F1 tornado in Cape Girardeau County, Missouri

Tornado May 6, 2003 · Cape Girardeau County, Missouri

Rating

1.0 mi

Path length

50 yd

Path width

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

An old farmhouse was partially destroyed, with the kitchen still standing but the rest of the house flattened. A nearby barn was destroyed. Numerous trees were blown down.

The wider storm

A supercellular severe thunderstorm tracked northeast across Bollinger and Cape Girardeau Counties, producing several tornadoes and hail up to golf ball size. Other severe thunderstorms north of the supercell's path produced damaging wind gusts and large hail.

Began near Burfordville (37.6167, -89.8333).

Other tornadoes from the same storm system

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

F3 Cape Girardeau County F2 Bollinger County F1 Cape Girardeau County F0 Bollinger County

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event 5352742. Narratives are written by the National Weather Service forecast office that issued the report.

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