F1 tornado — Palm Beach County, Florida

F1 tornado in Palm Beach County, Florida

Tornado August 7, 2003 · Palm Beach County, Florida

Rating

4.0 mi

Path length

300 yd

Path width

Injuries

$80.0M

Damage as recorded

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The path drawn at its surveyed width of 300 yards (0.17 mi) — zoom in and the swath grows to true scale. Other tornadoes recorded nearby that day are shown faint.

What F1 means. This tornado was rated on Fujita’s original scale, used until 2007. F1 meant moderate damage: roofs badly stripped, mobile homes pushed off foundations or overturned, windows broken; the scale paired it with winds of 73–112 mph, figures later judged too high, especially toward the top of the scale, and revised downward in the Enhanced Fujita scale. Ratings then, as now, came from the damage.

What the National Weather Service wrote

A SKYWARN spotter sighted a funnel cloud that touched down near North Lake Boulevard and North Military Trail. The tornado moved south through the Garden Walk Mobile Home Park then turned southeast and crossed I-95, overturning a semi-tractor trailer. The tornado proceeded east through Riviera Beach damaging the roofs of many houses and businesses. Twenty-eight persons suffered minor injuries, 58 homes were destroyed, 21 homes suffered major damage and 150 homes had minor damage. Several cars and trucks were overturned and damage was estimated at $70-80 million.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event 5334502. Narratives are written by the National Weather Service forecast office that issued the report.

F1 tornado in Palm Beach County, Florida

What the National Weather Service wrote

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