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EF2 tornado in Cavalier County, North Dakota

Tornado June 9, 2017 · Cavalier County, North Dakota

EF2
Rating
18.0 mi
Path length
800 yd
Path width
$1.5M
Damage as recorded
$2.0M
Crop damage
EF0EF1EF2EF3EF4EF5Unrated

The path drawn at its surveyed width of 800 yards (0.45 mi) — zoom in and the swath grows to true scale. Other tornadoes recorded nearby that day are shown faint.

What EF2 means. On the Enhanced Fujita scale, EF2 is considerable damage: roofs torn off well-built houses, mobile homes destroyed, large trees snapped or uprooted, consistent with estimated gusts of 111–135 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

This tornado was partially engulfed in downburst winds and hail along its nearly 20 mile path. Large wooden power poles were snapped, roofing was stripped off of homes, steel pole sheds were totally dismantled, numerous steel grain bins were crushed, and large metal segments were carried for a mile or more downwind. Bean and grain fields were completely stripped. Peak winds were estimated at 120 mph.

The wider storm

During the day of June 9th, temperatures over eastern North Dakota and the northwest quarter of Minnesota topped out in the upper 70s along the Canadian border to lower 90s along the North Dakota/South Dakota border. Mid level temperatures were very warm over the central Dakotas, helping to suppress convective development until early evening. By that point, thunderstorms broke out over southern Manitoba down through central North Dakota, mainly along a cold front. These storms tracked east-southeast, mainly covering the Devils Lake region, down through the central Red River Valley, and into the Mahnomen to Hubbard county corridor. A mix of tornadoes, hail, and strong winds were reported.

Began near Easby (48.8100, -98.2100).

Other tornadoes from the same storm system

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

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event 696848. Narratives are written by the National Weather Service forecast office that issued the report.

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