TornadoLookup

Home / Indiana / Hancock

EF1 tornado in Hancock County, Indiana

Tornado May 30, 2008 · Hancock County, Indiana

EF1
Rating
11.6 mi
Whole path
100 yd
Path width
18
Injuries
$29.8M
Damage as recorded

NOAA records this tornado county by county. Its path ran through Marion County → Hancock County → Hancock County; the totals above are for the whole tornado.

EF0EF1EF2EF3EF4EF5Unrated

The path drawn at its surveyed width of 100 yards (0.06 mi) — zoom in and the swath grows to true scale. Other tornadoes recorded nearby that day are shown faint.

What EF1 means. On the Enhanced Fujita scale, EF1 is moderate damage: roofs badly stripped, mobile homes pushed off foundations or overturned, windows broken, consistent with estimated gusts of 86–110 mph. The rating comes from a survey of the worst damage after the storm, not from a wind measurement, so it says as much about what the tornado hit as about how strong it was.

What the National Weather Service wrote

The tornado began in Marion County at 2127 near 42nd Street and Post Road and tracked southeastward for 3.1 miles before exiting Marion County. The tornado exited Marion County at 2132 and entered Hancock County on North County Line Road, 500 meters south of East 38th Street. The tornado continued in Hancock County for 4.0 miles until lifting at 2136, 500 feet south of West 200 North on North 400 West. The tornado was rated EF-2 while in Marion County with a width of 150 yards and winds of 125 mph. The tornado was rated EF-1 while in Hancock County with a width of 100 yards and winds near 100 mph. Numerous structures were damaged in Marion County with the hardest hit area being an apartment complex near 38th Street and Mittthoefer Road. While in Hancock County, the tornado damaged barns, houses, billboards, trees, and powerlines. The tornado was associated with an embedded supercell that was overtaken by a line.

The wider storm

A warm front moved through through the area earlier in the day allowing for warm temperatures over central Indiana. Severe storms formed in advance of a cold front that moved through later at night. These storms contained hail and damaging thunderstorm winds. Three tornadoes also formed with these storms including one that moved through the east side of Indianapolis. Heavy rain caused flash flooding across many locations.

Began near Mt Comfort (39.8218, -85.9531).

Other tornadoes from the same storm system

1 more tornado the National Weather Service filed under this storm episode.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event 102014. Narratives are written by the National Weather Service forecast office that issued the report.

Tornadoes near your address

See every tornado that passed near a place you know, measured to its path.