On June 12, 1881, a tornado outbreak affected the West North Central states of the Midwestern United States and produced numerous strong tornadoes, killing 15 people, primarily in parts of Kansas and Missouri. One of the strongest tornadoes in the outbreak was retroactively rated an F4—possibly an F5—on the Fujita scale, hitting near Hopkins, Missouri, in Nodaway County. Another F4 in Missouri claimed five lives, and a pair of F4s in Kansas collectively killed eight more. A fifth violent tornado also occurred in Iowa. In all, the outbreak injured at least 112.
Weather map of the low pressure system west of the Great Lakes that would spawn the tornado outbreak across the Midwestern U.S on June 12, 1881. | |
| Tornado outbreak | |
|---|---|
| Tornadoes | 7 |
| Maximum rating | F4 tornado |
| Duration | June 12, 1881 |
| Overall effects | |
| Fatalities | 15 |
| Injuries | 112 |
| Damage | Unknown |
| Areas affected | Central United States |
Part of the tornadoes and tornado outbreaks of 1881 | |
Confirmed tornadoes
| FU | F0 | F1 | F2 | F3 | F4 | F5 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | ? | ? | 1 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 7 |
Prior to 1990, there is a likely undercount of tornadoes, particularly E/F0–1, with reports of weaker tornadoes becoming more common as population increased. A sharp increase in the annual average E/F0–1 count by approximately 200 tornadoes was noted upon the implementation of NEXRAD Doppler weather radar in 1990–1991. 1974 marked the first year where significant tornado (E/F2+) counts became homogenous with contemporary values, attributed to the consistent implementation of Fujita scale assessments. Numerous discrepancies on the details of tornadoes in this outbreak exist between sources. The total count of tornadoes and ratings differs from various agencies accordingly. The list below documents information from the most contemporary official sources alongside assessments from tornado historian Thomas P. Grazulis.
June 12 event
| F# | Location | County / Parish | State | Time (UTC) | Path length | Width | Damage | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| F3 | NW of Mulvane to NE of Douglass | Sedgwick, Butler | KS | 22:00–? | 17 mi (27 km) | 70 yd (64 m) | Unknown | |
| A tornado razed three homes, one of which it obliterated, injuring a few people. The snakelike funnel resembled "water being sprayed from a huge hose", according to an eyewitness quoted by Grazulis. | ||||||||
| F2 | W of Belle Plaine to S of Mulvane | Sumner, Cowley | KS | 22:00–? | 13 mi (21 km) | 50 yd (46 m) | Unknown | |
| A tornado leveled five barns and a farmhouse, injuring three people. | ||||||||
| F4 | S of Seely to Floral to NE of Wilmot | Cowley | KS | 22:30–? | 17 mi (27 km) | 400 yd (370 m) | Unknown | |
| 3 deaths – A disastrous tornado destroyed the community of Floral, killing a few people there and leveling homes. However, residents sought shelter as the storm neared, reducing the death toll. One other person died on a farm outside Floral, and 28 other homes were razed along the path. In all 22 injuries occurred. | ||||||||
| F4+ | W of Burlington Junction to W of Hopkins | Nodaway | MO | 22:30–? | 15 mi (24 km) | 800 yd (730 m) | Unknown | |
| 2 deaths – A large, very intense multiple-vortex tornado obliterated a pair of farms near Hopkins, possibly at F5 intensity, and injured 15 people. It may have caused F4 or greater damage to other farms as well. In 2001 Grazulis deemed it to be "probably F5". | ||||||||
| F4 | NW of Olivet to N of Richter | Osage, Franklin | KS | 22:45–? | 25 mi (40 km) | 200 yd (180 m) | Unknown | |
| 5 deaths – A tornado narrowly missed 100 farms along the Marais des Cygnes River, but still leveled 50 barns and homes in its path. Passing north of the Melvern–Quenemo area, it obliterated farmhouses and cast their debris miles away. 40 injuries occurred. | ||||||||
| F4 | S of Fillmore to near King City | Andrew, Gentry | MO | 22:50–? | 35 mi (56 km) | 300 yd (270 m) | Unknown | |
| 5 deaths – A powerful tornado peaked near Flag Springs, flattening 80 buildings, including many barns and homes; killing much livestock; and injuring 20 people. | ||||||||
| F4 | N of Adair to N of Casey | Guthrie | IA | 01:00–? | 10 mi (16 km) | 200 yd (180 m) | Unknown | |
| An intense tornado annihilated three farmsteads, sweeping away a farmhouse and strewing its debris 1⁄2 mi (0.80 km). Injuring 10 people, it ended near the Raccoon River. In 1993 Grazulis rated it a high-end F3 but noted that it was "probably" F4, having ranked it as such in a 1984 study. An F5 tornado hit near Adair on June 27, 1953. | ||||||||
See also
Sources
- Agee, Ernest M.; Childs, Samuel (June 1, 2014). "Adjustments in Tornado Counts, F-Scale Intensity, and Path Width for Assessing Significant Tornado Destruction". Journal of Applied Meteorology and Climatology. 53 (6). American Meteorological Society: 1494–1505. doi:10.1175/JAMC-D-13-0235.1.
- Brooks, Harold E. (April 2004). "On the Relationship of Tornado Path Length and Width to Intensity". Weather and Forecasting. 19 (2): 310–19. Bibcode:2004WtFor..19..310B. doi:10.1175/1520-0434(2004)019<0310:OTROTP>2.0.CO;2.
- Cook, A. R.; Schaefer, J. T. (August 2008). "The Relation of El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) to Winter Tornado Outbreaks". Monthly Weather Review. 136 (8): 3121–3137. Bibcode:2008MWRv..136.3121C. doi:10.1175/2007MWR2171.1.
- Edwards, Roger; LaDue, James G.; Ferree, John T.; Scharfenberg, Kevin; Maier, Chris; Coulbourne, William L. (May 1, 2013). "Tornado Intensity Estimation: Past, Present, and Future". Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society. 94 (5). American Meteorological Society: 641–653. doi:10.1175/BAMS-D-11-00006.1.
- Grazulis, Thomas P. (May 1984). Violent Tornado Climatography, 1880–1982. OSTI (Technical report). NUREG. Washington, D.C.: Nuclear Regulatory Commission. OSTI 7099491. CR-3670.
- — (November 1990). Significant Tornadoes 1880–1989. Vol. 2. St. Johnsbury, Vermont: The Tornado Project of Environmental Films. ISBN 1-879362-02-3.
- — (July 1993). Significant Tornadoes 1680–1991: A Chronology and Analysis of Events. St. Johnsbury, Vermont: The Tornado Project of Environmental Films. ISBN 1-879362-03-1.
- — (2001a). The Tornado: Nature's Ultimate Windstorm. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press. ISBN 978-0-8061-3538-0.
- — (2001b). F5-F6 Tornadoes. St. Johnsbury, Vermont: The Tornado Project of Environmental Films.
wikipedia, wiki, encyclopedia, book, library, article, read, free download, Information about Tornado outbreak of June 1881, What is Tornado outbreak of June 1881? What does Tornado outbreak of June 1881 mean?