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EF1 tornado in Autauga County, Alabama

Tornado March 14, 2019 · Autauga County, Alabama

EF1
Rating
7.1 mi
Path length
250 yd
Path width
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

National Weather Service meteorologists surveyed damage in Autauga County and determined that it was consistent with an EF1 tornado, with maximum sustained winds near 100 mph.

The tornado touched down near the intersection of County Road 15 and County Road 45. At onset a few homes suffered minor roof damage and several trees were uprooted or snapped off. The tornado tracked northeast along County Road 15 and damaged numerous trees. The tornado turned eastward and crossed County Road 38, County Road 40, County Road 79, and County Road 137. The tornado weakened and narrowed east of County Road 137, and lifted before it crossed U.S. Highway 82. Trees were uprooted or snapped along the entire path.

The wider storm

A widespread severe weather event occurred across central Alabama aduring the afternoon and evening hours on Thursday, March 14th. The event began in the northwest counties and spread eastward all the way to the Georgia state line. A strong low level jet of 40-50 knots, combined with moderate instability (1000-1500 J/kg) and 0-6km bulk shear of 55-50 knots, produced an atmosphere favorable for severe thunderstorms and supercells.

Began near Bonita (32.5282, -86.7880).

Other tornadoes from the same storm system

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

EF2 Elmore CountyEF1 Blount CountyEF1 Perry CountyEF0 Blount CountyEF0 Tuscaloosa CountyEF0 St. Clair CountyEF0 Perry CountyEF0 Calhoun CountyEF0 Marengo CountyEF0 Perry CountyEF0 Chilton CountyEF0 Coosa CountyEF0 Randolph County

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event 815064. Narratives are written by the National Weather Service forecast office that issued the report.

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