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EF1 tornado in Henry County, Kentucky

Tornado March 1, 2017 · Henry County, Kentucky

EF1
Rating
1.1 mi
Path length
200 yd
Path width
$100K
Damage as recorded
EF0EF1EF2EF3EF4EF5Unrated

The path drawn at its surveyed width of 200 yards (0.11 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

A NWS damage survey team in conjunction with Justin Hilliard-Remote Aerial LLC concluded that an EF-1 tornado touched down 2 miles north of Campbellsburg, KY, traveled 1 mile (crossing I-71 and overturning a truck), and then lifted 2.2 miles NE of Campbellsburg. The most significant damage occurred on Jones Ln where 100 mph winds completely destroyed a couple of large barns, along with other small outbuildings. In addition, a large grain bin was demolished, and an anchored mobile home was pushed off its foundation on the north side of the damage path. A large debris field was scattered 200-300 yards downwind. East of I-71, the tornado damaged more outbuildings, and snapped trees. After destroying another older barn, the tornado ended just east of Highway 55 where numerous softwood trees were snapped and uprooted. Very strong convergence was noted in the damage. Also of note, were several instances of straight line wind damage feeding into the main circulation from the south. These wind speeds were estimated at 70-80 mph. We would like to thank Justin Hilliard-Remote Aerial LLC for aerial drone photos.

The wider storm

The combination of a moist and unseasonably warm air mass and an approaching low pressure system and cold front brought multiple rounds of severe weather to central Kentucky during the early morning hours on March 1. In the end, there were 4 tornadoes across central Kentucky. In addition to the tornadoes, there were several areas of intense straight-line winds estimated up to 100 mph in places. The impacts included numerous areas of structural damage and downed trees. The widespread rain also brought several rivers into minor flood.

Began near Turners Station (38.5530, -85.2110).

Other tornadoes from the same storm system

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

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event 675731. Narratives are written by the National Weather Service forecast office that issued the report.

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