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EF1 tornado in Franklin County, Tennessee

Tornado April 6, 2025 · Franklin County, Tennessee

EF1

Rating

8.7 mi

Path length

350 yd

Path width

EF0EF1EF2EF3EF4EF5Unrated

The path drawn at its surveyed width of 350 yards (0.20 mi) — zoom in and the swath grows to true scale. Other tornadoes recorded nearby that day are shown faint.

What EF1 means. On the Enhanced Fujita scale, EF1 is moderate damage: roofs badly stripped, mobile homes pushed off foundations or overturned, windows broken, consistent with estimated gusts of 86–110 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 tornado touched down in Cowan on Franklin Street, causing several uprooted and split trees before continuing eastward. As the tornado continued just south along Sewanee Highway, sporadic tree damage was observed. It peaked in intensity along Saint Marys Lane where several large hardwood trees were uprooted and split. Structural damage to the roof of a brick shelter was also noted at this location due to the uprooting of the tree that was directly above it. The track continued southeastward across Sherwood Road before a secondary large area of damage was observed along Rattlesnake Spring Road. At this point, multiple hardwood trees were uprooted and snapped in multiple directions. The tornado continued south-southeast towards Gudger Road, following along the ridgeline uprooting another tree before lifting.

The wider storm

A line of severe thunderstorms roared east-northeast through southern middle Tennessee during the late evening of the 5th to just after Midnight on the 6th. An EF-1 tracked nearly 9 miles in Franklin County from Cowan to southeast of Sewanee. Thunderstorm winds produced several areas of damage in Lincoln County as well. Also, flash flooding resulted in multiple water rescues due to excessive rainfall in a short period of time.

Flash flooding Lincoln County CAD reports in Q drive.

Flash flooding reports in Franklin County CAD report in Q drive (pdf).

Began near Cowan (35.1673, -86.0169).

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event 1258172. Narratives are written by the National Weather Service forecast office that issued the report.

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