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EF1 tornado in McDuffie County, Georgia

Tornado January 12, 2023 · McDuffie County, Georgia

EF1
Rating
18.3 mi
Whole path
75 yd
Path width

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

EF0EF1EF2EF3EF4EF5Unrated

The path drawn at its surveyed width of 75 yards (0.04 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

A National Weather Service survey team confirmed a tornado touched down in Warren County GA (see Storm Data, Georgia, North and Central) where it produced EF-1 damage. The tornado continued moving to the NE and crossed into McDuffie County GA. While in McDuffie Co, the tornado also produced EF-1 damage,

with peak winds of 110 mph. The tornado dissipated west of Thomson in western McDuffie Co. The total tornado path was 16.42 miles, with about 14.4 miles in Warren Co and 2.02 miles in McDuffie Co.

Just prior to crossing into McDuffie Co, the tornado strengthened to EF-1 intensity as it approached Mesena Road and continued northeast across the county line to Foster Sprouse Road. In this area, a couple of homes had roof and fascia damage, a metal work shed and outdoor kitchen were destroyed, and a swath of large and healthy pine trees were snapped and uprooted. As the tornado crossed Foster Sprouse Road, it continued to snap and uproot trees, one of which fell on a house. The tornado then weakened as it crossed Union Church Road and dissipated before reaching West Bypass.

The wider storm

Sufficient atmospheric instability and shear led to thunderstorm development, some of which produced damaging winds and tornadoes.

Began near Thomson (33.4750, -82.5950).

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event 1065372. Narratives are written by the National Weather Service forecast office that issued the report.

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