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F2 tornado in Okeechobee County, Florida

Tornado June 18, 1972 · Okeechobee County, Florida

Rating

4.5 mi

Path length

150 yd

Path width

Deaths

Injuries

$500K

Damage as recorded

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The path drawn at its surveyed width of 150 yards (0.09 mi) — zoom in and the swath grows to true scale. Other tornadoes recorded nearby that day are shown faint.

What F2 means. This tornado was rated on Fujita’s original scale, used until 2007. F2 meant considerable damage: roofs torn off well-built houses, mobile homes destroyed, large trees snapped or uprooted; the scale paired it with winds of 113–157 mph, figures later judged too high, especially toward the top of the scale, and revised downward in the Enhanced Fujita scale. Ratings then, as now, came from the damage.

What the National Weather Service wrote

A tornado cut a path up to 150 yards wide and 4.5 miles long as it moved north from Taylor Creek, affecting Treasure Island Park, a fishing lodge and several other mobile home parks. Six people were killed and 44 were injured (many seriously). Over one hundred mobile homes were destroyed or heavily damaged. Property damage was estimated near $500,000. Note: this event was added in 2018, following a reanalysis by NWS Melbourne.

The wider storm

As Hurricane Agnes moved northward, approximately 200 miles west of the Florida peninsula, numerous tornadoes occurred across south and central Florida, many of which were strong (F2 and F3), resulting in numerous casualties and considerable property damage.

Began near Taylor Creek (27.2100, -80.8000).

Other tornadoes from the same storm system

1 more tornado the National Weather Service filed under this storm episode.

F2 Hendry County 1 dead

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event 990000003. Narratives are written by the National Weather Service forecast office that issued the report.

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