Portal:Tornadoes

The 1947 Sydney hailstorm was a natural disaster which struck Sydney, Australia, on 1 January 1947. The storm cell developed on the morning of New Year's Day, a public holiday in Australia, over the Blue Mountains, hitting the city and dissipating east of Bondi in the mid-afternoon. At the time, it was the most severe storm to strike the city since recorded observations began in 1792.

The high humidity, temperatures and weather patterns of Sydney increased the strength of the storm. The cost of damages from the storm were, at the time, approximately £750,000 (US$3 million); this is the equivalent of around A$45 million in modern figures. The supercell dropped hailstones larger than 8 centimetres (3.1 in) in diameter, with the most significant damage occurring in the central business district and eastern suburbs of Sydney. (Full article...)

The U.S. state of Alabama has seen numerous destructive and devastating tornadoes since 1819, the year with the first recorded tornado within state boundaries. Alabama, located in the "Dixie Alley" region of the Southern United States, experiences an average of 64 tornadoes annually. 297 tornadoes have been classified as "intense" in Alabama, being rated F3+ on the Fujita scale or EF3+ on the Enhanced Fujita scale. Alabama has seen nine F5 or EF5 tornadoes since 1966, the most recent hitting Rainsville in April 2011. The deadliest moved across North Alabama, hitting numerous communities and killing 71 people.

Alabama saw numerous significant tornadoes prior to 1950, including an F4 tornado that killed 30 people in Calhoun and Cherokee counties. 1932 saw a devastating tornado outbreak that killed over 200 people in the state of Alabama; an F4-rated tornado impacted the cities of Tuscaloosa and Northport. 26 people were killed in 1935 when a strong tornado moved through the city of Montgomery. The 1950s were saw several large and destructive tornadoes impact communities. The widest of the decade, rated F3, reached a maximum width of 1480 yd (1350 m) as it moved across Russell County. In 1954, a violent tornado took the lives of 25 people in the northern suburbs of Birmingham; another tornado just eight days earlier killed five people in Falkville. (Full article...)

This page documents the tornadoes and tornado outbreaks of 1953 primarily in the United States. Most tornadoes form in the U.S., although some events may take place internationally. Tornado statistics for older years like this often appear significantly lower than modern years due to fewer reports or confirmed tornadoes. This was the first year to record an F5 tornado as well as one of the deadliest tornado seasons in official U.S. records, which go back to 1950.

The total count of tornadoes and ratings differs from various agencies accordingly. The article, therefore, documents information from the most contemporary official sources alongside assessments from tornado historian Thomas P. Grazulis. (Full article...)

In the evening hours of January 7, a strong tornado tracked through Kalpaki, Greece, significantly damaging to numerous structures. A large poultry farm was destroyed, killing 30,000–40,000 chickens inside. A church and a military camp were also damaged. The tornado was rated IF2 on the International Fujita Scale.

March 24

• 1975 – An F3 tornado moved through the western and northern parts of Atlanta, Georgia, killing three people and injuring 152. There was major damage to an industrial area and to many homes and businesses, including the governor's mansion, leading this event to be called the "Governor's Tornado."

March 25

• 1948 – A tornado hit Tinker Air Force Base for the second time in five days, damaging or destroying 84 planes and injuring one person. The possibility of tornadoes was noted by Air Force meteorologists, marking the first time that tornadoes were successfully forecast.

March 26

• 1948 – A tornado outbreak killed 23 people in the Midwestern and Southern United States. Most of the deaths were from a tornado family in central Indiana that killed 19 people. Tis totalincluded 14 deaths in Coatesville, where 80% of the buildings were damaged or destroyed.
• 1949 – A total of 28 people were killed by a tornado outbreak across parts of the Southern United States. Most of the deaths were from an F4 tornado that destroyed about 100 homes near England, Arkansas and killed 18 people. An F3 tornado killed 5 people across parts of Woodruff and Jackson counties, Arkansas.
• 1976 – An F5 tornado swept away several homes on the south side of Spiro, Oklahoma, killing two people and injuring 64.

• ...that the 12-year gap between the 2013 Moore tornado and the 2025 Enderlin tornado, both of which were rated EF5, was the longest EF5 drought in recorded history?
• ...that the 2021 South Moravia tornado, an IF4 tornado with winds between 207–260 mph (333–418 km/h), was the strongest tornado to hit the Czech Republic in modern history?
• ...that five of the six people killed in the 2011 Cullman–Arab tornado were members of the same family?
• ...that Picher, Oklahoma, was hit so hard by a tornado in 2008 that it became a ghost town in 2015?
• ...that the 2022 Andover tornado injured only three people, despite damaging more than 1,000 buildings?