BISL 04-Weather and Climate

Death and Destruction

O

f the 1,000 tornadoes that annually strike the United States, there is one that has the unfortunate

distinction of being one of the worst: the Tri-State tornado, which occurred on March 18, 1925, and

caused extreme devastation. It moved across Missouri, Illinois, and Indiana, destroying homes and

causing the confirmed deaths of 695 people, although it is believed that the number may have been much

higher. The tornado traveled 230 miles (368 km) at an average velocity of 66 miles an hour (105 km/h),

and its duration set a record at three hours and 30 minutes. It has been rated on the Fujita scale as an

F5 tornado—one of the most damaging—and caused losses to the United States of $17 million.

WEATHER AND CLIMATE 55

MISSOURI

(U.S.)

Latitude 37° N

Longitude 93° W

F5

3 hours

30 minutes

66 miles per hour

(105 km/h)

1:01 P.M.

First contact with the ground

4:30 P.M.

Final contact with the ground

THE 10 MOST

DEVASTATING TORNADOES

Deaths

Injuries

ELLINGTON
First town
affected
One dead

ANNAPOLIS

AND LEADANNA

Large number

of victims

75 injured

and 2 dead

PRINCETON

Half of the town

destroyed

65 deaths

REDFORD

Town hit by

tornado

Value on the Fujita scale

Duration

Average velocity

OWENSVILLE

Serious damage

to houses

BIEHLE

A number of

houses destroyed

WEST FRANKFORT

Partial destruction

450 wounded

and 127 dead

dollars in losses

17 million

houses destroyed

15,000

GORHAM

Town in ruins

34 dead

PARRISH

Almost total

destruction

22 dead

MURPHYSBORO

Town with the

greatest number of

fatalities

234 dead

100

percent

destroyed

90

percent

destroyed

90

percent

destroyed

40

percent

destroyed

20

percent

destroyed

50

percent

destroyed

I LLINOIS

INDIANA

Tornadoes in the United States

Unlike hurricanes, which are tropical storms primarily affecting the

Gulf of Mexico, tornadoes are phenomena that occur between the

Great Plains of the United States, the Rocky Mountains, and the Gulf of

Mexico and usually appear in the spring and summer.

The period of the day

with the highest

probability of tornado

formation

3:00 P. M.

-9:00 P. M.

The number of

tornadoes occurring

per year in the

United States

1,000

Rural area

GRIFFIN

150 houses

destroyed, and

many children

(^100) killed.
percent
destroyed
66 miles per hour(107 km/h)
60 miles per hour(96 km/h)
60 miles per hour (96 km/h)
MISSOURI
DE SOTO
Partial
destruction but
a large number
of victims
69 dead
30
percent
destroyed
In 40 minutes,
541 people died.
THE TOWN OF
GRIFFIN, IN
THE STATE OF
INDIANA, WAS
LEFT IN RUINS.
71 miles per hour (115 km/h)
71 miles per hour (115 km/h)
55 miles per hour(90 km/h)
54 METEOROLOGICAL PHENOMENA