illinois as the storms rolled through, and later a severe thunderstorm watch for northeastern Illinois and southeastern Wisconsin. However, there were no reported tornadoes.[1] Continuing eastward, the system entered an environment favoring tornadic development. Two tornadoes were reported in Kentucky during the early afternoon, both rated EF2 and resulting in injuries.[2] Near Hopkinsville, a tornado, confirmed by local emergency services, caused significant damage to a manufacturing plant and injured several people.[3] Numerous buildings were reported to be destroyed, trapping residents within debris.[4] Other tornadoes caused damage and injuries in the southern states including Louisiana and Mississippi. In addition to the tornadoes, there was widespread wind damage (over 1,400 severe weather reports were received by the Storm Prediction Center, with the vast majority being damaging winds) as an extremely large squall line/serial derecho, which had begun to form over northern Texas at around 4 am Monday morning, tracked across the southern United States with wind gusts as high as 90 mph (140 km/h) reported across 20 states. Severe wind damage and power outages also occurred in Arkansas, in addition to a few tornadoes.[2] Nine people were killed in this storm, one of the deaths was as a result of an EF2 tornado in Dodge County, Georgia that destroyed mobile homes. The other fatalities were caused by straight line winds. The squall line continued into the early hours of the morning and caused more severe wind damage and some tornadoes along the East Coast, especially in Georgia and the Carolinas. Numerous power outages also took place due to the extensive wind damage. Nearly 100,000 and 147,000 residences lost power in Tennessee and Georgia respectively.[5][6]
Numerous trees were snapped, a small trailer was tossed 20 yards (18 m), and four chicken houses were destroyed, killing hundreds of chickens. Two people were injured.[7]
Many trees were snapped or uprooted, of which one fell on a home, puncturing the roof. A large storage building was destroyed, and a second home sustained minor damage.[7]
The tornado began on the west side of Whelen Springs and traveled to about three miles (4.8 km) west of town. Shingles and siding were blown off a house, and its television antenna was blown over. Numerous trees were blown down, one of which landed on a tractor shed at the residence. A canning shed was destroyed, with bottles and jars being scattered, farm gates were destroyed, and a few power poles and power lines were downed.[7]
An old gas station cover was blown down, several homes sustained minor roof damage, a carport was collapsed on a vehicle, and several trees were snapped or uprooted. A small metal outbuilding sustained structural damage.[7]
A farm building was destroyed, the second story of a house was removed, and a garage was leveled. Several additional homes sustained roof damage, two mobile homes were overturned, and four chicken barns were either destroyed or heavily damaged. Numerous farm buildings and grain bins were destroyed, and numerous trees were snapped or uprooted. A mobile home was shifted slightly off its foundation. One person was injured.[7]
One mobile home was overturned and destroyed, another was shifted off its foundation, a camper trailer was overturned, and several houses sustained shingle damage. Several trees were blown down.[7]
An industrial warehouse building along U.S. 41 was heavily damaged, with large sections of roofing removed, small sections of exterior walls blown in, and a rooftop HVAC unit blown away. Elsewhere, steel utility poles were bent almost to the ground, several barns were destroyed, and two homes lost their metal roofs. Dozens of trees were uprooted along the path, which passed just north of Pembroke. Seven people were injured inside the warehouse.[7]
A number of trees were snapped or uprooted. Metal roofing was blown off a barn and a residence, one small but well-constructed shed was pushed onto its side, and another small shed was destroyed.[7]
A tree was blown onto a restaurant, the metal roof was blown off a cinder block dugout on a baseball field and a mobile home, and three large grain bins were moved off their foundations. A tractor trailer was blown over, and several trees were snapped or uprooted.[7]
Several businesses sustained significant roof damage, signs and overhangs were torn off, and dozens of trees were snapped or uprooted, several of which fell on homes and vehicles.[7]
Hundreds of trees were snapped or uprooted, several structures sustained significant roof damage, and several outbuildings and barns were heavily damaged.[7]
The tornado began just inside the Williamson County line near Nolensville and moved east toward Smyrna. Numerous power poles were snapped, hundreds of trees were snapped or uprooted, some small storage buildings were destroyed, numerous homes sustained roof and siding damage, and several fences were blown down. A tractor trailer and several cargo trailers were overturned.[7]
Numerous trees were snapped or uprooted, some of which fell on homes and a vehicle. Shingles were pulled from one house, and a tin roof was ripped from a shop.[7]
Numerous trees were snapped or uprooted, a hunting camp was heavily damaged, a mobile home was tossed down a ravine and destroyed, and a covered travel trailer was blown on to its side.[7]
The tornado began in Tensas Parish, Louisiana before dissipating in Claiborne County, Mississippi. Numerous homes, farms, and outbuildings sustained significant damage, a water treatment plant and antebellum home were majorly damaged, a grain silo received a huge dent, and an 18-wheeler was flipped over. Hundreds of trees were snapped and uprooted, and numerous power poles were snapped. One person was injured.[7]
A large garage had a portion of its roof peeled off, a supporting post was snapped, one side of the building was blown inward, and metal doors on the opposite side were blown outward. A smaller garage sustained major damage to a metal door. A large section of metal and wood roofing was removed from a barn, a door was removed from a smaller storage shed, and a house sustained minor damage. A few trees were uprooted.[7]
A gas station awning was destroyed, the back wall was blown out of a volunteer fire department building, a church had its steeple blown off and sustained extensive shingle damage, and numerous homes sustained various degrees of roof damage. Several trees were snapped or uprooted, some of which fell on vehicles and houses.[7]
A carport was lifted off a home, causing significant damage, and other buildings sustained minor to moderate roof damage. Significant tree damage was observed.[7]
A trailer was lifted and thrown into a camper. Sheet metal, tin roofing, and an awning were tossed and wrapped around a tree. Numerous trees were snapped or uprooted.[7]
Roofing was removed from a few commercial buildings, windows were blown out of two houses, large sections of two fences were blown down, large tree limbs were snapped, and several trees were blown down.[7]
Several hundred trees were snapped or uprooted, six chicken houses were heavily damaged or destroyed, a horse stable was destroyed, and three outbuildings were heavily damaged.[7]
April 5 event
List of confirmed tornadoes – Tuesday, April 5, 2011[nb 1]
About 35 to 40 homes sustained roof or shingle damage, carports collapsed on vehicles, and the windows were blown out at a community building. Numerous trees were felled, some of which landed on houses and barns.[7]
Approximately 100 trees were blown down, snapped, or uprooted, inflicting minor to moderate damage to nine homes. The garage was blown out of one of the houses, shifting the home off its foundation and causing significant damage.[7]
1 death – A double-wide mobile home was completely destroyed, killing one of the occupants. Several trees were blown down or uprooted, and the roof and front porch of a second mobile home were destroyed. Two people were injured.[7]
^ abAll dates are based on the local time zone where the tornado touched down; however, all times are in Coordinated Universal Time and dates are split at midnight CDT for consistency.
^ abAll damage totals are in 2011 USD unless otherwise stated.
^ abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyzaaabacadaeafagahaiajakalamanaoapaqarasatNational Climatic Data Center (April 2011). "April 2011"(PDF). Storm Data and Unusual Weather Phenomena with Late Reports and Corrections. 53 (4). Asheville, North Carolina: United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Archived from the original(PDF) on February 8, 2015. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
