EF2 Tornado — Mckenzie, North Dakota

2014-05-26 · near Watford City, Mckenzie, North Dakota

Event narrative

Thirteen campers, serving as homes, were completely destroyed and two more were damaged by this tornado. Other damage included a snapped wooden power line pole, automobiles, and fences, both wooden and metal. One automobile was tossed sixty feet and flipped onto its roof, with a trailer parked next to its initial location also flipped and completely destroyed. About a dozen other vehicles were damage, some destroyed. Eye witness reports indicated two other funnel clouds in the immediate area.

Of all the damage surveyed by the National Weather Service the absolute worst corresponded to EF2 on the Enhanced Fujita Scale. From that it was determined that the peak wind speeds in the tornado were on the order of 120 mph.

There were nine direct injuries.

Wider weather episode

Several supercell thunderstorms formed in eastern Montana and moved into northwest North Dakota late in the afternoon. Storms initially produced large hail and heavy rain. Early in the evening, reports of rotating wall clouds and possible funnel clouds were received from various locations in McKenzie County. A confirmed EF2 tornado touched down six miles south of Watford City, and resulted in extensive damage to an RV park that was serving as a semi-permanent housing facility. Storms then transitioned into a linear convective system before weakening across Dunn County.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (47.7100, -103.2800)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 519609. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.