EF3 Tornado — Gibson, Indiana

2017-02-28 · near Crawleyville, Gibson, Indiana

Event narrative

This long-track tornado crossed from Posey County into Gibson County just northwest of Poseyville. The tornado crossed U.S. Highway 41 just north of Fort Branch and just south of the Toyota manufacturing plant. The path later crossed Interstate 69 before ending just south of Oakland City. The tornado was rated EF-3 at a couple of points south and southwest of Owensville, where a couple of houses lost their roofs and most of their exterior walls. This was where the highest winds along the 44-mile path occurred, likely around 150 mph. One person was seriously injured, requiring hospitalization. Cars were tossed 15 yards, and two double-wide mobile homes were destroyed, with their frames blown 50 to 75 yards. Further east, from the Fort Branch area to south of Oakland City, roofs were blown off a few homes and barns were destroyed. Grain bins were destroyed, and trees were snapped. The total number of damaged or destroyed structures in Gibson County was about 106, including some homes.

Wider weather episode

An isolated but very powerful supercell thunderstorm moved across southwest Indiana during the late evening hours. The storm originated over Missouri in a destabilizing pre-frontal air mass characterized by dew points in the lower to mid 60's. This intense supercell storm awaited the approach of a mid-level impulse from Oklahoma, which was downstream from the primary shortwave trough over the Plains. A southwesterly low-level jet increased substantially during the evening. A long-track, strong tornado was spawned in southeast Illinois, and it continued east-northeast for about 45 miles before lifting in eastern Gibson County, Indiana.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (38.2041, -87.7997)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 677883. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.