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F3 tornado in Nicollet County, Minnesota

Tornado August 24, 2006 · Nicollet County, Minnesota

F3
Rating
15.5 mi
Path length
880 yd
Path width
7
Injuries
$3.5M
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 F3 means. This tornado was rated on Fujita’s original scale, used until 2007. F3 meant severe damage: whole stories of well-built houses destroyed, large buildings badly damaged, trains overturned; the scale paired it with winds of 158–206 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 began with a very narrow path and gradually expanded to a half mile wide multiple vortex tornado. One home in Nicollet lost much of its upper floor, and other homes suffered major damage, including some bring shifted off their foundation. The tornado continued east along Highway 99, producing major damage to houses, farm buildings, and a power substation. It did its most severe damage on the southern outskirts of St. Peter, where a house was completely leveled. A total of 57 homes properties in Nicollet County were damaged, and several homes had to be totaled out. A spokesmen from the St. Peter Community Hospital said several persons were admitted with severe wounds, such as broken bones. The tornado crossed the Minnesota River near the southern city limits of St. Peter, and entered Le Sueur County near the city of Kasota (see separate entry).

Began near Nicollet (44.5667, -93.3167).

Other tornadoes from the same storm system

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

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event 5531927. Narratives are written by the National Weather Service forecast office that issued the report.

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