EF4 Tornado — Hardin, Tennessee

2008-02-05 · near Box Elder, Hardin, Tennessee

Event narrative

The initial tornado touchdown occurred west of the Tennessee River near the intersection of Coffee Landing Road and Towboat Lane about 740 pm CST. The tornado then quickly raced northeast causing extensive damage to homes and trees just east of the Tennessee River in the Oak Grove, Cerro Gordo and Swift Communities. The tornado destroyed 59 houses, 11 mobile homes, 11 public buildings, a vacant store and 11 farm buildings. Another 117 structures received varying degrees of damage. Four of the 11 public buildings belonged to the Sharon Baptist Church. The church lost its sanctuary, preschool, academy and student center, off Cravens Road in the Oak Grove area. Two of the five injuries occurred at the church while two more injuries occurred in homes in the Oak Grove area. All three deaths occurred in mobile homes. Two of the deaths occurred in the Cerro Gordo area while the third fatality occurred in northeast Hardin County in the vicinity of Nance Bend Road and Highway 128. The tornado continued northeast before lifting near the intersection of Highway 114 and Highway 128 around 757 pm CST. The path length was about 16 miles and the maximum width was one half mile. The highest estimated winds were around 170 mph. Utility restoration costs were estimated at around $200,000.

Wider weather episode

A strong low pressure system tracked from Northern Arkansas into Southern Missouri during the evening hours of February 5th, 2008. Supercells developed out ahead of the system during the late afternoon into the early evening. The storms produced tornadoes, large hail and damaging winds. As the supercells moved east during the evening, a cold front moved into West Tennessee. A squall line developed along the front and produced another round of large hail and damaging winds. The front continued to push east into the overnight hours.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (35.2676, -88.2926)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 83209. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.