List of Indian tornadoes explained

Tornadoes in India are rare, with only ~12 tornadoes being recorded between 1976 and 2010.^[1] Most tornadoes in India are deadly, with an average of 80 people killed per tornado. The deadliest Indian tornado on record hit areas near Belda on March 24, 1998, killing 250 people.

Events

Pre-1950s

• April 8, 1838 - A long-tracked and destructive FU tornado tore through downtown Kolkata, damaging numerous structures and killing 215.^[2]
• May 1, 1865 - A strong FU tornado tracks through rural areas west of Pandua, taking an extremely unusual sharp-turned path and killing 20 people.^[3]
• April 27, 1888 - A relatively brief FU tornado moves through Serampore, killing 7 people.
• June 30, 1936 - A "terrific cyclone" in North Malabar affected a large swath of area, causing 2 thousand crore in damage before dissipating.^[4]

1950s

• March 20, 1951 - A brief and extremely weak FU tornado touches down in the outskirts of Sherpur, causing no damage.

1960s

• March 21, 1969 - A weak FU tornado tracks through areas near Ushti, causing little damage and no fatalities.

1970s

• April 7, 1977 - A brief FU tornado tracks through rural Palashipara, killing 2 people.
• April 15, 1977 - An FU tornado affects areas north of Contai, killing 10.
• April 16, 1978 - A brief but extremely powerful FU tornado touches down west of Bhadrak, killing 150.

1980s

• April 17, 1981 - A strong FU tornado tracks through populated areas east of Kendujhar, reaching a maximum width of 997 meters and killing ~120.
• April 12, 1983 - A brief but powerful FU tornado touches down in rural areas surrounding Kanchrapara, destroying crops and other structures in its path. The tornado is estimated to have killed 50 people.

1990s

• April 9, 1993 - An F2 tornado tracks through densely populated areas south of Berhampore, killing 145 and injuring an unknown number of people.^[5]
• March 24, 1998 - A relatively strong but brief tornado inflicts F2 damage to areas outside of Belda, inflicting damage to buildings and killing 250 people.^[6]

References

1. Web site: Aryan . Aniket . Tornadoes in India SRIRAMs IAS . 2024-07-08 . www.sriramsias.com . en.
2. Web site: Bengal Tornadoes--background info . 2024-07-08 . bangladeshtornadoes.org.
3. Web site: De . Saumyendu . Sahai . Atul . July 8, 2024 . Was the earliest documented account of tornado dynamics published by an Indian scientist in an Indian journal? . ResearchGate.
4. News: Cyclone In North Malabar - MUCH DAMAGE CAUSED . 15 September 2024 . The Indian Express . 1 July 1936 . en.
5. P . K. Misra . Goldar . R. N. . Banerjee . S. K. . 1996-07-01 . Devastating tornado -of Kandi (9 April 1993) -A case study . MAUSAM . en . 47 . 3 . 301–306 . 10.54302/mausam.v47i3.3748 . 0252-9416. free .
6. News: Associated Press . 1998-03-25 . World News Briefs; Tornado in India Kills at Least 105 . 2024-07-08 . The New York Times . en-US . 0362-4331.

Bibliography

• Web site: Dewan . Ashraf . Finch . Jonathon . July 8, 2024 . Bengal Tornadoes . Bangladesh and East India Tornadoes Background Information.