EF2 Tornado — Harris, Georgia

2011-11-16 · near Bartletts Ferry Lake, Harris, Georgia

Event narrative

A damage survey conducted by the National Weather Service Forecast Office in Peachtree City, Georgia confirmed that an EF2 tornado caused extensive damage across Harris county. The tornado first touched down as an EF1 in Macon county, Alabama before moving east into Lee county, Alabama and then into Harris county, Georgia. The tornado had already caused considerable damage to the town of Auburn, Alabama as an EF1 before it continued into Harris county, Georgia. As the tornado approached the county seat of Hamilton, it strengthened to an EF2. The tornado entered Harris county from Alabama at the north end of Lake Harding and tracked across the central part of the county, then moved into extreme northwest Talbot county before lifting, approximately two miles east-northeast of the town of Shiloh on the Harris/Talbot county line. The tornado had already carved out a path over 33 miles in length across eastern Alabama before it moved into Georgia. Within Harris county, the tornado path length was approximately 26 miles. The maximum path width was determined to be 1/2 mile with maximum winds of 125 mph. The tornado caused considerable damage across Harris county, especially around the county seat of Hamilton. Two homes were completely destroyed, with 68 other structures suffering minor to moderate damage, including 22 county buildings. County buildings damaged included the Harris County School Complex, the Harris County 911 Center, the Harris County Animal Shelter, and the agricultural center. One of the structures heavily damaged was a mobile home, where a man and his wife sustained minor injuries. Hundreds of trees were snapped or uprooted along the path of the tornado.

[11/16/11: Tornado #1, County #1-2, EF2, Harris-Talbot, 2011:026].

Wider weather episode

A sharp and deep negatively tilted full-latitude upper trough was sweeping through the eastern half of the United States. An unseasonably warm, moist air mass was present in advance of the front, as was the case with many events during the 2011 - 2012 winter season. In addition, a strong low-level jet contributed highly to a high shear/high helicity environment and the development of rotating cells within a quasi-linear convective system (QLCS) that tracked from west central to east central Georgia during the afternoon. An EF2 tornado tracked from Lee county in east central Alabama into Harris county in west central Georgia. In addition, there were several reports of quarter-sized hail and thunderstorm wind damage, primarily across central Georgia during this event.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (32.6970, -85.1173)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 355116. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.