Ohatchee Tornado Upgraded to EF-Four

TORNADO 13…ARGO/SHOAL CREEK/OHATCHEE/FORNEY TORNADO (JEFFERSON/ST.
CLAIR/CALHOUN/ETOWAH/CHEROKEE COUNTIES)

PRELIMINARY DATA…
EVENT DATE: APRIL 27, 2011
EVENT TYPE: EF-4
ESTIMATED PEAK WINDS (MPH): UP TO 180
INJURIES/FATALITIES: NUMEROUS INJURIES/UNKNOWN.
EVENT START LOCATION AND TIME: 33.6792/-86.5699 AT 623 PM
EVENT END LOCATION AND TIME: 34.0661/-85.420 AT 747 PM (AT GEORGIA
STATE LINE)
DAMAGE PATH LENGTH (IN MILES): 72 MILES
DAMAGE WIDTH: UP TO 1.25 MILES
NOTE: CONTINUED INTO GEORGIA

NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE METEOROLOGISTS SURVEYED THE DAMAGE PATH
FROM EASTERN JEFFERSON COUNTY NORTHEAST TO CHEROKEE COUNTY. IT HAS
BEEN DETERMINED THAT THE DAMAGE WAS CONSISTENT WITH A STRONG
TORNADO. THE TORNADO TOUCHED DOWN NEAR ARGO…BETWEEN DEERFOOT
PARKWAY AND ADVENT ROAD…JUST NORTH OF INTERSTATE 59. THE TORNADO
THEN MOVED EAST ACROSS THE INTERSTATE INTO ST. CLAIR COUNTY. THE
TORNADO CAUSED EF-0 TO EF-1 DAMAGE AS IT TRACKED NEAR MARGARET AND
NORTH OF ODENVILLE. JUST NORTHEAST OF ODENVILLE…THE TORNADO
STRENGTHENED AND WIDENED CONSIDERABLY. THE TORNADO THEN MOVED
EAST-NORTHEAST ALONG COUNTY ROAD 22…THROUGH SHOAL CREEK. DAMAGE
ALL ALONG CR-22 WAS EXTENSIVE. SEVERAL HOMES HAD ALMOST ALL WALLS
BLOWN OUT…AND ONE ROUGHLY 40 YEAR OLD HOME WAS COMPLETELY LEVELED.
THE PATH CONTINUED EAST-NORTHEAST ACROSS NEELY HENRY LAKE INTO
CALHOUN COUNTY. THE GREATEST AMOUNT OF DAMAGE WAS DONE ON THE
EASTERN SHORES OF THE LAKE…JUST NORTH OF OHATCHEE. IN THIS AREA
NUMEROUS HOMES AND MOBILE HOMES WERE COMPLETELY LEVELED…INDICATIVE
OF A STRONG TORNADO. AT LEAST ONE WELL BUILT HOME WAS NEARLY SWEPT
CLEAN OF EVERYTHING ABOVE ITS BASEMENT…SAVE FOR A FEW ITEMS OF
FURNITURE. WINDS HERE WERE LIKELY UP TO 180 MPH. THE DAMAGE PATH AT
THIS POINT REACHED ITS WIDEST… AROUND 1.25 MILES. THE TORNADO
CONTINUED TO CAUSE EXTENSIVE DAMAGE ON AN EAST-NORTHEAST PATH ACROSS
NORTHERN CALHOUN COUNTY…JUST SOUTH OF THE ETOWAH COUNTY LINE. ALL
HOMES IN ITS PATH RECEIVED SIGNIFICANT DAMAGE AND MANY WERE
COMPLETELY DESTROYED. A SMALL CHURCH ON ROCKY HOLLOW ROAD NEAR THE
WEBSTER CHAPEL COMMUNITY WAS COMPLETELY LEVELED. THE TORNADO BRIEFLY
WENT THROUGH SOUTHEAST ETOWAH COUNTY SOUTHEAST OF REAVES…CLIPPED A
SMALL PORTION OF CALHOUN COUNTY ONE LAST TIME…THEN MOVED INTO
CHEROKEE COUNTY. THERE IT DAMAGED NUMEROUS MORE HOMES AND MOBILE
HOMES AS IT MOVED EAST-NORTHEASTWARD. THE TORNADO APPEARED TO WEAKEN
BRIEFLY AS IT MOVED THROUGH FROG MOUNTAIN…BUT THEN IT WIDENED AND
STRENGTHENED ONCE AGAIN BEFORE IT REACHED COUNTY ROAD 45 NORTH OF
ROCK RUN. ON COUNTY ROAD 29 SOUTH OF FORNEY…AN APPARENTLY WELL
BUILT FRAME HOME WAS COMPLETELY LEVELED TO THE GROUND BY WINDS THAT
MAY HAVE EXCEEDED 150 MPH. THE TORNADO THEN MOVED INTO GEORGIA AT
COUNTY ROAD 28. ALONG THE PATH…HUNDREDS OF STRUCTURES WERE DAMAGED
AND DESTROYED…AND MANY THOUSANDS OF TREES WERE
UPROOTED…SNAPPED…AND REDUCED TO SPIKED STUMPS.

Category: Severe Weather