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EF1 tornado in Greene County, Georgia

Tornado April 13, 2020 · Greene County, Georgia

EF1
Rating
6.4 mi
Path length
350 yd
Path width
$500K
Damage as recorded
EF0EF1EF2EF3EF4EF5Unrated

The path drawn at its surveyed width of 350 yards (0.20 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

The same storm which generated a tornado in Putnam County regenerated a new EF1 tornado once it crossed into Greene County at Lake Oconee. The tornado first touched down along Reynolds Parkway within the Creek Club Reynolds Plantation subdivision snapping an uprooting a few trees. As the tornado continued NE through the subdivision it intensified to maximum intensity (105 MPH) near the golf course at Rose Creek and Cottage Lane. Several well built homes sustained minor roof damage from wind or debris. Hundreds of trees were snapped or uprooted in the area between Sandy Ford and Rose Creek. The tornado reached the point at the end of Rose Creek where several homes had trees fall on them caused more significant damage. A portion of dock at a home on Rose Creek was lifted out of the water and thrown onto the

shore and numerous boathouses sustained major damage. The storm crossed a portion of Lake Oconee and emerged into another subdivision along Cherokee Drive, Cloudland Ct. and Eagle Bluff Drive where numerous trees were snapped and uprooted. Several

homes sustained damage from trees here as well. The storm crossed Bouldercrest Way and Sun Valley Ct, across another portion of Lake Oconee and up Club Drive snapping and uprooting trees. The tornado weakened a bit as it moved up Armour Rd with EF0 type tree damage and crossed Fleur de Lac Lane where a pocket of EF1 tree damage was observed and a home was severely damaged from a falling tree. The storm continued to weaken as it moved NE and dissipatedas it crossed Veaszy and White Plains Rd where a tree was knocked over. In total, an estimated 35 to 40 homes were impacted by trees from this tornado. [04/13/20: Tornado #17, County #1/1, EF-1, Greene, 2020:023].

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 Ruth (33.4443, -83.2280).

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 893102. Narratives are written by the National Weather Service forecast office that issued the report.

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