EF0 tornado in Orangeburg County, South Carolina

Tornado September 27, 2024 · Orangeburg County, South Carolina

EF0

Rating

13.8 mi

Path length

500 yd

Path width

EF0EF1EF2EF3EF4EF5Unrated

The path drawn at its surveyed width of 500 yards (0.28 mi) — zoom in and the swath grows to true scale. Other tornadoes recorded nearby that day are shown faint.

What EF0 means. On the Enhanced Fujita scale, EF0 is light damage: shingles and siding peeled, gutters torn, branches broken, consistent with estimated gusts of 65–85 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 weak tornado developed early on 9/27 in association with

Hurricane Helene's outer rain bands. Weak, EF0 tree damage began

near Highway 78 just inside Orangeburg County and then moved

north-northwestward. The tornado crossed Cattle Creek Road, then

turned slightly more northerly before crossing Bowman Branch

Highway. Continuing north, the tornado caused damage along

Funchess Rd and continued north-northwestward before ending near

Garland Road north of Rowesville.

The wider storm

Tropical Storm Helene formed in the NW Caribbean Sea on September 24. Helene moved northward into the Gulf of Mexico where it strengthened into a hurricane on September 25. Helene made landfall as a major hurricane in the Big Bend area of Florida the night of September 26 before quickly moving inland into east central Georgia by early morning on September 27. Helene weakened to a strong tropical storm and produced widespread significant wind damage, including wind gusts above 100 mph across east central Georgia and central South Carolina as well as numerous tornadoes. Numerous fatalities and injuries were reported associated with the passage of Helene.

Began near Dorange (33.2230, -80.7256).

Other tornadoes from the same storm system

6 more tornadoes the National Weather Service filed under this storm episode.

EF1 Orangeburg County EF1 Calhoun County EF0 Orangeburg County EF0 Orangeburg County EF0 Sumter County EF0 Clarendon County

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event 1207394. Narratives are written by the National Weather Service forecast office that issued the report.

Tornadoes near your address

See every tornado that passed near a place you know, measured to its path.