Tornadoes of 1998
Encyclopedia
This page documents the tornado
es and tornado outbreak
s of 1998, primarily in the United States
. Most tornadoes form in the U.S., although some events may take place internationally.
. Winds reached around 152 miles per hour and damaged over 90 homes damaged and eight home and six businesses destroyed. Tornado Watches were in effect but had expired at 5:00 AM leaving no warning from tornado sirens or trained spotters in the field. Unusually, the tornado spawned at the back end of a storm instead of the front. At least three people were injured.
In addition, the outbreak produced several other destructive tornadoes in Middle Tennessee. One of them, southwest of Nashville, was an F5 tornado—one of only two ever recorded in the state. That tornado remained mainly in rural areas of Wayne and Lawrence counties. Other tornadoes during the 2-day outbreak struck Arkansas, Alabama, Illinois and Kentucky.
12 people were killed by tornadoes during the outbreak including 2 in Arkansas, 3 in Kentucky and 7 in Tennessee including one in Nashville and three by the F5.
and Sunnyvale
in California's Santa Clara County
(Silicon Valley).
Tornado
A tornado is a violent, dangerous, rotating column of air that is in contact with both the surface of the earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. They are often referred to as a twister or a cyclone, although the word cyclone is used in meteorology in a wider...
es and tornado outbreak
Tornado outbreak
While there is no single agreed upon definition, generally at least 6-10 tornadoes produced by the same synoptic scale weather system is considered a tornado outbreak. The tornadoes usually occur within the same day, or continue into the early morning hours of the succeeding day, and within the...
s of 1998, primarily in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Most tornadoes form in the U.S., although some events may take place internationally.
Synopsis
The 1998 tornado season saw record numbers of tornadoes, and also the most fatalities since 1974. A number of tornado events resulted in large loss of life. In February, a series of tornadoes caused 42 fatalities in Florida. In March, a tornado killed 12 in Georgia. In April an F5 tornado killed 32 in the Birmingham, Alabama area (no stranger to killer tornadoes). By year's end, 130 had been killed in the United States.Events
Confirmed tornado total for the entire year 1998 in the United States.February 22–23
The 1998 Kissimmee tornado outbreak of February 22–23, 1998, was the deadliest tornado event in Florida history. Forty-two people were killed and 260 were injured; seven tornadoes were involved in the event (max rated F3). The previous record for the highest tornado death toll in Florida history was 17 on March 31, 1962.March 20
The 1998 Gainesville-Stoneville tornado outbreak was a deadly tornado outbreak that struck portions of the southeastern United States on March 20, 1998. Particularly hard hit was the Gainesville, Georgia region where at least 12 people were killed in an early morning F3 tornado. The entire outbreak killed 14 people and produced 12 tornadoes across three states with the town of Stoneville, North Carolina being also hard hit by the storms.March 28
A tornado touched down at approximately 5:25 AM in the town of Mattoon, IllinoisMattoon, Illinois
Mattoon is a city in Coles County, Illinois, United States. The population was 18,555 as of the 2010 census. It is a principal city of the Charleston–Mattoon Micropolitan Statistical Area.Mattoon was the site of the "Mad Gasser" attacks of the 1940s....
. Winds reached around 152 miles per hour and damaged over 90 homes damaged and eight home and six businesses destroyed. Tornado Watches were in effect but had expired at 5:00 AM leaving no warning from tornado sirens or trained spotters in the field. Unusually, the tornado spawned at the back end of a storm instead of the front. At least three people were injured.
March 29
The 1998 Comfrey – St. Peter tornado outbreak was an unseasonably-strong tornado outbreak which affected the Upper Midwest region of the United States on March 29, 1998. 16 tornadoes struck across the region—14 in Minnesota and two in Wisconsin. Thirteen of the tornadoes in Minnesota were spawned by a single supercell thunderstorm. Two people were killed, and 21 others were injured. Most of the damage was caused by three tornadoes—one rated F4 on the Fujita scale that hit the town of Comfrey, Minnesota, an F3 that hit St. Peter, Minnesota, and an F2 that hit Le Center, Minnesota.April 8
The Birmingham Tornado was a tornadic event that occurred on April 8, 1998 striking the western part of Jefferson County, Alabama, near Birmingham, and continuing into neighboring St. Clair County. It was part of a larger outbreak that started on April 6 across the Great Plains and ended on April 9 across the Carolinas and Georgia. A total of 62 tornadoes touched down from the Middle Atlantic States to the Midwestern United States and Texas. The Birmingham Tornado was one of only two F5 tornadoes that year. The other hit in Lawrence County, Tennessee on April 16, as part of the same outbreak as the Nashville tornadoes. The tornado outbreak was responsible for at least 41 deaths including 7 in Georgia and 34 in Alabama.April 9
The Dunwoody tornado was a significant tornado that tore across the northern suburbs of metro Atlanta on April 9, 1998. It struck parts of the four most populous counties in Georgia: Cobb, Fulton, DeKalb, and Gwinnett. The most severe damage was in the Dunwoody area, where the storm reached a high-end F2 on the Fujita scale, making it one of the strongest and most damaging recorded to have hit that area.April 15–16
The 1998 Nashville tornado outbreak was a two-day tornado outbreak which affected portions of the Midwestern United States, Mississippi and Tennessee Valleys on April 15 and April 16, 1998, with the worst of the outbreak taking place on the second day. On that day, at least ten tornadoes swept through Middle Tennessee—three of them touching down in Nashville, causing significant damage to the downtown and East Nashville areas. Nashville became the first major city in nearly 20 years to have an F2 or larger tornado make a direct hit in the downtown area.In addition, the outbreak produced several other destructive tornadoes in Middle Tennessee. One of them, southwest of Nashville, was an F5 tornado—one of only two ever recorded in the state. That tornado remained mainly in rural areas of Wayne and Lawrence counties. Other tornadoes during the 2-day outbreak struck Arkansas, Alabama, Illinois and Kentucky.
12 people were killed by tornadoes during the outbreak including 2 in Arkansas, 3 in Kentucky and 7 in Tennessee including one in Nashville and three by the F5.
May 4
Two tornadoes hit Los AltosLos Altos, California
Los Altos is a city at the southern end of the San Francisco Peninsula, in the San Francisco Bay Area. The city is in Santa Clara County, California, United States. The population was 28,976 according to the 2010 census....
and Sunnyvale
Sunnyvale, California
Sunnyvale is a city in Santa Clara County, California, United States. It is one of the major cities that make up the Silicon Valley located in the San Francisco Bay Area...
in California's Santa Clara County
Santa Clara County, California
Santa Clara County is a county located at the southern end of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. As of 2010 it had a population of 1,781,642. The county seat is San Jose. The highly urbanized Santa Clara Valley within Santa Clara County is also known as Silicon Valley...
(Silicon Valley).
May 30–31
The Late-May 1998 Tornado Outbreak and Derecho was a historic tornado outbreak and derecho that began on the afternoon of May 30 extending throughout May 31, 1998, across a large portion of the northern half of the United States and southern Ontario from southeastern Montana east and southeastward to the Atlantic Ocean. The initial tornado outbreak, including the devastating Spencer tornado, hit southeast South Dakota on the evening of the May 30. The Spencer tornado was the most destructive and second deadliest tornado in South Dakota history. 13 people were killed; 7 by tornadoes and 6 by the derecho, and damage was estimated at at least $500 million in damage. Over two million people lost electrical power, some for up to 10 days.June 2
The 1998 Eastern Tornado Outbreak of June 2, 1998 was one of the most significant tornado outbreaks in recent history over the east-central United States. This severe weather event spawned a total of 50 tornadoes from New York to South Carolina and caused an estimated $42 million in damage, 80 injuries and 2 fatalities. For portions of New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania, it was the second historic severe weather outbreak in three days, as it immediately followed the Late-May 1998 Tornado Outbreak and Derecho on May 30–31, 1998, which spawned 41 tornadoes over NY, NJ, PA and Vermont, caused an estimated $83 million in damage, 109 injuries and 1 fatality.September 24–30
The 1998 Hurricane Georges tornado outbreak was six day tornado outbreak associated with the passage of Hurricane Georges in the Southeast United States. Most of the tornadoes produced by the storm formed in the outer bands of the storm and were relatively weak; however, one F2 tornado touched down in Florida. The outbreak produced 47 tornadoes—20 in Alabama, 17 in Florida and 10 in Georgia—and was the most extensive tornado event in Florida history, with touchdowns reported the entire length of the state.External links
- U.S. tornadoes in 1998 - Tornado History Project
- Storm Data "1998 Annual Summaries" (NCDC)
- Tornado deaths monthly (University of Nebraska, Lincoln)