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F1 tornado in Union County, Kentucky

Tornado May 6, 2003 · Union County, Kentucky

F1
Rating
4.0 mi
Path length
100 yd
Path width
$400K
Damage as recorded
EF0EF1EF2EF3EF4EF5Unrated

NOAA recorded where this tornado touched down but not where it lifted, so it appears as a point. 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

The tornado downed numerous trees. One farm, located on Highway 56 near the junction of Highway 141, was heavily damaged. Many trees were blown down in a wildlife area. The tornado crossed into Henderson County, where most of the structural damage occurred.

The wider storm

The most prolific tornado-producing storm of the night entered western Kentucky near the confluence of the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers and moved east, passing between Paducah and Mayfield. The storm continued to spawn tornadoes, mostly of weak to moderate intensity, until it reached Kentucky Lake. Elsewhere, severe thunderstorms moved northeast across northwest Kentucky, producing sporadic wind damage and a tornado. Sporadic wind damage occurred in Livingston, Crittenden, Webster, and Daviess Counties, with a tornado in Union and Henderson Counties.

Began near Boxville (36.7500, -88.6500).

Other tornadoes from the same storm system

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

F2 Ballard CountyF1 McCracken CountyF1 Graves CountyF1 Graves CountyF1 Marshall CountyF1 Marshall CountyF1 Henderson CountyF1 Hickman CountyF1 Graves CountyF0 McCracken County

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event 5352473. Narratives are written by the National Weather Service forecast office that issued the report.

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