2011 Super Outbreak

April 25–28, 2011 tornado outbreak

Storm system on April 27
Duration	3 days, 6 hours, 33 minutes
Tornadoes confirmed	359 confirmed (Record for a continuous outbreak)
Max. rating1	EF5 tornado
Fatalities	322 (+24 non-tornadic)
Damage	~$11 billion (2011 USD)
Areas affected	Midwest U.S., Southern U.S., Northeastern U.S. and Southern Ontario, Canada
1Most severe tornado damage; see Enhanced Fujita scale

An extremely large and violent tornado outbreak, the largest tornado outbreak ever recorded, and popularly known as the 2011 Super Outbreak, occurred from April 25 to 28, 2011. The outbreak affected the Southern, Midwestern, and Northeastern United States, leaving catastrophic destruction in its wake, especially across the state of Alabama. It produced destructive tornadoes in Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Mississippi, Tennessee, and Virginia, and affected many other areas throughout the Southern and Eastern United States. In total, 359 tornadoes were confirmed by the National Weather Service in 21 states from Texas to New York and even isolated tornadoes in Canada. Widespread and destructive tornadoes occurred on each day of the outbreak, with April 27 being among the most prolific and destructive tornado days in United States history with a record 208 tornadoes touching down that day. Four of the tornadoes were destructive enough to be rated EF5 on the Enhanced Fujita Scale, which is the highest ranking possible; typically these tornadoes are only recorded about once each year or less.

In total, 3444 people were killed as a result of the outbreak. That death toll includes 322 tornado-related deaths across six states. In addition, 24 fatalities were not caused by tornadoes, but were confirmed to be as a result of other thunderstorm-related impacts such as straight-line winds, hail, flash flooding or lightning. 239 deaths in Alabama alone were confirmed by the SPC and the state's Emergency Management Agency.

April 27 was the deadliest tornado day in the United States since the 1925 "Tri-State" outbreak, which produced the infamous Tri-State Tornado. Although it has been classified by some news outlets as the second-deadliest tornado outbreak in United States history, the 1936 Tupelo–Gainesville tornado outbreak actually holds that distinction with at least 436 reported deaths split almost evenly over two days. Officially the outbreak is listed by NOAA as the fourth deadliest in United States history and the 24-hour-period from 8:00 a.m. April 27 to 8:00 a.m. April 28 as the fifth deadliest tornado day in United States history. Nearly 500 preliminary local storm reports were received for tornadoes over four days, including 292 in 16 states on April 27 alone. It was also the costliest tornado outbreak and one of the costliest natural disasters in United States history (even after adjustments for inflation), with total damages of nearly $11 billion (2011 USD).

Meteorological synopsis

This animation of satellite images from April 26 through the morning of April 28 shows the development of the weather system which spawned the tornadoes.

The outbreak was caused by a vigorous upper-level trough that moved into the Southern Plains states on April 25. An extratropical cyclone developed ahead of this upper-level trough between northeast Oklahoma and western Missouri, which moved northeast. Conditions were similar on April 26, with a predicted likelihood of severe thunderstorms, including an extended threat of strong to violent long-track tornadoes during the afternoon and evening hours; mixed-layer CAPE values were forecast to be around 3000-4000 J/kg, around east Texas, Louisiana and Arkansas. The storm mode on April 26 was predicted to consist of mostly discrete supercells during the afternoon and early evening, shifting over to a mesoscale convective complex, with more of a threat of damaging winds and hail during the nighttime hours.

As the storm system moved eastward toward the Ohio, Mississippi and Tennessee Valleys on April 27, a very powerful 80-100 knot mid-level jet stream moved into the Ohio and Tennessee Valleys, behind the trough, creating strong wind shear, with a low pressure center moving quickly northeastward across those areas on the 27th. On the afternoon of April 27, CAPE values were estimated to be in the range of 2000-3000 J/kg across Louisiana and southern Mississippi, with the moderate instability moving northeastward across the southern Tennessee Valley; in addition, temperatures across the southeastern United States ranged from the 70s °F (mid-20s °C) to the lower 90s °F (near 35 °C). Helicity levels ranged from 450–600 m/s² supportive for significant tornadic activity and strong to violent long-track tornadoes.

In total, 56 severe weather watches were issued by the SPC over those four days in the outbreak area, including 41 tornado watches (10 of which were PDS watches) and 15 severe thunderstorm watches.

April 25

Starting on April 19, the Hydrometeorological Prediction Center began to discuss this storm system, and the possibility of an outbreak of strong thunderstorms early the following week near and ahead of its trailing cold front. A large area of possible severe storms for April 25–27 was forecast as the Storm Prediction Center (SPC), a division of the National Weather Service, issued a moderate risk of severe weather for three consecutive days, centered over Arkansas through Tennessee. By the late-afternoon hours of April 25, several tornadoes had been reported across a few states, including two which caused significant damage in Oklahoma and Texas. At 3:25 pm CDT (2025 UTC), the SPC issued a Particularly dangerous situation (PDS) tornado watch for much of Arkansas and parts of Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas and Louisiana. Tornadoes were scattered that day until early evening, when an intense tornadic cell tracked near the Little Rock metropolitan area and a tornado emergency was declared for Vilonia, Arkansas. Reports indicated that a tornado either 3 miles (4.8 km) or 0.5 miles (0.80 km) wide caused significant damage in the town. Reports indicate four people were killed. A strong EF3 tornado struck Hot Springs Village that evening as well, causing severe damage and 1 death. Another tornado caused extensive damage to Little Rock Air Force Base. Severe flooding continued across a large area from the Red River valley to the Great Lakes.

April 26

A high risk of severe weather was issued for April 26 for portions of Louisiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma and Texas along and near the Interstate 30 corridor as conditions became even more favorable for extreme weather. A large PDS tornado watch with very high tornado probabilities was issued that afternoon for that same area. Widespread tornado warnings were issued in that area later that evening, and tornadoes caused damage.

Tornado watches were also issued for the Lower Great Lakes in the afternoon hours, and supercells began to track across southern Michigan in the early evening. Several counties in Michigan were placed under tornado warnings, including Kent, Montcalm, Ionia, Kalamazoo, Calhoun, Barry, Eaton, Midland, and Bay counties. A tornado was later confirmed in Allegan County. A possible funnel was spotted in Kalamazoo County, and seven people were injured by a lightning strike in Portage. Further east, severe thunderstorms caused scattered wind damage and large hail across Pennsylvania and New York. Two-inch-diameter hail was reported in Lock Haven, Pennsylvania. An isolated supercell moved across Central New York throughout much of the afternoon, producing golf ball-sized hail in Syracuse, and spawned a very brief EF1 tornado in Verona Mills, causing primarily tree damage.

April 27

Photo of an EF4 tornado in southeast Mississippi, which killed 7 people in two states.

For the second day in a row, the SPC issued a high risk of severe weather for the Southern United States, and late that morning the SPC increased the probability for tornadoes to 45% along a corridor from Meridian, Mississippi to Huntsville, Alabama, an extremely rare issuance exceeding the high risk standards. Conditions for tornadoes became increasingly favorable for an extreme tornado outbreak. During the afternoon, a tornado emergency was declared for Neshoba County, Mississippi as a large tornado was reported on the ground by storm spotters. This powerful EF5 tornado caused incredible damage near Philadelphia, Mississippi where homes were swept away, vehicles were thrown, and the ground was scoured out to a depth of 2 feet by the tornado. 3 people died in this tornado when a mobile home was picked up, thrown into a wooded area, and disintegrated. The atmosphere became increasingly unstable throughout the late afternoon, causing more explosive supercell development. A widespread complex of supercell storms overspread the states of Mississippi and Alabama and violent tornadoes began rapidly touching down as the evening progressed. Four tornadoes were officially rated as EF5 on the Enhanced Fujita Scale that day. These tornadoes impacted several counties in the states of Mississippi and Alabama, especially the towns of Smithville, Mississippi; Hackleburg and Phil Campbell, Alabama; Philadelphia, Mississippi; and Rainsville, Alabama. This marks only the second day in history (the other being the April 3, 1974 Super Outbreak) that there were three or more EF5 or F5 tornadoes.

A separate complex of storms occurred earlier that morning and caused communication and warning problems due to power outages, leading people to have no warning of approaching tornadoes later that day. A squall line of severe thunderstorms packing strong straight-line winds and numerous embedded tornadoes impacted North and Central Alabama and parts of Middle and East Tennessee in the early morning hours. These storms knocked out power and telephone lines in a few areas; these outages would become much more widespread as the day continued. This preliminary line of storms also caused some NOAA weather radio transmitter sites to stop functioning for the remainder of the outbreak.

A dangerous and destructive tornado struck the city of Cullman, Alabama at around 3:00 p.m. CDT (2000 UTC). This large, multi-vortex tornado was captured on several TV tower cameras from stations such as Birmingham's Fox affiliate WBRC (channel 6) and ABC affiliate WBMA-LD/WCFT/WJSU (channels 58, 33 and 40). The tornado caused extensive destruction in downtown Cullman, a city of about 20,000 people; the tornado has been rated an EF4. The final damage count was 867 residences and 94 businesses in Cullman. At 4:00 p.m. CDT a tornado struck Lawrence County, Alabama, causing severe damage and killing a couple dozen people. At around 5:10 p.m. CDT (2210 UTC), a very large and exceptionally destructive tornado struck Tuscaloosa, Alabama. About 40 minutes later, the same tornado struck the northern suburbs of Birmingham. A tornado emergency was issued for both cities, and many other tornado emergencies were issued that day. Many local TV stations, including WBRC and WBMA-LD/WCFT/WJSU, as well as CBS affiliate WIAT (channel 42), captured footage of this long-track tornado in both Tuscaloosa and Birmingham. A debris ball was observed by the Birmingham NEXRAD, indicating that the tornado was causing extreme damage. Photos from the damage path showed total devastation. The path of this tornado struck the same small communities as the F4 storm on April 1956 Birmingham tornado, and the F5 storms on April 1977 Birmingham tornado and April 1998 Birmingham tornado. The supercell responsible for the Tuscaloosa/Birmingham EF4 tornado originated in Newton County, Mississippi at 2:54 pm CDT and tracked 380 miles (610 km) to Macon County, North Carolina where it dissipated at 10:18 pm CDT. The supercell also produced the Shoal Creek Valley/Ohatchee, Alabama EF4 and an EF3 NE of Cartersville, Georgia.

By the morning of April 30, the Alabama Emergency Management Agency had confirmed at least 45 storm fatalities in Tuscaloosa. Also, several small Alabama towns including Hackleburg, Phil Campbell, Rainsville, Harvest, Hueytown, Pleasant Grove, Tanner and Concord suffered catastrophic damage.

A secondary area of severe weather also developed that evening along the Interstate 81 corridor from northern Virginia northward through Maryland, Pennsylvania and New York as far north as northern New York and continued into early April 28. Many tornadoes touched down in this area as well, although most were weak.

Map of all tornado (red), severe thunderstorm (yellow), and flood (green) warnings issued on April 27.

A statewide review by emergency management officials recorded 249 fatalities in Alabama. Damage and power outages in the Huntsville area were so widespread that at one point over 650,000 people were out of power in the TVA system. Severe tornado damage, including 22 deaths, also occurred in Ringgold, Apison and Cleveland due to a violent and long track EF4 tornado. Another violent and deadly tornado struck the town of Ohatchee, where a destructive EF4 destroyed many homes and killed 22 people. Other notable destructive and deadly tornadoes occurred that day in and around the towns of New Wren, Enterprise, Cordova, Trenton, Dadeville, New Harmony, Sawyerville, and Camp Creek. Tornado alerts were issued for Southern Ontario as far north as Ottawa; one tornado was later confirmed at Fergus.

The SPC shows 260 tornadoes were reported in the preceding 24 hours. It also broke the record for most tornadoes in 24 hours with 206 in the United States from midnight to midnight CDT (62 of which were in Alabama and 67 of which were in Tennessee), breaking the 24-hour record of 147 (in both totals, excluding confirmed tornadoes outside the United States that were part of the outbreak) set by the 1974 Super Outbreak.

April 28

Tornado watches were issued for the Atlantic Seaboard from Pennsylvania to Florida, but tornadoes were predicted to weaken and become more isolated. Even so, several people were killed across the region and tornadoes were reported in Pennsylvania, New York, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, and Maryland. Although tornado watches were issued, no tornadoes were spotted in New Jersey or Washington, D.C. In the wake of the tornadoes and severe thunderstorms, widespread flooding hit the Midwest, South, and Eastern Seaboard, with extensive flood and flash flood warnings issued. One particularly damaging and deadly EF3 tornado struck the town of Glade Spring, where 3 people died. Other strong tornadoes caused severe damage and a few fatalities in Georgia during the early morning hours. The last tornadoes of the outbreak touched down that afternoon in eastern North Carolina which was hard hit from the April 16 outbreak, but they were all weak. The system moved out into the Atlantic Ocean that evening, with the exception of isolated thunderstorms over central Florida that night into April 29, although there were no tornadoes then.

Confirmed tornadoes

See also: List of tornadoes in the April 25–28, 2011 tornado outbreak

Most significant tornadoes

Outbreak death toll
State/Province	Total	County	County total
Alabama	235	Bibb	1
		Calhoun	9
		Cullman	2
		DeKalb	28
		Elmore	6
		Fayette	4
		Franklin	27
		Hale	6
		Jackson	8
		Jefferson	20
		Lawrence	14
		Limestone	4
		Madison	9
		Marion	25
		Marshall	5
		St. Clair	13
		Tallapoosa	1
		Tuscaloosa	44
		Walker	9
Arkansas	5	Faulkner	4
		Garland	1
Georgia	14	Catoosa	7
		Dade	2
		Lamar	2
		Rabun	1
		Spalding	2
Mississippi	31	Chickasaw	3
		Clarke	4
		Jasper	2
		Kemper	3
		Monroe	17
		Smith	1
		Webster	1
Tennessee	33	Bledsoe	4
		Bradley	9
		Greene	8
		Hamilton	9
		Johnson	2
		Washington	1
Virginia	4	Halifax	1
		Washington	3
Totals	322
Only tornado-related deaths are included

Vilonia tornado

The first killer tornado of the outbreak was a large EF2 that struck the small town of Vilonia, Arkansas in Faulkner County around 7:30 pm CDT on April 25. A tornado warning was issued for the town roughly 30 minutes prior to the tornado's arrival and the relatively low loss of life is attributed to this lead time. A tornado emergency was declared at 7:24 pm CDT for Vilonia shortly before the tornado struck. Four people were killed in the town and many more injured. Numerous structures were also damaged or destroyed. One mobile home was completely destroyed and debris from the home was scattered a significant distance from where it stood. Several other homes were reportedly leveled by the tornado. Within five minutes of the storm, local fire fighters arrived in the town and began search and rescue efforts. Following the tornado, 85 members of the National Guard were deployed to assist in search and rescue, debris clearing, security and traffic control.

Smithville tornado

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EF5 damage in Smithville MS

A violent tornado struck Smithville, Mississippi, at 3:44 p.m. CDT on April 27. The damage path was 37.2 miles long, half a mile wide, and did extreme damage in Smithville. The NWS damage survey reported EF5 damage, with 18 homes, a post office, a police station, and what was listed as the "water system" completely destroyed, with 52 homes and 7 businesses damaged to varying degrees. Dozens of newly constructed two-story, brick homes were swept cleanly from their foundations and trees were debarked. Damage assessments have determined that 150 homes, 14 businesses and 4 churches were destroyed by the tornado in Smithville. The homes were well-built, of recent construction, but the storm was violent enough that all appliances and plumbing fixtures in the damage path were "shredded or missing". A large steel culvert that was buried underneath a road, was pulled up through the ground and asphalt and tossed away, leaving a large section of the ground and road missing. Due to the severity of the damage, the tornado was rated an EF5. The National Weather Service has determined that this tornado continued across the state line and struck Shottsville, Alabama where homes were destroyed and seven people were killed. It continued to the northwest of Hackleburg, Alabama where it caused mostly tree damage before lifting. In total, 23 people died in this tornado.

The last confirmed EF5 tornado was the Parkersburg, Iowa, tornado on May 25, 2008.

Rainsville tornado

This storm, rated EF5, is likely to have begun in the Lakeview community northeast of Geraldine, Alabama at 4:47 p.m. CDT, during the late afternoon of April 27. The tornado then tracked northeastward generally parallel and just east of State Route 75 through Fyffe, Rainsville, and Sylvania and into Georgia killing 23 people.

The tornado touched down in the Lakeview community, initially causing structural damage to small buildings and snapping trees. The tornado grew in intensity and the path width increased from around 50 yards to a half a mile as it entered the Rainsville and Sylvania communities. Damage included houses that were completely removed from foundations and debris scattered for about one mile (1.6 km), trees were debarked, and a few mobile homes were completely destroyed with debris strewn for about a mile downstream. EF5 damage was noted as a pickup truck was thrown, and torn into multiple pieces, an 800-pound steel safe anchored to a foundation was torn away, thrown 600 feet (180 m) and had its door torn from its hinges. One home in this area was swept away, and a stone pillar was ripped from the ground, thrown, and broken into pieces. Other homes that were swept away were found with their concrete porches torn away and smashed to pieces. In Sylvania, several other houses were completely removed from foundations, some of which contained anchor bolts and foundation straps. The tornado continued to the south of Ider were significant damage was obseved. It crossed into Georgia near Fox Mountain as an EF1 with winds of 110 mph. It tracked 3 miles (4.8 km) into Georgia before lifting outside of Rising Fawn. Damage in Georgia was limited to trees and power lines. This tornado came from the same supercell that produced the EF4 that hit the town of Ringgold, Georgia.

Hackleburg, Phil Campbell, Hillsboro, Tanner, East Limestone, Harvest/Toney tornado

EF5 damage in Phil Campbell.

A tornado touched down in Marion County, Alabama about 5 miles (8.0 km) WSW of Hamilton, AL around 3:00 p.m. CDT on April 27, leaving massive damage along its track. The storm would eventually reach the Hackleburg area, leveling many structures including a large plant operated by Wrangler. Jeans reportedly fell from the sky in Courtland, Alabama. Well built homes were wiped cleanly from their foundations and cars were thrown hundreds of feet. According to the Red Cross, 75% of the town was destroyed. While initially rated as an EF3, after further analysis of the damage the rating was increased to EF5, making it the first F5 or EF5 tornado in Alabama since the Birmingham tornado of April 8, 1998.

Phil Campbell experienced continuous significant devastation throughout the city. Significant damage occurred from the intersection of County Road 51 and Alabama Highway 237 to the intersection of County Road 81 and County Road 75. Within this corridor, several well constructed houses were destroyed. At least three churches along the path sustained significant damage. One church in Phil Campbell was completely destroyed with only the slab remaining. Multiple mobile homes throughout the path were completely destroyed, and their mangled frames were tossed at least 25 to 50 yards. Cars were tossed and destroyed throughout the path of the tornado, with one car wrapped around a debarked tree in Phil Campbell. All along the path length, thousands of hardwood and softwood trees were snapped. A 25-foot (7.6 m) section of pavement was torn from a road in this area. Hundreds of trees were also debarked and twisted, and had only stubs of largest branches remaining. Phil Campbell was also affected by an F5 tornado on April 3, 1974, during the super outbreak; that storm also went on to affect Tanner and Madison.

EF5 damage continued similarly northeast from Phil Campbell, roughly along County Roads 81 and 82. Several high voltage TVA power line trusses were twisted and toppled, particularly near Highway 243. Six chicken houses were completely destroyed near the Franklin-Lawrence County line. The tornado continued into Lawrence County near the Mount Hope area where significant devastation was incurred to single family homes and a restaurant. Nothing but the foundation and a pile of debris remained in this area, and a small portion of the restaurant foundation buckled. Thousands of hardwood and softwood trees were snapped, with a significant number of trees twisted and debarked with only stubs of branches remaining. Many mobile homes were also destroyed with the frames mangled, and a single family home was completely destroyed with the walls and contents strewn over a hundred yards. Meteorologist Gary Dobbs, with WAAY-TV since 1984, spotted this tornado from his car and was unable to get to his storm shelter. While his house was destroyed around him, Dobbs was thrown 40 feet (12 m) from the house. The door of the storm shelter blew off, but no friends therein were seriously injured. Dobbs required hospitalization.

Further northeast, more trees were found snapped and twisted before reaching Highway 24. At this location, 4 chicken houses were completely destroyed with much of the debris wrapped around debarked trees. TVA high voltage power line trusses were also destroyed at this location. The tornado continued northeast wreaking significant devastation in and around the Langtown community north of Moulton. On the west side of Alabama Highway 33, several homes sustained significant damage with roofs missing or only interior rooms remaining. A nearby store and gas station also sustained significant damage. The tornado strengthened again as it moved into County Roads 214 and 298, where multiple houses and mobile homes were completely destroyed. Several cars were tossed into fields and wrapped around trees along County Road 291 and 292. One vehicle was tossed into a large hardwood tree that was also debarked. Tree and mobile home damage continued along County Roads 217 and 222, where a handful of large high voltage TVA power poles were destroyed, cutting off electricity delivery from Browns Ferry Nuclear Power Plant. Tornado damage continued northeast towards Alabama Highway 20, where a restaurant was completely destroyed and two single family houses were significantly damaged. Tree damage appeared to continue into extreme northwestern Morgan County.

The same tornado continued a short stretch through the northwest corner of Morgan County and into Limestone, coming within approximately 2 miles (3.2 km) of Browns Ferry Nuclear Power Plant and toppling nearly a dozen high voltage power lines in Limestone County, snapping concrete power poles at their bases. These power lines delivered electricity from Browns Ferry Nuclear Power Plant, and without the outlet, the plant had to be shut down. This tornado produced high-end EF3 damage over a large area in eastern Limestone County along and north of the East Limestone High School.

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Tornado capture on WAFF's tower cam before it cross US-72 in Limestone County.

Tanner experienced a large swath of EF4 damage and a narrow corridor of "high-end EF4 to near-EF5 damage". The storm "completely wiped clean" several well constructed homes with anchor bolting. One home was scattered over 300 hundred yards with large items carried completely away. Intense ground scarring occurred in this area. The storm also tossed a large cargo container approximately 600 yards and carried several cars airborne for hundreds of yards. As the storm crossed US-Hwy 72 in eastern Limestone County, the tornado destroyed a Nexrad radar operated by WAFF-48 and continued into East Limestone where dozens of homes were damaged or destroyed. As the storm crossed into Madison County, AL, the storm destroyed many homes and businesses along Yarborough Rd and Ford Chapel Rd and eventually swept through the Harvest/Toney area where it damaged or destroyed hundreds of homes in the Anderson Hills and Carter's Gin communities. The tornado completely destroyed a Piggly Wiggly grocery store in Harvest as well as severely damaged a convenience store and local bank, which was shut down for months following the event. The storm progressed across Pulaski Pike in northwest Madison County, damaging many homes. In all, hundreds of homes received moderate to major damage along the path from Limestone to Madison County with many of these being total losses.

The track then moved into Tennessee and continued south of Huntland. Isolated and minor EF0 tree damage was noted at the intersection of John Hunter Highway (State Route 122) and Limestone Road near the Lincoln/Franklin county line. More significant damage was noted, starting about 1.4 miles (2.3 km) south southwest of Huntland. A cinder block building suffered damage to its flat adobe roof, with some of blocks near the roof (around 20 feet (6.1 m) off of the ground) pushed out, resulting in EF2 damage. Surveyors could not directly examine the roof given this building was on the highest ground in the vicinity. Nearby, a single family home of cinder block construction had its roof totally removed, with another home about 1,000 feet (300 m) away having significant roof damage, with over one half of its roof removed, and some shifting off of its foundation. Damage with the latter was consistent with high-end EF2 damage. A chicken building nearby the second home, with metal girding was completely flattened, consistent with EF2 damage.

A farm complex south of Hickory Grove road had damage to a number of structures there. The home and the main car garage had part of their roofs removed. A barn that was protecting bales of hay was destroyed, with a few of bales blown from 100–200 feet from their original location. The worst damage was noted with lower end EF3 damage to a cinder block utility building about 200 feet (61 m) south of the primary residence. Most of its roof was removed, with over half of its downwind wall pushed outward. An older barn nearby suffered lesser EF0 damage to it roof, while the top half of a silo near that barn was missing. Another barn structure was completely destroyed northwest of the primary home. The width at this point was approximately 1/4 mile. Other damage was noted near the intersection of Hickory Grove Road and Sugar Cove Road, with EF1 damage to some heavy farm equipment and EF0 roof damage to a nearby barn. Scattered trees were downed to the northeast, with 8-inch (200 mm) fence posts 18 inches (460 mm) deep pulled up near Hickory Grove and Buncombe Road. There was evident the tornado continued toward mountains a few miles further east, with some trees damaged along the ridge.

In total, this tornado killed 72 people, all in Alabama. This made it the deadliest single tornado ever to strike the state of Alabama as well as (at the time) the deadliest in the United States since the 1955 Udall, Kansas tornado killed 80. This tornado also had the longest track of any tornado in the outbreak, with its path extending over 130 miles (210 km) across Northern Alabama into Tennessee. On April 27th, 2011 alone, the National Weather Service in Huntsville, Alabama issued 92 tornado warnings, 31 severe thunderstorm warnings, and 7 flash flood warnings.

Tuscaloosa/Birmingham tornado

A large wedge tornado tracked across Tuscaloosa County, Alabama, including the southern and eastern portions of Tuscaloosa around 5:10 p.m. CDT on April 27. The tornado initially touched down in northern Greene County, and continued northeast. Debris from the tornado was reported to be falling from the sky across Birmingham over 20 miles (32 km) away in Jefferson County. Skycams operated by Tuscaloosa television station WVUA (channel 23) as well as Birmingham stations Fox affiliate WBRC (channel 6) and ABC affiliate WBMA-LD/WCFT/WJSU (channels 58/33/40) captured video of the tornado as it struck Tuscaloosa. Several stores and restaurants in a business district at the intersection of McFarland Boulevard and 15th Street, near the DCH Regional Medical Center, were reduced to rubble by the tornado. Buildings were also reported destroyed on 35th Street, between Interstate 359 and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. As the tornado traveled east to 35th Street and Kauloosa Avenue, the Tuscaloosa Environmental Services and Cintas facilities suffered severe damage. Numerous homes in the Rosedale and Forest Lake neighborhoods, as well as a P&P Grocery store in Rosedale, were devastated. Numerous fatalities occurred in this area. The tornado then struck the community of Concord, flattening most of the community. The tornado continued northeast towards Birmingham, downing thousands of trees. The University of Alabama suspended its operations, cancelled its softball and rowing competitions, cancelled its final exams period, and postponed its commencement until August 6.

Many stations, including WTVY-TV, WSFA, and WBMA-LD/WCFT/WJSU, showed television cameras capturing the event as the tornado moved east-northeast across the western and northern suburbs of Birmingham around 6:00 p.m. CDT. Several suburbs in the area were severely damaged by the massive tornado as it tore through the west side of Birmingham, resulting in multiple fatalities. The suburbs of Pleasant Grove, McDonald Chapel, Pratt City and northern Hueytown were devastated by the tornado as it moved northeast, flattening entire neighborhoods. The tornado then struck the suburb of Fultondale, causing EF2 damage to homes and businesses before dissipating northeast of Birmingham. Surveys indicated high end EF4 damage from the tornado in Birmingham's western suburbs.

The National Weather Service has determined the path length of this violent tornado to be 80.7 miles (129.9 km) with a maximum damage path width of 1.5 miles (2.4 km). The tornado's most intense damage indicated peak winds of around 190 mph (310 km/h); therefore, it was given a final rating of EF4. Reports from Tuscaloosa indicated 43 people were killed, with over 1000 injured. Overall this tornado killed 64 people and injured more than 1500. President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama visited Tuscaloosa on April 29, taking a ground tour of some of the affected areas. Obama was quoted as saying that he has "never seen devastation like this." He stated further that he had already declared a federal state of emergency in Alabama.

• Some of the damage sustained in Tuscaloosa, AL.
  Some of the damage sustained in Tuscaloosa, AL.
• The remains of the Forrest Lake neighborhood in Tuscaloosa, AL.
  The remains of the Forrest Lake neighborhood in Tuscaloosa, AL.
• 
  Satellite image of the tornado's track through Tuscaloosa.
• The aftermath in Tuscaloosa.
  The aftermath in Tuscaloosa.

Ringgold/Southeast Tennessee tornado

Houses in Ringgold, Georgia were completely destroyed by an EF4 tornado.

A violent tornado struck portions of far northwest Georgia and southeast Tennessee during the mid-evening hours of April 27; the twister set down along Davis Ridge Road in Catoosa County, Georgia, before reaching the town of Ringgold. Between 75 and 100 homes were damaged or destroyed; with the most severe damage occurring on Cherokee Valley Road in Catoosa County, where twelve homes were swept away. A Baymont Inn & Suites, located near Interstate 75 was also partially collapsed by the tornado, along with a McDonald's, a Taco Bell and several gas stations located on Highway 151 in Ringgold at the Interstate 75 interchange (exit 348), and the Catoosa County Department of Family and Children Services and other businesses on Nashville Street in downtown Ringgold. The Kellerhals Center for Visual Arts Education at Ringgold High School was destroyed (RHS itself had minor damage), and Ringgold Middle School was heavily damaged.

The storm then crossed the Tennessee state line at 8:28 p.m. EDT, into Hamilton and Bradley County, Tennessee, and became a strong EF4, before lifting in Polk County. Many homes in Hamilton County and Bradley county were leveled, with numerous other homes suffering varying degrees of damage. The tornado tore straight through the small community of Apison, devastating much of the town and killing 8 people. Homes in the area were swept off of their foundations by the tornado. Severe damage also took place in Cleveland as the tornado moved through several subdivision and neighborhoods, damaging and destroying multiple homes, which resulted in 5 fatalities in the area. Several trees were felled in Polk County, before the tornado dissipated. All roads in and out of Ringgold were closed until the morning of April 29; after roads leading to the affected areas were reopened, residents and business owners were allowed to return, being allowed entry only by providing identification, and informing police a reason why they are entering into the area, in order to curb looting in the storm-damaged areas.

The tornado killed twenty people along its 52-mile (84 km) path across Catoosa, Hamilton, Bradley, and Polk Counties, including seven fatalities in Ringgold, ranging in age from 16 to 86 years old, including an entire family of four, and another eight in Apison, Tennessee, and at least thirty others were injured, some sustaining serious injuries. The tornado was given a rating of EF4 with winds estimated between 175-190 mph,. The damage path of the tornado was between one-third and one-half mile wide. This tornado is only the eighth in Georgia to be categorized as an EF4 or F4 on the (Enhanced) Fujita Scale, since official tornado records have been kept in 1950.

Cullman/Arab tornado

Damage to the First Methodist church in downtown Cullman, Alabama.

Rated at EF4, this tornado tracked straight through downtown Cullman.

The tornado was first seen and then tracked on tower cameras, including one operated by WBMA-LD/WCFT/WJSU, for several minutes. Some cameras were obliterated. Radio stations in downtown Cullman also reported in on the tornado and some even captured the tornado passing over until their broadcast towers were destroyed. Preliminary reports stated that the courthouse and EMS building nearby took a direct hit from the twister. Many well-known businesses such as Vincent's Furniture, the Cullman Times, and the Busy Bee Cafe were severely damaged or destroyed.

Downtown Cullman was badly damaged by the tornado. The major damage was along a two-block area through the center of the downtown business district. The tornado more or less followed U.S. Highway 278 through the city, which in turn led to the tornado crossing and creating extensive damage along many major intersections, including those with Interstate 65, U.S. Highway 31, Alabama Highway 157, and Alabama Highway 69. There were several homes destroyed from the tornado with much damage resulting from fallen trees. Residential damage was especially heavy along West Main Avenue and in the eastern downtown Historical District. Many homes destroyed exceeded 100 years in age. East Elementary School, one of the city's two elementary schools, received moderate damage as it is located in the middle of the Historical District, which took a direct hit. Minor to moderate wind damage occurred on the campuses of Cullman Middle School and Cullman High School as well. Cullman Tornado Damage Aerials

This tornado continued Northeast and swept away a gas station in Arab, Alabama along with completely crippling Arab's power grid and obstructing many roads with trees. Homes in the area were found swept away from their foundations. Six fatalities were reported from this tornado.

Shoal Creek/Ohatchee tornado

Shoal Creek EF4 tornado

After the Tuscaloosa/Birmingham tornado lifted, at around 7:00pm, the same supercell produced another tornado, which touched down in the rural community of Shoal Creek Valley, located between Ashville and Ragland in St. Clair County, Alabama. The tornado intensity varied from EF3 to EF4 as the storm moved.

The path of destruction began just east of County Road 26 (around the 3000 Shoal Creek Road address block) and followed along County Road 22/Shoal Creek Road for approximately 12.5 miles (20.1 km). The tornado's path and width varied greatly along Shoal Creek Road, with some areas showing damage much worse on one side of the road than the other, while other areas showed equal devastation on both sides of the road. Finally, the tornado destroyed many waterfront homes at the end of the valley, crossed Neely Henry Lake and continued its destructive path in Ohatchee, Alabama. Damage ranged from downed trees and roof damage to total destruction as the tornado roared through the valley at 50-60 mph, packing winds of 180 mph+. The official count of homes destroyed or heavily damaged in Shoal Creek Valley was set at 256. Most phone lines, power lines and poles were destroyed, and water lines were severed by uprooted trees. Entire homes were leveled, and in some cases completely removed by the storm, leaving only brick steps, a fireplace and chimney, or a slab behind. Barns, vehicles, tractors and heavy farming equipment were shredded and moved up to 1/2 mile. Livestock were thrown and killed, and the initial human death toll of 13 would eventually rise to 15 in the area.

Those that rode out the storm in Shoal Creek Valley describe the classic "freight train" rumble of the tornado, feeling their ears "pop" as the low-pressure tornado approached, and the ground "shaking like an earthquake." Many say that the storm lasted 10 or 15 seconds. This tornado's final death toll, combining fatalities in both St. Clair (AL) and Calhoun (AL) counties, would eventually come to 22.

Non-tornadic effects

See also: 2011 Mississippi River floods

Rainfall totals within the United States for the week ending during the morning of April 29, 2011, which shows the extent of the heavy rain event this cyclone contributed towards

This storm system prolonged an ongoing heavy rain event, which began across Arkansas and Missouri on April 22. Weekly rainfall totals reached 19.73 inches (501 mm) six miles (10 km) east-northeast of Springdale, Arkansas, 16.20 inches (411 mm) four miles (6 km) northwest of Poplar Bluff, Missouri, and 14.96 inches (380 mm) at Westville, Oklahoma. On April 25, 2011, thunderstorms with high winds swept through parts of southern and southeastern Ohio. Straight-line winds estimated at 80 miles per hour (130 km/h) uprooted trees, damaged roofs, and downed power lines through Perry County, Ohio and Athens County, Ohio. Strong thunderstorms and heavy downpours which led to flooding was also reported in multiple areas across Upstate New York with heavy flooding in the Syracuse, New York area. Interstate 81 was briefly shut down in the downtown area at traffic hour and the State University of New York Upstate Medical University also closed briefly due to flooding in the lobby.

Farther south, flash flooding late on April 26 resulted in two fatalities in Monroe, Louisiana after an apartment complex was swamped. The flooding there was considered to be worse than the flooding after Hurricane Gustav in 2008. In central and northern Arkansas, up to 10.44 inches (265 mm) of rain was reported during that week. The resulting flash flooding in central Arkansas also resulted in five people losing their lives. Many roads were closed as a result of the flooding there. The flooding was mitigated somewhat by a significant drought that had existed before the storm.

Severe thunderstorms were reported as far north as Northern Ontario on the evening of April 26. Heavy rains and minor flooding were also reported in Northern Ontario from April 26–28. Windstorms were also reported in Southern Ontario and Southern Quebec which resulted in several injuries and one death, damages and power outages.

Other fatalities due to straight-line winds occurred in McComb, Mississippi early on April 26 and also in Moody, Alabama, Vestavia Hills, Alabama and Franklin, Tennessee early on April 27 from the squall line with embedded tornadoes.

Aftermath

Alabama Governor Robert J. Bentley declared a state of emergency in the state of Alabama on April 27, due to storm damage from severe thunderstorms earlier that day as well as forthcoming severe weather later that day. States of emergency were also declared in Arkansas, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri, Tennessee, and Oklahoma because of the flooding and tornadoes. Following the tornado outbreak on the evening of April 27, President Barack Obama granted a federal emergency declaration for the state of Alabama, giving federal assistance, including search and rescue assets, to the affected region. There have unfortunately been several fatalities since the outbreaks from accidents sustained by volunteers as a part of the clean-up initiative.

More than 2,000 National Guard troops have been deployed to Alabama, assisting local and state first responders in search and rescue efforts. President Obama visited the affected areas of Alabama on April 29. Also on April 29, he approved a federal disaster declaration for seven Mississippi counties: Clarke, Greene, Hinds, Jasper, Kemper, Lafayette, and Monroe.

The tornadoes prompted FOX to cancel a planned crossover between all three Seth MacFarlane series that would have had a hurricane bring the families of The Cleveland Show, Family Guy and American Dad! all together. The crossover was rescheduled and was broadcast October 2.

Electricity outage

Storms through the area severely damaged Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA)'s power grid for transmitting electricity throughout the region. More than 300 power transmission towers, 120 feet (37 m) to 150 feet (46 m) tall, were destroyed in the storms, some "twisted like bow ties" according to National Weather Service meteorologist Eric Holweg. The towers supported some 90 transmission lines, a mixture of 500kV and 161kV lines. Those lines provided power from TVA to 128 regional distributors.

Transmission tower bent near Huntsville, AL.

TVA lost the ability to transmit power from both Browns Ferry Nuclear Power Plant and Widows Creek Fossil Plant after the storms on April 27, requiring both to be shut down. The nuclear plant's cold shutdown was supported by diesel generators for four days until a second 161kV line could be restored to the plant. The loss of redundant off-site power required a "notification of unusual event", the lowest of four levels of concern dictated by the NRC. Some 60% of the sirens for warning residents of worse problems around Browns Ferry were disabled by the storms, and the plant had to arrange plans to use cars with loudspeakers to warn residents in case of another problem. Chief Operating Officer Bill McCollum of TVA stated that it could be weeks before the nuclear plant is up and running again. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission stated at a press conference: "The plants' conditions are stable and are being placed in a cooled-down condition."

Huntsville was the largest city with no electricity from TVA. All the traffic lights were off, a dusk-to-dawn curfew was imposed, students were sent home from United States Space Camp, and Panoply Arts Festival was cancelled. Power was restored gradually to Huntsville, beginning with 3% on Sunday morning, after the Wednesday tornadoes. Only localized outages remained eight days after the storm. In addition to traffic and safety issues, the outage caused difficulties with water treatment and distribution and retail of all kinds, including gasoline and food purchases.

Ontario electricity outages were minor, mostly caused by the windstorms of April 28. Although they affected thousands of people at different times throughout the day, all power was restored by the end of the day.

See also

• List of North American tornadoes and tornado outbreaks
• List of F5 and EF5 tornadoes
• List of United States disasters by death toll
• List of tornadoes striking downtown areas
• Tornado records
• Tornadoes of 2011
• 2011 Mississippi River floods – Major flooding event partially related to the same storm that caused the tornado outbreak
• Tri-State Tornado – Deadliest tornado in North America, and made March 18, 1925 the deadliest tornado day recorded in the U.S.
• 1932 Deep South tornado outbreak – Deadliest tornado outbreak in Alabama history, including an F4 tornado that tracked through Tuscaloosa.
• 1936 Tupelo–Gainesville tornado outbreak – Infamous tornado outbreak occurring on April 5–6, 1936. Deadliest U.S. tornado outbreak since the March, 1925 (Tri-State Tornado) outbreak, thus surpassing the March, 1932, April, 1974, and April, 2011 outbreaks in total fatalities.
• April 1956 Birmingham tornado – F4 tornado that hit the northern Birmingham suburbs on April 15, 1956.
• Super Outbreak – Infamous tornado outbreak occurring on April 3–4, 1974, similar in severity to the April 25–28, 2011 outbreak; the April 2011 event surpassed the Super Outbreak as the deadliest U.S. tornado outbreak since official tornado records were kept in 1950; Tanner, Alabama was struck by violent tornadoes during both events.
• April 1977 Birmingham tornado – F5 tornado that hit the northern Birmingham suburbs on April 4, 1977.
• 1994 Palm Sunday tornado outbreak – March 27, 1994 outbreak that produced an F4 tornado in St. Clair, Calhoun and Cherokee Counties in north-central Alabama.
• April 1998 Birmingham tornado – F5 tornado that struck western parts of Birmingham on April 8, 1998.
• December 2000 Tuscaloosa tornado – F4 tornado that hit southeast suburbs of Tuscaloosa on December 16, 2000.

External links

• Hook-Echo.com Tornado Outbreak Overview
• Time lapse visualization of the April 25th-28th tornado outbreak

Emergency Tornado Aid

• Alabama Red Cross
• National Red Cross
• Tuscaloosa News People Finder Set up by local newspaper to aid in finding loved ones and friends missing in the tornado.

Memorials

• University of Alabama Holds Memorial Ceremony Honoring Students who Died in Disaster as well as First Responders

Pictures from Tuscaloosa, Alabama:

• Tornado Damage in Tuscaloosa, AL

For the latest severe weather information:

• National Weather Service
• Storm Prediction Center