EF1 Tornado — Marshall, Tennessee

2023-04-01 · near Thick, Marshall, Tennessee

Event narrative

An EF1 tornado with estimated peak winds of 110 mph touched down about four miles northwest of Chapel Hill near Moss Road in northern Marshall County. Moving northeast, the tornado blew down several trees and caused minor to moderate damage to homes on Thick Road, Egypt Road, Smiley Road, and Blackwell Road. The tornado intensified as it continued northeast, blowing five train cars off a track along Highway 31A and heavily damaging homes on Beasley Road and Tennessee Central Road. The tornado then continued into Rutherford County. Damages are estimated for Marshall County.

Wider weather episode

A very strong low pressure system deepened over the central Great Plains beginning on March 31, 2023 and continuing into April 1st. As this storm system approached Middle Tennessee from the west, southerly flow at the surface resulted in plenty of moisture and warm temperatures for the area. This all helped to set up an early spring severe weather episode for the area. This system's accompanying cold front approached the Mississippi River late on March 31st. Thunderstorm activity across western Tennessee quickly turned severe, but this early activity tended to rapidly weaken as it crossed the Tennessee River where instability was not favorable. However, as the cold front approached Middle Tennessee and the low level jet strengthened, these thunderstorms were able to better sustain themselves. Numerous severe thunderstorms impacted Middle Tennessee through the early morning hours of April 1st. These thunderstorms produced large hail and damaging winds, while several thunderstorms also produced tornadoes. In total, four tornadoes were confirmed in National Weather Service Nashville's area. The most impacted area was Readyville along the Rutherford and Cannon county line were a strong EF2 tornado caused significant damage.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (35.6642, -86.7530)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1079912. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.