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EF1 tornado in Banks County, Georgia

Tornado April 13, 2020 · Banks County, Georgia

EF1
Rating
22.4 mi
Whole path
200 yd
Path width
$140K
Damage as recorded

NOAA records this tornado county by county. Its path ran through Habersham County → Banks County → Habersham County → Stephens County → Stephens County; the totals above are for the whole tornado.

EF0EF1EF2EF3EF4EF5Unrated

The path drawn at its surveyed width of 200 yards (0.11 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

This survey/narrative was done by NWS Greenville-Spartanburg. This tornado touched down in extreme northeast Hall County and quickly crossed into Habersham County along Herring Mill Rd. The tornado moved east/northeast, crossing U.S.23 just west of Alto. The tornado began to move in more of an easterly direction as it moved across the south side of the city of Baldwin, taking it into Banks County, near the intersection of Park Ave and Old Orchard Rd. The tornado continued east from Baldwin, although damage indicators became more sporadic as it passed through a remote portion of the

Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forest. The tornado briefly crossed over the southeast corner of Habersham County again, before moving into Stephens County, apparently dissipating in the Old Cannon Rd/E Red Root Rd area. Damage along the entire path was largely limited to snapped and uprooted trees, although one mobile home received minor to moderate roof damage on Hamby Mountain Park Dr in Baldwin (Banks County). [04/13/20: Tornado #14, County #2/2, EF-1, Banks, 2020:020].

The wider storm

A powerful Spring storm system resulted in a Severe Weather / Tornado outbreak across much of the Southeast region, including north and central Georgia, beginning on Easter Sunday (April 12th) and lingering into the morning hours of April 13th. From the Storm Prediction Center (Day 1) convective outlook, just about the entire area was under an ENHANCED risk for severe weather with a MODERATE risk extending from the ArkLaMiss into western Georgia.

In addition, enhanced rainfall occurred over far north Georgia and in portions of central Georgia, with rainfall amounts ranging from 3 to 8 inches through the event. Significant flooding was in portions of the area with numerous reports of washouts and several reports of rescues.

Began near Baldwin (34.4846, -83.5535).

Other tornadoes from the same storm system

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

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event 893088. Narratives are written by the National Weather Service forecast office that issued the report.

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