Texas Tornado Facts
Definition: Tornado -- 1. A violently rotating column of air, in contact with the ground, either pendant from a cumuliform cloud or underneath a cumuliform cloud, and often (but not always) visible as a funnel cloud.
Compared with other States, Texas ranks number 1 for frequency of Tornadoes, 1 for number of deaths, 1 for injuries and 1 for cost of damages. Based on data from 1950 - 1995.
Between 1950 and 1995 the state had 7,554 injuries involving tornadoes. This ranks the state number 1 among the States for injury.
Tornados are rated by severity and wind speed using the Fujita scale of F0-F5:
F0 |
| F-0(42 - 72mph) - Light Damage - Chimneys are damaged, tree branches are broken, shallow-rooted trees are toppled. Here are broken tree branches and only superficial house damage; so this scene was rated F0. |
F1 |
| F-1: (73 - 112mph) - Moderate Damage - Roof surfaces are peeled off, windows are broken, some tree trunks are snapped, unanchored manufactured homes are over-turned, attached garages may be destroyed. This house experienced partial roof removal, only on the windward (near) side; therefore, this damage site was rated F1. |
F2 |
| F-2: (113 - 157 mph) - Considerable Damage - Roof structures are damaged, manufactured homes are destroyed, debris becomes airborne (missiles are generated), large trees are snapped or uprooted. Quality of construction must be considered when rating damage; since the F scale is best applied to well-built homes. Here, the wall-to-roof and wall-to-wall attachments were very weak or nonexistent; so this is only marginal F2 damage. |
F3 |
| F-3: (158 - 206 mph) - Severe Damage - Roofs and some walls are torn from structures, some small buildings are destroyed, non-reinforced masonry buildings are destroyed, most trees in forest are uprooted. For a well-built home, any removal of inner walls constitutes F3 damage; so this site was rated high-end F3. |
F4 |
| F-4: (207 - 260mph) - Devastating Damage Well-constructed houses are destroyed, some structures are lifted from foundations and blown some distance, cars are blown some distance, large debris becomes airborne. |
F5 |
| F-5: (261 - 318mph) - Incredible Damage - Strong frame houses are lifted from foundations, reinforced concrete structures are damaged, automobile-sized debris becomes airborne, trees are completely debarked. |
The primary tornado season in Texas is from March through June, but tornados can occur in any month of the year.
Tornados often form in the southwest part of thunderstorms - next to the part of the storm where heavy rain or hail is falling.
Opening windows will NOT equalize pressure and prevent an explosion of the house if hit by a tornado.
Tornados are not the only weather killers in Texas: Lightning, tornados and high winds take an average of 15 lives each year in Texas alone. 51 people died as a direct result of tornados in the US in 2003.
The latest 4 large killer tornados in Texas:
- May 27, 1997: A twister hits Jarrell in Central Texas, killing 30. Two other deaths from other storms are confirmed in nearby Travis County.
- May 22, 1987: A tornado hits the small West Texas town of Saragosa during a kindergarten graduation ceremony, flattening the community center and church, killing 30 people and injuring more than 100.
- April 10, 1979: Forty-two people are killed and more than 1,700 injured by a tornado in Wichita Falls. More than 3,000 homes are destroyed and 20,000 people left homeless.
- May 11, 1953: A tornado hits Waco, killing 114 people and injuring 597. An estimated 150 homes and 185 other buildings are destroyed.
The word tornado comes from two Spanish words: tronado meaning thunderstorm and tornar meaning to turn.
On the average, a tornado's path is 4 miles long and 400 yards wide but can be as long as 100 miles long and a mile wide
The average tornado travels at a speed of 25-40 miles per hour, but tornadoes have been known to reach speeds up to 70 mph. Winds inside a tornado can swirl at close to 300 mph. They stay on the ground for an average of 4-5 minutes, but they can touch down several times.
Most tornados:
- move from southwest to northeast
- rotate in a counterclockwise direction in the Northern Hemisphere and clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere
- occur between 3 and 7 P.M.
- are reported to occur most often in the United States
copyright © 2004 - Texas Tornado Storm Shelters - All rights reserved
|