EF1 tornado in Jefferson Davis Parish, Louisiana

Tornado March 21, 2012 · Jefferson Davis Parish, Louisiana

EF1

Rating

3.9 mi

Path length

40 yd

Path width

$3.0M

Damage as recorded

EF0EF1EF2EF3EF4EF5Unrated

The path drawn at its surveyed width of 40 yards (0.02 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

At least 30-40 homes and businesses were damaged when a tornado tore through Lake Arthur. Most of the damage was roof damage, although several homes had windows and walls damaged from flying debris. The water tower had a large radio antenna fall from it. Numerous trees and power lines were down.

The wider storm

A cold front slowly moved into Southeast Texas and then into far west sections of Louisiana during the 20th. The cold front stalled upon entering Louisiana and then slowly moved back west through the evening before finally moving east in the morning of the 21st. The slow moving boundary produced severe weather and widespread flooding.

Began near Lake Arthur (30.0730, -92.6798).

Other tornadoes from the same storm system

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

EF2 Vermilion Parish EF1 Vermilion Parish EF0 St. Mary Parish EF0 Vermilion Parish

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event 366422. Narratives are written by the National Weather Service forecast office that issued the report.

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