EF1 Tornado — Aiken, South Carolina

2025-05-12 · near Gloverville, Aiken, South Carolina

Event narrative

A National Weather Service Storm Survey team confirmed a brief high-end EF-1 tornado with winds up to 105 mph in Langley, SC that occurred around 330 am. The tornado began near Pinecrest Drive snapping several large branches before uprooting numerous trees in Langley Cemetery. Moving northwest, the tornado snapped numerous trees and caused minor roof damage to multiple homes between Piney House Road and Chaffee Street. After crossing near Cushman Road, the tornado caused substantial tree, siding, and shingle damage between Piney Heights Road and Dunbar Street. The fire department and adjacent structures along Augusta Road then sustained high-end EF-1 damage with garage door failure, outbuildings destroyed, and the metal roofing ripped off and thrown several hundred yards. Additional tree damage occurred along Langley Dam Road with dozens of uprooted trees before dissipating near Jefferson Davis Highway.

Wider weather episode

A high-end EF-1 tornado struck the community of Langley, SC overnight on May 12th. The tornado was embedded within an area of heavy rain in an otherwise unfavorable environment to severe weather across the area. It was the only severe report of the event other than some minor flash flooding that was reported later that morning across northern Orangeburg county.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (33.5100, -81.8300)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1253648. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.