F2 tornado — Renville County, Minnesota

F2 tornado in Renville County, Minnesota

Tornado June 24, 2003 · Renville County, Minnesota

Rating

5.5 mi

Whole path

880 yd

Path width

Injuries

$15.0M

Damage as recorded

NOAA records this tornado county by county. Its path ran through Sibley County → Renville County; the totals above are for the whole tornado.

EF0EF1EF2EF3EF4EF5Unrated

The path drawn at its surveyed width of 880 yards (0.50 mi) — zoom in and the swath grows to true scale. Other tornadoes recorded nearby that day are shown faint.

What F2 means. This tornado was rated on Fujita’s original scale, used until 2007. F2 meant considerable damage: roofs torn off well-built houses, mobile homes destroyed, large trees snapped or uprooted; the scale paired it with winds of 113–157 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

This third tornado entered Renville County at 1845 CST and entered the city of Buffalo Lake, where damage was significant. Five people sustained minor injuries. Roofs were blown off the Lutheran Church, as well as a number of homes and businesses. Sheds and garages were blown down, a grain elevator was destroyed, and hundreds of trees were broken. Video and a storm survey determined the tornado was multiple vortex. 29 houses were damaged beyond repair, 51 sustained major damage, and 120 more suffered minor damage.

Other tornadoes from the same storm system

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event 5362610. Narratives are written by the National Weather Service forecast office that issued the report.

F2 tornado in Renville County, Minnesota

What the National Weather Service wrote

Other tornadoes from the same storm system

Tornadoes near your address