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F1 tornado in Lafayette Parish, Louisiana

Tornado November 21, 1997 · Lafayette Parish, Louisiana

F1
Rating
3.0 mi
Path length
200 yd
Path width
1
Injury
$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 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.

The wider storm

An F1 tornado touched down in northern sections of the city of Lafayette, near Interstate 10, between Poplar Street and Hebert Road. Three permanent homes were destoyed, 12 had major damage, and another 22 had minor damage. There were also two mobile homes that were destroyed, four with major damage, and eight with minor damage. The Lafayette Utilities System power plant received the most damage, where over 3.0 million dollars worth of damages occurred when two water coolers were destroyed. This tornado first touched down in a mobile home park, then hit the power plant, followed by a residential area. Fortunately, only one injury occurred. A woman in one of the mobile homes destroyed was treated at a local hospital for a concussion.

Began near Lafayette (30.2200, -92.0200).

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event 5620707. Narratives are written by the National Weather Service forecast office that issued the report.

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