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Fujita
Tornado Damage Scale
Category
F0: Light Damage (<73 mph); Some damage to chimneys;
branches broken off trees; shallow-rooted trees pushed over;
sign boards damaged.
Category F1: Moderate Damage (73-112 mph);
Peels surface off roofs; mobile homes pushed off foundations
or overturned; moving autos blown off road.
Category F2: Considerable Damage (113-157 mph);
Roofs torn off frame houses; mobile homes demolished; boxcars
overturned; large trees snapped or uprooted; light-object missiles
generated; cars lifted off ground.
Category F3: Severe Damage (158- 206 mph);
Roofs and some walls torn off well-constructed houses, trains
overturned; most trees in forest uprooted; heavy cars lifted
off ground and thrown.
Category F4: Devastating Damage (207- 260 mph);
Well-constructed houses leveled; structure with weak foundations
blown off some distance; cars thrown and large missiles generated.
Category F5: Incredible Damage (261- 318 mph);
Strong frame houses lifted off foundations and swept away; automobile
sized missiles fly through the air in excess of 100 meters (109
yards); trees debarked; incredible phenomena will occur.
IMPORTANT
NOTE ABOUT F-SCALE WINDS: Do not use F-scale winds
literally. These wind speed numbers are estimates and have never
been scientifically verified. Different wind speeds may cause
similar-looking damage from place to place—even from building
to building. Without a thorough engineering analysis of tornado
damage in any event, the actual wind speeds needed to cause
that damage are unknown. |
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 Tornadoes
are one of nature's most violent storms. In an average year, about
1,000 tornadoes are reported across the United States, resulting in
80 deaths and over 1,500 injuries. A tornado is a violently rotating
column of air extending from a thunderstorm to the ground. The most
violent tornadoes are capable of tremendous destruction with wind
speeds of 250 mph or more. Damage paths can be in excess of one mile
wide and 50 miles long.
Tornadoes come
in all shapes and sizes and can occur anywhere in the U.S. at any
time of the year. In the southern states, peak tornado season is March
through May, while peak months in the northern states are during the
summer.
•
Weather
Glossary for Storm Spotters
• Storm
Reports - includes monthly tornado statistics,
deadly tornadoes, current severe weather reports and more from
the National Weather Service's Storm Prediction Center.
•
Severe
Storm Climatology —
Where and When Do Severe Thunderstorms Occur? (Storm Animations,
Total Threats, Annual Cycles)
•
Tornado
Climatology —
Long-term Averages by State
•
Tornadoes
of the 20th Century
- a list of the more notable tornado outbreaks that occurred
in the U.S. during the 20th century.
•
Severe
Weather Information from NOAA's National Weather Service
- information
about Tornadoes, Thunderstorms, Floods
•
Highway
Overpasses as Tornado Shelters: Fallout From the May 3, 1999
Oklahoma/Kansas Violent Tornado Outbreak
•
VORTEX:
Unraveling the Secrets - created by the National
Severe Storms Laboratory as a prototype educational site for
the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
•
Golden
Anniversary of Tornado Forecasting: 50 Years of Service to the
American People
• The
April 3-4, 1974 Super
Outbreak was the largest known outbreak of tornadoes,
with 148 tornadoes in 11 states. This and more Tornado
Fast Facts.
This is the
oldest
known photo of a tornado. It was taken on
August 28, 1884 near Howard, South Dakota. The name of the photographer
is not known.
For
more tornado photos and drawings, visit the Severe
Storms Laboratory and Historic
NWS Albums of NOAA
Photo Library - home of more than 30,000 public
domain photos.
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National
Severe Storms Laboratory
•
NOAA
National Weather Service
•
NOAA
Storm Prediction Center
•
NOAA
Weather Radio
•
NOAA
National Weather Organization Listing
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