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EF1 tornado in Pike County, Alabama

Tornado August 6, 2015 · Pike County, Alabama

EF1
Rating
0.4 mi
Path length
50 yd
Path width
7
Injuries
EF0EF1EF2EF3EF4EF5Unrated

The path drawn at its surveyed width of 50 yards (0.03 mi) — zoom in and the swath grows to true scale. Other tornadoes recorded nearby that day are shown faint.

What EF1 means. On the Enhanced Fujita scale, EF1 is moderate damage: roofs badly stripped, mobile homes pushed off foundations or overturned, windows broken, consistent with estimated gusts of 86–110 mph. The rating comes from a survey of the worst damage after the storm, not from a wind measurement, so it says as much about what the tornado hit as about how strong it was.

What the National Weather Service wrote

National Weather Service meteorologists surveyed the damage in Troy and have confirmed that the damage was the result of an EF-1 Tornado. The tornado touched down just south of the Pike Liberal Arts School behind the Troy Walmart. Damage to the Walmart extended from the rear of the building to the front, with a portion of the roof collapsed. The damage was confined to a very narrow path, with other HVAC systems a few yards either side of the main damage area largely intact. Significant damage was caused to the entrances of the store as well. As the tornado crossed the parking lot, it pushed an empty tractor-trailer approximately 100 yards into a second tractor trailer, damaging both. A third tractor trailer was overturned, causing major damage. The tornado then clipped the south end of a strip mall, collapsing the front glass walls and a portion of a masonry wall on the side of Hibbett Sporting Goods. Minor damage was caused to the canopy of the Murphy USA gas station across the parking lot. The tornado crossed U.S. Highway 231 and weakened rapidly, with only minor damage caused to a convenience store across the highway before dissipating. Peak wind estimated at 100 mph.

The wider storm

A short wave trough moved across north Alabama triggered numerous showers and thunderstorms along the I-20 corridor. As the thunderstorm activity pushed southward during the late afternoon and evening hours, it encountered a more unstable air mass and some of the storms become severe with a few tornadoes.

Began near Troy (31.7817, -85.9403).

Other tornadoes from the same storm system

1 more tornado the National Weather Service filed under this storm episode.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event 598365. Narratives are written by the National Weather Service forecast office that issued the report.

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