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EF1 tornado in Washington County, Georgia

Tornado April 3, 2017 · Washington County, Georgia

EF1
Rating
5.7 mi
Path length
250 yd
Path width
$30K
Damage as recorded
EF0EF1EF2EF3EF4EF5Unrated

The path drawn at its surveyed width of 250 yards (0.14 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 National Weather Service survey team found that an EF1 tornado with maximum wind speeds of 95 MPH and a maximum path width of 250 yards occurred in western Washington County. The tornado touched down along Highway 272 where it caused roof damage to a church and uprooted numerous large trees surrounding the church and within a nearby cemetery. The tornado moved east and weakened to EF0 intensity, causing minor damage to a roof at a home on Green Lane Road and uprooting numerous trees in the area. The tornado continued moving east snapping and uprooting trees as it crossed Lamar's Creek Road before ending along Smith Robson Road southwest of Sandersville. No injuries were reported. [04/03/17: Tornado #25, County #1/1, EF-1, Washington, 2017:057].

The wider storm

A strong short wave and associated surface low swept through the southern and eastern U.S. and combined with moderate instability and strong shear resulted in widespread severe weather, including numerous tornadoes, across north and central Georgia from late morning through the afternoon.

Began near Ennis (32.9203, -82.9996).

Other tornadoes from the same storm system

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

EF2 Wilkinson CountyEF1 Carroll CountyEF1 Fulton CountyEF1 Muscogee CountyEF1 Lumpkin CountyEF1 Talbot CountyEF1 Upson CountyEF1 Schley CountyEF1 Monroe CountyEF1 Peach CountyEF1 Twiggs CountyEF1 Twiggs CountyEF1 Washington CountyEF0 Stewart CountyEF0 Stewart CountyEF0 Talbot CountyEF0 Webster CountyEF0 Spalding CountyEF0 Upson CountyEF0 Henry CountyEF0 Jones CountyEF0 Wilkinson CountyEF0 Wilkinson CountyEF0 Hancock CountyEF0 Wilkinson CountyEF0 Washington County

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event 698226. Narratives are written by the National Weather Service forecast office that issued the report.

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