Duration: | August 4–8, 2023 |
Tornadoes: | 54 |
Fujitascale: | EF3 |
Winds: | 150mph (Yuma, Colorado EF3 on August 8) |
Largest Hail: | 5.25inches near Kirk, Colorado on August 8 |
Year: | 2023 |
Damages: | $1.6 billion (2023 USD) [1] |
Outages: | >1,100,000[2] |
Fatalities: | 2 non-tornadic |
Injuries: | 2 |
Affected: | Great Plains, Midwestern, and Eastern United States |
Season: | tornado outbreaks of 2023[3] |
From August 4–8, 2023, several active days of severe weather impacted the United States, where numerous tornadoes struck the Eastern United States, the Plains, and the Midwest.[4] An EF3 tornado formed in Lewis County, New York, causing significant damage to homes, barns, a ski resort, and a motel. Another EF3 tornado touched down near Yuma, Colorado, causing significant damage to several structures in Yuma County, and a second tornado formed afterwards.[5] [6] In Baring, Missouri, a strong EF2 tornado struck the downtown area, damaging homes and injuring two people. Another EF2 tornado touched down in both Sangamon and Christian counties in Illinois, resulting in extensive tree damage along its path. The third EF2 tornado of the outbreak struck western portions of Knoxville, Tennessee, damaging multiple buildings including an apartment complex. This severe weather outbreak left approximately 1 million residents without power and led to over 1,000 preliminary wind reports. Additionally, heavy rainfall prompted a rare flash flood emergency in Cambridge, Maryland. Two non-tornadic fatalities (one in South Carolina and the other in Alabama) occurred as well.[7] [8]
A moist and unstable air mass and very strong winds aloft were present on August 7, with a shortwave trough progressing towards northern portions of Appalachia, and convective available potential energy in the 2500-3500 values yielded for severe thunderstorm development. Thermodynamic and kinematic energy in and east of central portions of the Appalachian Mountains also contributed to thunderstorm development.[9] A level 4/moderate risk for severe weather, along with a 10 percent tornado risk, a significant 45 percent wind risk, and a 15 percent hail risk was issued by the Storm Prediction Center on August 7, including the Washington, D.C. metro area, the first moderate risk in decades for the DC area.[10] Several severe thunderstorms formed ahead of a cold front in eastern Ohio, eastern Kentucky and West Virginia and later congealed into a quasi-linear convective system while approaching Washington D.C., Philadelphia, and Charlotte, North Carolina, bringing widespread damaging winds.[11]
EF# | Location | County / Parish | State | Start Coord. | Time (UTC) | Path length | Max width |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
EF0 | Millvile | Ray | MO | 22:57–23:11 | 4.55abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 20abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
A weak tornado passed through Millville, causing roof damage to homes, including one that had its chimney knocked down. Outbuildings and trees were also damaged, and hay bales were tossed as well.[12] | |||||||
EF0 | E of Malta Bend | Saline | MO | 00:17–00:20 | 1.54abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 20abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
A high-end EF0 tornado moved eastward along US 65, damaging trees and power poles.[13] | |||||||
EF2 | Baring | Knox | MO | 04:13–04:15 | 1.64abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 450abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
A brief but destructive nocturnal EF2 tornado moved northwest directly through Baring. A post office building and some homes had multiple walls knocked down while other homes had minor to heavy roof damage. Mobile homes and outbuildings were heavily damaged or destroyed, a recently built firehouse was damaged, and trees and transmission lines were snapped or uprooted. Two people were injured.[14] | |||||||
EF# | Location | County / Parish | State | Start Coord. | Time (UTC) | Path length | Max width |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
EF1 | Marcelline | Adams | IL | 07:24–07:31 | 2.87abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 200abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
A low-end EF1 tornado inflicted heavy roof and siding damage to a home while other homes suffered window damage. Multiple outbuildings were destroyed, crops and power poles were damaged, and many trees were snapped or uprooted.[15] | |||||||
EFU | ENE of Gleneagle to NW of Peyton | El Paso | CO | 19:40–19:44 | 2.16abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 10abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
A trained spotter observed a tornado.[16] | |||||||
EF0 | NNW of Maurice | Sioux | IA | 19:30–19:33 | 0.92abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 30abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
A highly visible and slow-moving tornado damaged several hardwood trees.[17] | |||||||
EFU | SSW of Sioux Center | Sioux | IA | 19:42 | 0.05abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 10abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
A very brief tornado was photographed.[18] | |||||||
EF0 | NE of Grand Tower | Jackson | IL | 22:15–22:16 | 0.5abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 25abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
A brief tornado occurred in a field. No damaged was observed.[19] | |||||||
EFU | ENE of Willow Hill | Jasper | IL | 22:30–22:31 | 0.11abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 20abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
A brief tornado touched down in an open field.[20] | |||||||
EFU | E of Snyder | Dodge | NE | 00:53 | 0.1abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 25abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
An emergency manager received a report from the public of a tornado.[21] | |||||||
EFU | E of Arcadia | Carroll | IA | 02:24–02:25 | 0.32abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 25abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
A brief tornado occurred.[22] | |||||||
EF0 | SSW of Auburn | Sac | IA | 02:29–02:31 | 0.9abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 35abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
An outbuilding was damaged by the tornado with debris being thrown into a farm field.[23] | |||||||
EFU | SW of Auburn | Sac | IA | 02:30–02:31 | 0.32abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 50abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
High resolution satellite imagery discovered a tornado path through open agricultural fields. No damage occurred.[24] | |||||||
EF# | Location | County / Parish | State | Start Coord. | Time (UTC) | Path length | Max width |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
EF0 | NE of Lima | Beaverhead | MT | 20:12–20:19 | 1.64abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 40abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
A landspout tornado was videoed by the public.[25] | |||||||
EFU | S of Boulder | Jefferson | MT | 21:11–21:17 | 3.66abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 70abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
A well-documented tornado occurred in the Whitetail Basin area. No structural damage occurred and most areas were inaccessible for surveying. This is the first ever recorded tornado in Jefferson County.[26] | |||||||
EFU | SE of Dallas City to E of La Harpe | Hancock | IL | 22:40–23:15 | 8.01abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 20abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
Multiple brief touchdowns of suction vortices were caught on storm chaser video, with at least three distinct tornado locations. No damage was reported.[27] | |||||||
EF2 | N of Pawnee to N of Taylorville to NW of Assumption | Sangamon, Christian | IL | 23:09–00:03 | 25.31abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 450abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
This strong tornado damaged several homes, one of which had about two-thirds of the structure demolished. Extensive tree damage occurred along the path as well.[28] [29] | |||||||
EF1 | Haysville to SSW of Paoli | Dubois, Orange | IN | 04:24–04:53 | 25.9abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 200abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
[30] [31] | |||||||
EF1 | Southern French Lick | Orange | IN | 04:45–04:46 | 0.98abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 40abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
[32] | |||||||
EF1 | Northern Paoli | Orange | IN | 04:53–04:55 | 1abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 110abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
[33] | |||||||
EF0 | SSE of Paoli | Orange | IN | 04:53–04:54 | 0.56abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 60abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
[34] | |||||||
EF1 | Paoli to W of Livonia | Orange | IN | 04:53–05:02 | 8.74abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 175abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
[35] | |||||||
EF# | Location | County / Parish | State | Start Coord. | Time (UTC) | Path length | Max width |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
EF1 | Western Salem | Washington | IN | 05:13–05:15 | 1.78abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 60abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
[36] | |||||||
EF2 | N of Farragut to Western Knoxville | Knox | TN | 18:17–18:23 | 3.7abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 200abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
This high-end EF2 tornado embedded within a larger area of straight-line damage, moving through several subdivisions and an apartment complex. It significantly damaged the roofs of homes and other buildings, collapsed a garage or storage, and left a large gash in the side of the apartment complex office from the impact of a large, but unknown object. Wooden boards were driven into the ground and significant tree damage was observed as well.[37] | |||||||
EF1 | S of Erwin, TN to WNW of Green Mountain | Yancey, Mitchell | NC | 18:48–18:57 | 6.23abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 50abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
A rare, high-altitude tornado moved southeast uprooting multiple trees and snapping tree limbs. This is the first ever tornado recorded in Mitchell County and this is the third tornado ever recorded in Yancey County, being the first since June 6, 1977.[38] | |||||||
EF1 | NW of Louisa, KY to NE of Fort Gay, WV | Lawrence (KY), Wayne (WV) | KY, WV | 19:00–19:10 | 6.31abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 400abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
[39] [40] | |||||||
EF1 | Southernwestern Claremont to Northern Mooresville to E of China Grove | Catawba, Iredell, Rowan | NC | 20:40–21:22 | 36.23abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 550abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
[41] [42] [43] | |||||||
EF1 | Blackrock | York | PA | 21:02–21:05 | 0.52abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 75abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
A tornado damaged several trees and damaged two outbuildings.[44] | |||||||
EF0 | Huntersville | Mecklenburg | NC | 21:07–21:10 | 1.8abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 50abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
A weak tornado touched down just south of Lake Norman uprooting some trees and doing minor damage to building exteriors.[45] | |||||||
EF1 | SSE of Dryden to SE of Blodgett Mills | Tompkins, Cortland | NY | 21:13–21:36 | 11.11abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 200abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
This low-end EF1 tornado unroofed and partially collapsed outbuildings, snapped or uprooted dozens of trees, knocked down fences and a playground, and threw a raft into a tree.[46] [47] | |||||||
EF1 | E of Cross Roads | York | PA | 21:24–21:28 | 1.53abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 50abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
A tornado began in a cornfield, flattening rows of a corn before narrowly avoiding residences and outbuildings. The tornado snapped and uprooted a couple dozen trees before lifting.[48] | |||||||
EFU | WNW of Bird City | Cheyenne | KS | 21:35–21:36 | 0.24abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 75abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
A storm chaser caught a brief landspout in a field.[49] | |||||||
EF0 | Rawlinsville | Lancaster | PA | 21:40–21:41 | 0.51abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 40abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
A narrow swath of corn was downed before the tornado snapped the trunk of a tree.[50] | |||||||
EF1 | ENE of Harmony, PA to SW of Deposit, NY | Susquehanna (PA), Broome (NY) | PA, NY | 22:25–22:35 | 3.37abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 200abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
[51] [52] | |||||||
EF0 | SSE of Munnsville | Madison | NY | 22:55–22:59 | 1.47abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 175abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
A weak tornado snapped numerous trees, damaged outbuildings and a mobile home, and knocked down a street sign.[53] | |||||||
EF1 | NE of Vernon Center | Oneida | NY | 23:10–23:15 | 1.31abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 200abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
Trees were snapped or uprooted and an outbuilding at a residence collapsed.[54] | |||||||
EF1 | NNE of Taberg | Oneida | NY | 23:17–23:20 | 1.38abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 110abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
A high-end EF1 tornado snapped numerous trees and damaged the roof of a mobile home.[55] | |||||||
EF1 | Northeastern Allentown | Lehigh | PA | 23:21–23:23 | 0.3abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 160abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
[56] | |||||||
EFU | ENE of Redfield | Lewis | NY | 23:27–23:30 | 0.85abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 100abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
Sentinel-2 satellite imagery found a tornado scar in a heavily wooded area. No survey was conducted due to limited access in the area.[57] | |||||||
EF0 | NE of Kintnersville, PA | Hunterdon | NJ | 23:37–23:38 | 0.52abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 150abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
Two farm outbuildings and trees were damaged.[58] | |||||||
EF3 | W of West Leyden to Turin | Lewis | NY | 23:42–00:14 | 16abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 700abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
At the beginning of the track in Lewis County, this strong tornado caused significant roof damage to homes, significantly damaged or destroyed two barns, and snapped or defoliated trees. The tornado then tracked through swamp lands with less continuous tree damage, although this area did not have good road access. Towards the end of its track in Turin, the tornado intensified again as it struck the Snow Ridge Ski Resort, where all of the chair lift metal cables failed, some chair lift structures were overturned or damaged, and more trees were snapped with some defoliation. The tornado reached low-end EF3 strength as it struck the West Wind Motel, where several structures had their roofs ripped off or collapsed, and had their interior walls and windows knocked down. A multi-story building was also shifted off its foundation and was completely unroofed. The tornado then abruptly lifted and dissipated after striking the motel. For part of its path, the tornado had no tornado warning.[59] | |||||||
EF# | Location | County / Parish | State | Start Coord. | Time (UTC) | Path length | Max width |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
EF1 | Mattapoisett | Plymouth | MA | 15:20–15:23 | 0.9abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 300abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
Numerous trees were snapped and uprooted.[60] | |||||||
EF0 | Barnstable | Barnstable | MA | 15:52–15:56 | 1.2abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 650abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
A tornado uprooted a tree and downed an electrical pole.[61] | |||||||
EF0 | WSW of Tuba City | Coconino | AZ | 19:50–20:00 | 4.99abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 10abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
A landspout tornado was posted on social media lofting dust.[62] | |||||||
EF3 | SW of Yuma | Washington, Yuma | CO | 22:39–23:25 | 15.65abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 212abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
At the beginning of the path in Washington County, the tornado shifted a garage at a residence off its foundation and damaged its roof. A metal shack had tin roofing removed, a tin storage container was flipped, power poles and crops were leaned over, and trees were snapped. Damage in this area peaked at high-end EF1. After crossing into Yuma County and overturning some pivots, the tornado strengthened to EF3 intensity, completely destroying a three-car garage of a home, which had parts of its roof removed, doors blown in and windows broken. A nearby large metal event building had its roof destroyed with debris from the structures strewn into nearby cornfields that were partially mowed down. Trees were damaged and power poles were leaned over or snapped as well. The tornado then occluded, snapping more power poles before dissipating west of Yuma.[63] [64] Coupled with the EF3 tornado that occurred in Prowers County on June 23, 2023, this event marked the first time that two F3/EF3+ tornadoes touched down in Colorado in the same year since 1993.[65] | |||||||
EFU | N of Broadwater | Morrill | NE | 22:50 | 0.05abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 25abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
A brief tornado was videoed causing no damage.[66] | |||||||
EFU | SE of Yuma | Yuma | CO | 23:30–23:46 | 5.28abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 200abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
A multiple-vortex tornado was observed moving between County Roads 34 and 29 across open land. No damage was reported.[67] | |||||||
EF0 | S of Yuma | Yuma | CO | 00:04–00:08 | 1.67abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 193abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
Storm chasers observed a tornado that did damage to corn.[68] | |||||||
EFU | NE of Cope | Yuma | CO | 00:19–00:22 | 1abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 150abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
Multiple chasers observed a brief rope tornado that appeared to say over an open field causing no damage.[69] | |||||||
EFU | NE of Cope | Yuma | CO | 00:23–00:32 | 0.93abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 75abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
Given the southeast movement of the storm, the tornado may have crossed CR J. The tornado remained in open fields, so no damage was observed.[70] | |||||||
EFU | W of Idalia | Yuma | CO | 01:00–01:14 | 0.45abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 150abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
The tornado faded and reappeared more than once during its lifetime. The tornado ended before crossing CR S. No damage was observed due to the tornado remaining over a field.[71] | |||||||
EF2 | SW of Idalia | Yuma, Kit Carson | CO | 01:25–01:47 | 5.29abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 150abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
A strong tornado touched down southwest of Idalia overturning an irrigation pivot. The tornado then crossed County Road 2 where nine power poles were snapped, earning the tornado an EF2 rating.[72] [73] | |||||||
EFU | SSE of Kanorado | Sherman | KS | 03:17–03:24 | 1.3abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 75abbr=onNaNabbr=on | |
A few grass swirls with small dead tree limbs were found on an abandoned property.[74] | |||||||
Over 1,000 preliminary wind reports were recorded as severe weather impacted the East Coast of the United States on August 7.[75] This led to widespread transit and Amtrak train delays in both the Northeast megalopolis, Great Lakes and Southeastern United States.[76]
A Major League Baseball game between the Washington Nationals and the Philadelphia Phillies at Nationals Park was postponed on August 7 due to the inclement weather.[77] The baseball game between the New York Mets and Chicago Cubs saw a 2-hour and 9 minute delay due to the rain at Citi Field.[78] A Carly Rae Jepsen concert at The Rooftop at Pier 17 in New York City was cancelled due to a lightning storm.[79] A 2023 Leagues Cup match between the Philadelphia Union and New York Red Bulls was postponed by a day.[80] Several state governors, including Maryland governor Wes Moore, New York governor Kathy Hochul, and West Virginia governor Jim Justice urged people to stay alert, and to be prepared.[81] Hochul's administration and local officials in New York were on stand-by for clean-up and response efforts, while Justice declared a State of Preparedness for all counties in West Virginia.[82] Schools in Tennessee and Georgia were closed.[83] [84] [85] Tornado watches and warnings were posted across ten states from Tennessee to New York, covering 29.5 million people.[86] U.S. government offices in Washington, D.C. were closed early in anticipation of severe weather.[87] Joe Biden's trip to the western United States was delayed 90 minutes.
A rare flash flood emergency was issued for Cambridge, Maryland, where flood damage and water rescues occurred as 4inches of rain fell in two hours.[88] [89] Power lines fell in Westminster, Maryland, including on MD 140, trapping more than forty people in their cars after live power lines fell behind and in front of vehicles.[90] [91] Montgomery Parks closed Sligo Creek Parkway and a road because of the threat for flooding, and damaging winds, causing trees to fall. A U.S. District Court sentencing was postponed due to severe weather, and tolls on I-66 reached nearly thirty dollars.[92] Extra trains were operated by the Washington Metro to assist in people to get to their residences, and the Emergency Operations Center was activated.[93] Train stations also operated an extra hour because Beyoncé's tour paid $100,000 to do so for fans to arrive at FedExField in Landover, Maryland, and to help people get home.[94] FedexField was also under a "shelter in place" order due to the imminent severe weather threat, and it was lifted nearly two hours later.[95] [96] Despite the severe weather, a Pink concert was allowed to proceed, but inclement weather forced fans at Nationals Park to remain at the concourse.
Fallen trees trapped hikers and campers at Fall Creek Falls State Park, and forced the park to close.[97] Damage occurred in eastern Kentucky and western North Carolina.[98] Flooding occurred in numerous towns in Massachusetts, including North Andover, Lowell, and Needham.[99] The Knoxville Utilities Board in Knoxville, Tennessee, stated that the damage across eastern Tennessee was "widespread and extensive".[100]
On August 8, additional flash flooding resulted in the Maine Turnpike reducing their speed limit to below 45mph south of Falmouth.[101] In Syracuse, New York, record rain of 2.45inches poured down, which resulted in lengthy closures on I-81 and I-690 throughout the day on August 8.[102] More than nine airports issued ground stops, including LaGuardia Airport, Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport, and Baltimore/Washington International Airport.[103] More than 1,700 flights were cancelled and nearly 9,000 were delayed across eastern United States airports impacted by severe weather.[104] [105] At least one million power outages occurred across the eastern United States, and two people were killed.[106] [107]
On August 8, the storms in Colorado produced a 5.25inches hailstone in Kirk that became the largest hailstone in state history in terms of diameter.[108]
The American Red Cross were prepared to respond if conditions were necessary.[109]