EF0 Tornado — Columbus, North Carolina

2024-05-14 · near Rico, Columbus, North Carolina

Event narrative

Additional damage was discovered 5 miles south of Clarkton, leading

to a longer path length. The tornado touched down near Coastal

Farm south of Hwy 701 and broke several small limbs out of pine

trees. It continued northeast causing minor damage as it tracked a

few hundred yards south of Hwy 701. The damage included several large

limbs down, as well as a portion of metal roofing blown off a small

structure on Elkins Ln. The tornado entered swamp land after crossing

Red Hill Rd, and was captured on video after emerging near Baldwin

Elkins Rd. Minor damage to a few trees was noted. The tornado

continued moving east-northeast and exited the forest near Highway 211.

Minor damage to a few trees was noted where the tornado exited the

forest, on the south side of Highway 211.

Wider weather episode

Some low-topped supercells occurred in association with an upper level disturbance in an environment with minimal instability but pretty strong wind shear.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (34.4397, -78.7162)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1173575. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.