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EF2 tornado in Choctaw County, Alabama

Tornado December 14, 2022 · Choctaw County, Alabama

EF2
Rating
6.0 mi
Whole path
120 yd
Path width

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

EF0EF1EF2EF3EF4EF5Unrated

The path drawn at its surveyed width of 120 yards (0.07 mi) — zoom in and the swath grows to true scale. Other tornadoes recorded nearby that day are shown faint.

What EF2 means. On the Enhanced Fujita scale, EF2 is considerable damage: roofs torn off well-built houses, mobile homes destroyed, large trees snapped or uprooted, consistent with estimated gusts of 111–135 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

After reviewing sentinel satellite imagery available on 12/18/22, the determination has been made that the segment of the original surveyed tornado track from Blue Dirt Road to Highway 84 was a separate EF2 tornado with peak winds of 115mph. The original tornado occluded a few minutes prior to the genesis of this tornado. A remarkable gradient at the point of genesis was noted by the survey team in a field of snapped/uprooted trees, where trees went from untouched to numerous snaps of softwood trees in as little as 5 to 10 feet. Based on sentinel satellite imagery, the tornado maintained intensity, perhaps slightly strengthening as it moved off to the northeast of Blue Dirt Road where significant deforestation was noted in an approximate 120 yard swath. At the tornadoes halfway point, it likely weakened to an EF0/EF1 as it passed by a field with no notable tree damage on satellite imagery. Once the tornado reached Highway 84, it was a very weak EF0 that uprooted a couple softwood trees, lifting at that location.

Extended path to start earlier based on Planet and Worldview Satellite Imagery. Tornado start time was simultaneous to the timing of the occlusion of the first tornado.

The wider storm

A very warm and moist airmass developed ahead of a strong cold front. Thunderstorms developed ahead of the front and produced damaging winds along with a 2-EF2 tornadoes in Choctaw County Alabama along with wind damage in Baldwin County.

Began near Bladon Spgs (31.7187, -88.1788).

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event 1072168. Narratives are written by the National Weather Service forecast office that issued the report.

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