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EF2 tornado in Cook County, Georgia

Tornado January 22, 2023 · Cook County, Georgia

EF2
Rating
5.9 mi
Path length
80 yd
Path width
$500K
Damage as recorded
EF0EF1EF2EF3EF4EF5Unrated

The path drawn at its surveyed width of 80 yards (0.05 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

The tornado began just west of Interstate-75 before crossing through portions of Adel, GA in Cook County. The first significant structural damage consistent with EF2 intensity was done to a single-family home-style building on W Mitchell St between I-75 and N Elm St. Half of the structure was shifted off its slab and bolted foundation. Adjacent mini trailers were also flipped in addition to sheets of metal lofted about a hundred feet from the property. The second location of EF2 damage was off US-Highway 41 and South Ave near Carr Dr where a large metal structure building was shifted off its bolted foundation. Some steel beams were also ripped off with a couple lofted to a nearby residential area. Multiple large trees on the property had their trunks snapped, while others were uprooted. Numerous damaged/fallen trees, some uprooted, had snapped and twisted trunks in a residential neighborhood along Kent Dr. Several of these trees fell on top of a few homes. The damages in that area were consistent with EF1 intensity. Continued tree damage was observed throughout the east side of the county along with a series of knocked over centerline irrigation pivots. The tornado then destroyed a motorhome and snapped several trees along Joiner Rd before lifting near the Cook County/Berrien County border. Max winds were estimated at 115 mph.

The wider storm

A couple of strong upper level shortwaves impacted the area during the latter half of January, bringing with them a couple of rounds of severe weather with numerous reports of trees and power lines blown down. In addition, a few tornadoes occurred across the tri-state area.

Began near Sparks (31.1474, -83.4440).

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event 1076704. Narratives are written by the National Weather Service forecast office that issued the report.

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