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F1 tornado in Tuscaloosa County, Alabama

Tornado September 25, 2005 · Tuscaloosa County, Alabama

F1
Rating
13.8 mi
Path length
100 yd
Path width
$14K
Damage as recorded
EF0EF1EF2EF3EF4EF5Unrated

The path drawn at its surveyed width of 100 yards (0.06 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

National Weather Service meteorologists performed extensive aerial and ground surveys across northern Tuscaloosa County. It has been determined that a tornado produced damage along a large stretch of the Sipsey River Basin. The tornado touched down at approximately 355 PM CDT near County Road 140 just east of Elrod. The tornado traveled northeast along the Sipsey River, crossed County Road 21, crossed State Highway 171, and lifted just east of County Road 35 around 417 PM CDT. A large majority of the damage was minor and limited to tree damage. Numerous trees were snapped off or uprooted along the Sipsey River. The tornado has been rated an F1 on the Fujita scale. The tornado damage path was 13.8 miles long and 100 yards wide at its widest point. This was the same thunderstorm cell that produced the brief tornado touchdown in rural southeastern Pickens County. This tornado was produced by the remnants of Hurricane Rita. Begin: 33 15.16/87 46.94 End: 33 25.98/87 41.79

Began near Elrod (33.2500, -87.7833).

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event 5473638. Narratives are written by the National Weather Service forecast office that issued the report.

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