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F1 tornado in Fort Bend County, Texas

Tornado February 16, 1998 · Fort Bend County, Texas

Rating

1.2 mi

Path length

200 yd

Path width

Injuries

$3.7M

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.

What the National Weather Service wrote

Tornado touched down at the First Colony Mall. Dillards downwind wall was torn down along with minor structural damage to other stores. The tornado then crossed HWY 59 And damaged the Aerodrome (ice skating rink) and other nearby stores and signs. The tornado path ended on the south side of HWY 6 at Williams Grant Rd. 4 minor injuries from flying glass

Began near Sugarland (29.6200, -95.6300).

Other tornadoes from the same storm system

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

F0 Brazoria County F0 Galveston County

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event 5634274. Narratives are written by the National Weather Service forecast office that issued the report.

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