Archive:2011 Eclectic–Lake Martin tornado: Difference between revisions
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{{Short description|EF4 tornado near Eclectic, Alabama}} | {{Short description|EF4 tornado near Eclectic, Alabama}} | ||
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| season = [[2011 Super Outbreak]] and [[Tornadoes of 2011]] | | season = [[2011 Super Outbreak]] and [[Tornadoes of 2011]] | ||
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During the evening of April 27, 2011, A large and deadly tornado commonly known as the '''Lake Martin tornado''' Effected multiple towns During its {{Convert|44|mi|km|adj=on}} path, including [[Dadeville]], and [[Eclectic, Alabama|Eclectic]], Part of a [[2011 Super outbreak|very large and deadly tornado outbreak]], which is the largest and costliest [[Tornado | During the evening of April 27, 2011, A large and deadly tornado commonly known as the '''Lake Martin tornado''' Effected multiple towns During its {{Convert|44|mi|km|adj=on}} path, including [[Dadeville]], and [[Eclectic, Alabama|Eclectic]], Part of a [[2011 Super outbreak|very large and deadly tornado outbreak]], which is the largest and costliest [[Tornado outbreak]] in United States history. | ||
The tornado first touched down north of [[Wetumpka, Alabama|Wetumpka]] in [[Elmore County, Alabama|Elmore County]], south of Charity Lane at approximately 8:12 p.m. CDT (01:12 UTC). It began to track Northeast along Grier Road (CR 209) at high-end EF1 intensity, snapping multiple trees and blowing out a facing gable-end of the south side of a roof to a home. | The tornado first touched down north of [[Wetumpka, Alabama|Wetumpka]] in [[Elmore County, Alabama|Elmore County]], south of Charity Lane at approximately 8:12 p.m. CDT (01:12 UTC). It began to track Northeast along Grier Road (CR 209) at high-end EF1 intensity, snapping multiple trees and blowing out a facing gable-end of the south side of a roof to a home. | ||
Moving northeastward the tornado then reached EF2 intensity near dexter, damaging multiple homes and blowing debris away as far as 100 yards, the tornado then continued intensifying before reaching EF4 intensity on [[Lake martin]] destroying multiple homes and buildings in the vicinity, the tornado would then pass the south side of [[Dadeville, Alabama|Dadeville]] before weakening and dissipating Northwest of [[Lafayette, Alabama|Lafayette]]. | Moving northeastward the tornado then reached EF2 intensity near dexter, damaging multiple homes and blowing debris away as far as 100 yards, the tornado then continued intensifying before reaching EF4 intensity on [[Lake martin]] destroying multiple homes and buildings in the vicinity, the tornado would then pass the south side of [[Dadeville, Alabama|Dadeville]] before weakening and dissipating Northwest of [[Lafayette, Alabama|Lafayette]]. | ||
==Meteorological synopsis== | ==Meteorological synopsis== | ||
{{Main|2011 Super Outbreak#Meteorological synopsis}} | {{Main|2011 Super Outbreak#Meteorological synopsis}} | ||
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[[File:EF4 Damage 2011 Lake Martin tornado Sandy Lane 02.png|right|thumb|255x255px|A destroyed home on Sandy lane.]] | [[File:EF4 Damage 2011 Lake Martin tornado Sandy Lane 02.png|right|thumb|255x255px|A destroyed home on Sandy lane.]] | ||
Three Different counties including: [[Elmore County]], [[Tallapoosa County]], and [[Chambers County, Alabama|Chambers County]] were all devastated by the tornado, the tornado also impacted multiple different towns and communities on [[Lake Martin]]. | Three Different counties including: [[Elmore County, Alabama|Elmore County]], [[Tallapoosa County]], and [[Chambers County, Alabama|Chambers County]] were all devastated by the tornado, the tornado also impacted multiple different towns and communities on [[Lake Martin]]. | ||
Following the tornado, pilot Charles Moon surveyed the path and drew out an area of "total destruction" along the path of the tornado.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Photo: Path of tornado at Lake Martin - April 27, 2011 |url=https://www.lakemartin.com/Gallery/Photo/026FE115-46C6-40A3-8FE3-3B6BD0419A7F/C2E7BCE6-39E6-433F-906B-E3621C7FF633/ |access-date=July 29, 2024 |website=www.lakemartin.com}}</ref> Losses from the tornado totaled at $167 million (2011 USD). Following the tornado, 30 people were injured and seven people were killed, four in Dexter, two on [[Lake Martin]], and one in [[Dadeville]]<ref name=":12">{{Cite web |last=Sebree |first=Tyler |date=April 28, 2021 |title=April 27, 2011: The unprecedented tornado outbreak |url=https://www.wsfa.com/2021/04/27/april-unprecedented-tornado-outbreak/ |access-date=July 29, 2024 |website=WSFA |language=en}}</ref> | Following the tornado, pilot Charles Moon surveyed the path and drew out an area of "total destruction" along the path of the tornado.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Photo: Path of tornado at Lake Martin - April 27, 2011 |url=https://www.lakemartin.com/Gallery/Photo/026FE115-46C6-40A3-8FE3-3B6BD0419A7F/C2E7BCE6-39E6-433F-906B-E3621C7FF633/ |access-date=July 29, 2024 |website=www.lakemartin.com}}</ref> Losses from the tornado totaled at $167 million (2011 USD). Following the tornado, 30 people were injured and seven people were killed, four in Dexter, two on [[Lake Martin]], and one in [[Dadeville]]<ref name=":12">{{Cite web |last=Sebree |first=Tyler |date=April 28, 2021 |title=April 27, 2011: The unprecedented tornado outbreak |url=https://www.wsfa.com/2021/04/27/april-unprecedented-tornado-outbreak/ |access-date=July 29, 2024 |website=WSFA |language=en}}</ref> | ||
Latest revision as of 02:51, 30 September 2026
Template:Short description Template:Use American English Template:Use mdy dates Template:Infobox weather eventTemplate:Infobox weather event/TornadoTemplate:Infobox weather event/EffectsTemplate:Infobox weather event/Footer During the evening of April 27, 2011, A large and deadly tornado commonly known as the Lake Martin tornado Effected multiple towns During its Template:Convert/LoffAoffDbSon path, including Dadeville, and Eclectic, Part of a very large and deadly tornado outbreak, which is the largest and costliest Tornado outbreak in United States history.
The tornado first touched down north of Wetumpka in Elmore County, south of Charity Lane at approximately 8:12 p.m. CDT (01:12 UTC). It began to track Northeast along Grier Road (CR 209) at high-end EF1 intensity, snapping multiple trees and blowing out a facing gable-end of the south side of a roof to a home.
Moving northeastward the tornado then reached EF2 intensity near dexter, damaging multiple homes and blowing debris away as far as 100 yards, the tornado then continued intensifying before reaching EF4 intensity on Lake martin destroying multiple homes and buildings in the vicinity, the tornado would then pass the south side of Dadeville before weakening and dissipating Northwest of Lafayette.
Meteorological synopsis
Setup
The environmental conditions leading up to the 2011 Super Outbreak were among the "most conducive to violent tornadoes ever documented".[1] On April 25, a vigorous upper-level shortwave trough moved into the Southern Plains states.[2] Ample instability, low-level moisture, and wind shear all fueled a significant tornado outbreak from Texas to Tennessee; at least 64 tornadoes touched down on this day.[1] An area of low pressure consolidated over Texas on April 26 and traveled east while the aforementioned shortwave trough traversed the Mississippi and Ohio River valleys.[3] Another 50 tornadoes touched down on this day.[1] The multi-day outbreak culminated on April 27 with the most violent day of tornadic activity since the 1974 Super Outbreak. Multiple episodes of tornadic activity ensued with two waves of mesoscale convective systems in the morning hours followed by a widespread outbreak of supercells from Mississippi to North Carolina during the afternoon into the evening.[1]
Tornadic activity on April 27 was precipitated by a 995 mbar (hPa; 29.39 inHg) surface low situated over Kentucky and a deep, negatively tilted (aligned northwest to southeast) trough over Arkansas and Louisiana. A strong southwesterly surface jet intersected these systems at a 60° angle, an ageostrophic flow that led to storm-relative helicity values in excess of 500 m2s−2—indicative of extreme wind shear and a very high potential for rotating updrafts within supercells. Ample moisture from the Gulf of Mexico was brought north across the Deep South, leading to daytime high temperatures of Template:Convert/to and dewpoints of Template:Convert/to. Furthermore, convective available potential energy (CAPE) values reached 2,500–3,000 J/kg−1.[1]
Forecast
Template:Multiple image On the morning of April 27, a strong cold front with several areas of embedded low pressure extended from the Texas Hill Country northeastward towards the Arklatex and the Ozarks, and later into the lower Ohio Valley. Warm moist air was in place due to strong southerly flow ahead of the front over Mississippi, Alabama, and Tennessee. An upper level disturbance sparked a broad area of showers and thunderstorms as it moved across the frontal boundary on the previous evening. The eastern edge of the line of showers and storms continued to move eastward, in concert with the upper disturbance, reaching the northwest Alabama border around 2:00 a.m. CDT.[4]
This produced the last and most violent round of severe weather, which began around 2:30 p.m. CDT for northern Alabama as supercells began to line up to the southwest of the area. During the early afternoon hours, the potential for destructive tornadoes was highlighted by the Storm Prediction Center's upgrade to a high risk for severe weather around 1:00 p.m. CDT.[4] This prompted a particularly dangerous situation (PDS) tornado watch, which was issued for northern Alabama and portions of southern Tennessee at 1:45 p.m. CDT. The bulletin that accompanied the watch read:[5] Template:Blockquote The potential for tornadoes ramped up from noon through 9:00 p.m. CDT. During this period, much of Alabama experienced numerous supercell thunderstorms that produced numerous tornadoes, including the Lake Martin tornado.[4][6][7]
Tornado summary
The tornado touched down along County Road 209 near Meadowview Drive where a few snapped trees were noted.
The tornado then quickly intensified to EF2 intensity as it moved northeast through Dexter. The tornado would then cross Highway 9 and would damage several homes and then would intensify to EF3 intensity as it would cause its first 4 fatalities in a mobile home park at the intersection of Middle Road and Auction Barn Road. The tornado continued east to the Mount Hebron Road area and destroyed several buildings, including 2 churches and an agricultural nursery.
Lake Martin
The tornado then began to cross Lake Martin, just south of the Highway 63 Bridge. The tornado then produced significant damage to numerous homes around the Windermere area. At this point, the tornado was nearly 1/4 mile wide.
The tornado would then move into Tallapoosa County just to the south of County Road 34, where it widened to nearly 1/2 mile and strengthened to EF4 intensity.[8] Here the damage was the most widespread and severe with several well built multi-story homes totally destroyed with no walls remaining on floors above basement level. The tornado continued at this strength but became narrower to nearly 400 yards wide as it crossed Highway 49 just north of Jones Road where it destroyed 2 homes and rolled a pick-up truck 120 yards. The tornado continued northeast and weakened to EF-3 strength with winds of 155 mph. It crossed U.S. Hwy 280 just east of Dadeville where it produced significant damage to several homes and businesses, and caused one fatality. The tornado crossed into Chambers County west of Lafayette, south of CR 48. The tornado crossed into western Chambers County and passed just to the north of Sikes. Along County Road 54 north of Sikes, one home was completely destroyed. The tornado weakened as it moved northeast across County Road 66 and ended just north of County Road 51.
Tornado Warnings were in effect for Elmore, Tallapoosa and Chambers Counties from 733 pm until 915 pm.
Dadeville and dissipation
The tornado remained at EF3 intensity as it began to approach Dadeville and continued its northeastward heading. Along County Road 54, a 100-year-old wood-framed home on a brick column pier raised foundation was completely obliterated; winds in this area were estimated to be up to Template:Convert/mph.[9] The tornado then gradually weakened as it continued northeastward through densely forested areas. Trees were snapped or uprooted along this final portion of the path before the tornado dissipated at 9:09 p.m. CDT (02:09 UTC) after tracking 44.18 miles ({{rnd/cTemplate:Rnd/b|Expression error: Unexpected < operator.|(Expression error: Unexpected < operator.)|Expression error: Unexpected < operator.}} km) and reaching a maximum width of Template:Convert/yd.[10]
Aftermath
Three Different counties including: Elmore County, Tallapoosa County, and Chambers County were all devastated by the tornado, the tornado also impacted multiple different towns and communities on Lake Martin. Following the tornado, pilot Charles Moon surveyed the path and drew out an area of "total destruction" along the path of the tornado.[11] Losses from the tornado totaled at $167 million (2011 USD). Following the tornado, 30 people were injured and seven people were killed, four in Dexter, two on Lake Martin, and one in Dadeville[12]
See also
- List of F4, EF4, and IF4 tornadoes
- List of tornadoes in the 2011 Super Outbreak
- 2011 Super outbreak
- 2011 Smithville tornado, An EF5 tornado that occurred on the same day
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Kevin R. Knupp (July 2014). "Meteorological Overview of the Devastating 27 April 2011 Tornado Outbreak". Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society (American Meteorological Society) 95 (7): 1,041–1,062. doi:. Bibcode: 2014BAMS...95.1041K.
- ↑ Template:Cite report
- ↑ Template:Cite report
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 "Weather Setup: April 27th, 2011 Historic Tornado Outbreak" (in EN-US). National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. https://www.weather.gov/hun/hunsur_2011-04-27_setup. Template:Source-attribution
- ↑ Center, Storm Prediction. "Storm Prediction Center Tornado/Severe Thunderstorm Watch Page" (in EN-US). https://www.spc.noaa.gov/products/watch/2011/ww0235.html.
- ↑ Morgan, Leigh (2022-04-27). "18 hours of horror: A look back at the tornadoes of April 27, 2011" (in en). https://www.al.com/news/2022/04/18-hours-of-horror-a-look-back-at-the-tornadoes-of-april-27-2011.html.
- ↑ "Remembering April 27, 2011 in photos" (in en). WVTM. 2015-11-25. https://www.wvtm13.com/article/remembering-april-27-2011-in-photos/3827940.
- ↑ "Alabama Event Report: EF4 Tornado". National Weather Service Birmingham AL. https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/stormevents/eventdetails.jsp?id=315334.
- ↑ "Alabama Event Report: EF3 Tornado". National Weather Service Birmingham AL. https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/stormevents/eventdetails.jsp?id=315335.
- ↑ "April 27, 2011 tornadoes, moment-by-moment: How it happened" (in en). April 27, 2021. https://www.al.com/news/2021/04/april-27-2011-tornadoes-moment-by-moment-how-it-happened.html.
- ↑ "Photo: Path of tornado at Lake Martin - April 27, 2011". https://www.lakemartin.com/Gallery/Photo/026FE115-46C6-40A3-8FE3-3B6BD0419A7F/C2E7BCE6-39E6-433F-906B-E3621C7FF633/.
- ↑ Sebree, Tyler (April 28, 2021). "April 27, 2011: The unprecedented tornado outbreak" (in en). https://www.wsfa.com/2021/04/27/april-unprecedented-tornado-outbreak/.