F0 tornado in Bell County, Texas

Tornado May 27, 1997 · Bell County, Texas

Rating

0.2 mi

Path length

40 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 F0 means. This tornado was rated on Fujita’s original scale, used until 2007. F0 meant light damage: shingles and siding peeled, gutters torn, branches broken; the scale paired it with winds of 40–72 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

Shortly after 200 pm, a small thunderstorm developed 8 WNW of Belton, a few miles ahead of the rear flank downdraft gust front associated with the large supercell that was moving into the northern portion of the county at this time. The initial weak circulation associated with the small thunderstorm deepened and strengthened as it moved to the east-southeast. The storm produced a weak tornado which lasted about 10 minutes before it was undercut by the rear flank downdraft of the larger storm.

Began near Belton (31.0800, -97.5300).

Other tornadoes from the same storm system

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

F3 Bell County F2 Bell County F1 Bell County

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event 5597312. Narratives are written by the National Weather Service forecast office that issued the report.

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