TornadoLookup

Home / North Dakota / Ransom

F2 tornado in Ransom County, North Dakota

Tornado August 15, 1999 · Ransom County, North Dakota

F2
Rating
20.0 mi
Path length
400 yd
Path width
$1.2M
Damage as recorded
EF0EF1EF2EF3EF4EF5Unrated

The path drawn at its surveyed width of 400 yards (0.23 mi) — zoom in and the swath grows to true scale. Other tornadoes recorded nearby that day are shown faint.

What F2 means. This tornado was rated on Fujita’s original scale, used until 2007. F2 meant considerable damage: roofs torn off well-built houses, mobile homes destroyed, large trees snapped or uprooted; the scale paired it with winds of 113–157 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

Most of the damage from the tornado occurred roughly 3 miles northeast of Fort Ransom, just across the Sheyenne River. One farm had a wood barn and 2 large pole barns completely destroyed. At another nearby farm, another wood barn and a pole barn were destroyed, some debris deposited several hundred feet away. Numerous large trees were broken and a feeding car was thrown a half a mile away. Thousands of large trees surrounding the path of the tornado were snapped in two, many of these along the Sheyenne River Valley.

Began near Ft Ransom (46.5700, -97.9800).

Other tornadoes from the same storm system

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

F2 Barnes CountyF0 Barnes CountyF0 Barnes County

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event 5712100. Narratives are written by the National Weather Service forecast office that issued the report.

Tornadoes near your address

See every tornado that passed near a place you know, measured to its path.