TORNADO OUTBREAKS ROUNDUP: DECEMBER 2021 – MARCH 2022

March 25, 2022

ALABAMA

On February 3, 2022 five tornadoes hit the state of Alabama.
- Two EF-0 tornadoes in Elmore County did not cause injuries but did down some trees and damaged some homes.
- Three EF-2 tornadoes hit parts of Sumter, Bibb, Greene, Hale and Tuscaloosa counties.
  - One of those tornadoes, in Hale County near Sawyerville, killed one person and injured eight others.
On February 17, 2022, the National Weather Service confirmed two tornadoes touched down about 30 miles north of Tuscaloosa, Alabama, with trees in the roadway and unspecified structural damage reported.
- Other tornadoes were reported in Pell City, east of Birmingham, and in Shelby County, southeast of the city.
- A couple was trapped in a mobile home when a tree fell on it in Leeds, Alabama, a town east of Birmingham. No serious injuries were reported.
- More damage was seen in Fairfield, Alabama, where the roof of a BP gas station appeared to have blown over, and gas pumps were bent.
- About 24,000 customers were without power Thursday night in Alabama.
On March 18, 2022, in Escambia County, Alabama, six people from a mobile home park were treated at a hospital for injuries sustained during a possible tornado.
- Nine mobile homes were damaged, including one which completely flipped over when a storm rolled through the area.
Tornado watches were in effect March 22, 2022 afternoon for eastern Louisiana, most of Mississippi and western Alabama, with the area having significant threat of tornadoes through the early evening.

FLORIDA

On January 16, 2022, a storm system brought much more dangerous conditions to southwest Florida, where at least two tornadoes destroyed at least 28 homes in Lee County and damaged others.
- One twister was an EF2 tornado with maximum winds of 118 MPH. It may have completely destroyed 30 mobile homes of the 108 mobile homes damaged near Fort Myers.
  - Four injuries were reported, but no one was taken to a hospital.
- In Charlotte County, north of Fort Myers, an EF1 tornado with winds of 110 MPH left behind a path of destruction.
On March 12, 2022 Florida was hit by two tornadoes.
- The National Weather Service confirmed an EF-1 tornado, with winds of 110 MPH, touched down Saturday morning in Ocala, Florida.
  - The 200-yard-wide tornado traveled a path of approximately 25 miles from Dunnellon to Ocala in over 28 minutes.
- A weaker tornado in Fort Myers Beach was confirmed after a waterspout came ashore.

IOWA

On December 16, 2021, a storm system of more than 20 tornadoes that swept across the Midwest left hundreds of thousands of customers without electricity, with numerous houses, barns and buildings damaged.
- In Iowa, one man was killed after a gust of wind overturned his tractor-trailer on a highway.
- 37,000 were without power in Iowa.
Residents of the Corn Belt and Mid-South are picking up the pieces after the weekend of March 5-6, 2022 faced violent weather, which claimed seven lives in Iowa and yielded more than three dozen reports of tornadoes.
- Parts of Winterset, a small city about 25 miles southwest of Des Moines, Iowa was leveled, with damage observed to be at least EF3 strength on the 0 to 5 scale for twister intensity.
- The storms that raked Iowa on Saturday were the deadliest to occur in the state since May 2008.
- The March 5 storms damaged or destroyed other homes and downed power lines and trees, causing some power outages.
- One expert estimated the storms March 5 likely caused more than $1 billion damage altogether.

KENTUCKY

From December 10-11, 2021 Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Illinois, Missouri and Mississippi were struck by dozens of tornadoes. It was the deadliest 24-hour period in December for tornadoes in the United States.
- A series of deadly tornadoes ripped across at least six states and killed more than 80 people in what experts have called a “historic” weather event.
- One tornado stretched 227 miles as it blasted from Arkansas northeast into Missouri and Tennessee before cutting a swath of destruction through northwest Kentucky. Tornadoes are rarely more than 15 miles long and generally last less than 10 minutes.
- This unusual tornado outbreak was created, in part, by unseasonably warm temperatures.
- At least four tornadoes hit Kentucky, including one with an extraordinarily long path of about 200 miles.
- In Kentucky, the series of tornadoes uprooted trees, tore down homes and infrastructure, and killed at least 70 people.
- Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear said more than 1,000 homes were destroyed and thousands of people have been left homeless.
- The community of Bowling Green, which has a robust refugee resettlement program to bring migrants to Western Kentucky, was devastated by the tornadoes.
  - On a single street, the tornado killed 7 children.
- Kentucky Emergency Management Director Michael Dossett warned that full recovery in the hardest-hit places could take years.
On January 1, 2022 Kentucky’s governor declared a state of emergency after storms caused flooding, property damage and multiple tornados.
- Hopkinsville, Kentucky reported a possible tornado, which caused damage to multiple businesses. Other properties reported roof damage and there were also multiple downed power lines.
- As of January 4, 2022, 10 tornadoes have been confirmed by the National Weather Service.
  - Christian County saw an EF-2 tornado with winds measuring 115 MPH and 125 miles wide, causing roof damage. It also removed a wall from a brick home, destroyed a gas station’s canopy as well as multiple gas pumps.
  - Taylor County experienced damage from an EF-1 with winds measuring at 110 MPH.
  - A 110 MPH tornado that traveled in Marion County ripped off a trailer roof and tipped over a trailer.
  - A 110 MPH tornado in Madison County damaged hundreds of trees and one property.
  - Barren county saw an EF-1 tornado measuring at 95 MPH which hurled debris at least 400 yards and destroyed a barn.
  - An EF-1 tornado measuring at 95 MPH in Estill County destroyed a barn and damaged roofs.
  - Todd, Allen, Hart and Warren counties also experienced EF-0 tornadoes with less severe wind speeds and caused damage to trees and the exterior of homes.

LOUISIANA

On March 22, 2022 a new tornado watch was issued for more than 1.5 million people in parts of southeastern Texas and western to northeast Louisiana.
As of Tuesday evening, about 52,000 customers had no power in Texas, Mississippi and Louisiana — almost 32,000 of them in Texas.
On the night of March 22, 2022, two tornadoes tore through parts of New Orleans and its suburbs.
- While people in the metropolitan region are used to dealing with severe weather such as hurricanes or heavy rains, it’s rare that a tornado moves through the city.
- Ahead of the severe weather, many schools closed early or canceled after-school activities Tuesday in parts of Louisiana and Mississippi to allow students to get home before the weather deteriorated.
- Louisiana’s federal and state authorities reminded thousands of hurricane survivors living in government-provided mobile homes and recreational vehicle trailers to have an evacuation plan because the structures might not withstand the expected weather.
  - More than 8,000 households live in those types of temporary quarters.
- One twister killed one person and caused heavy damage in the Arabi neighborhood in St. Bernard Parish just outside New Orleans on Tuesday night. Seven other people were treated for minor injuries
- About 50 structures had some damage in New Orleans East, but no injuries or significant damage were reported in the city. That twister had winds of at least 136 MPH, meaning it rated at least an EF-3.
- Some houses were destroyed while pieces of debris hung from electrical wires and trees.
- Power poles were down and leaning over, forcing emergency workers to walk slowly through darkened neighborhoods checking for damage.
- One resident of the Arabi suburb noted that their neighbor’s house was now in the middle of the street.
- About 13,000 homes and businesses were reportedly without power in the three parishes around New Orleans after the storm.
On March 22, 2022, a separate tornado touched down around Lacombe in St. Tammany Parish, across Lake Pontchartrain from New Orleans in the evening.
- The Lacombe-area tornado was on the ground for 12.2 miles and had a maximum width of 100 yards, the weather service said. Peak winds were preliminarily estimated at 90 MPH, giving it an EF-1 rating.
On March 22, 2022, a tornado also may have struck in nearby Jefferson Parish.
On March 23, 2022, Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards declared an emergency because of damage in St. Bernard, Orleans, Jefferson and St. Tammany parishes.
- As of Wednesday afternoon, about 3,000 homes and businesses were without power in Orleans and St. Bernard parishes.

MISSISSIPPI

From December 10-11, 2021 Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Illinois, Missouri and Mississippi were struck by dozens of tornadoes. It was the deadliest 24-hour period in December for tornadoes in the United States.
- A series of deadly tornadoes ripped across at least six states and killed more than 80 people in what experts have called a “historic” weather event.
Tornado watches were in effect March 22, 2022 afternoon for eastern Louisiana, most of Mississippi and western Alabama, with the area having significant threat of tornadoes through the early evening.
High winds uprooted trees in Ridgeland, Mississippi, as a possible tornado passed the Jackson-area city Tuesday afternoon.
As of Tuesday evening, about 52,000 customers had no power in Texas, Mississippi and Louisiana — almost 32,000 of them in Texas.

OKLAHOMA

On March 21-22, 2022 tornadoes tore through parts of Texas and Oklahoma damaging a school, homes and businesses, before the storm system continued its destructive path Tuesday into Louisiana and Mississippi.
- Two unconfirmed tornadoes caused damage in the Lake Texoma area of northern Texas and southern Oklahoma.
On March 21, 2022, there was one EF-2 tornado in Marshall County, Oklahoma.
- A tornado struck the small southern Oklahoma town of Kingston, leaving a quarter-mile wide swath of damage in its path.
- Some homes had rooftops peeled back, while others were completely lifted off.
- Multiple structures including a marina were damaged or destroyed in the Kingston area. Some businesses were left nearly destroyed.

TEXAS

A storm system that on Monday brought 25 tornadoes to Texas, including two that may have damaged about 1,000 homes, was spawning more twisters Tuesday as it pushed east.
In Texas, several tornadoes were reported on March 21, 2022 along the Interstate 35 corridor, particularly in the Austin suburbs of Round Rock and Elgin, and in an area west-northwest of Dallas-Fort Worth.
- A reported tornado moved through Round Rock in Williamson County around 6 p.m. Monday. An emergency declaration was already in effect in Williamson County due to the recent fires.
- More than a dozen people were reported injured due to the tornadoes in Texas, including 10 in Grayson County.
- A 73-year-old woman in Grayson County died after her home was destroyed.
Homes and businesses in at least a dozen Texas counties were damaged.
On March 22, 2022 a new tornado watch was issued for more than 1.5 million people in parts of southeastern Texas and western to northeast Louisiana.
As of Tuesday evening, about 52,000 customers had no power in Texas, Mississippi and Louisiana — almost 32,000 of them in Texas.
- On Tuesday morning, more than 60,000 customers had no power in Texas — mainly in the Houston area.
On March 22, 2022, a reported tornado in a trailer in Beasley, Texas injured five people.
On March 22, 2022, the National Weather Service determined the tornado in Jack County, Texas was an EF-3, with winds between 140 and 150 MPH.
- In Jacksboro, Texas 60 to 80 homes, including the city’s high school and elementary, were damaged.
- The entirety of the high school’s gym roof was either blown off or caved in.
- Nine people in Jack County were hospitalized with minor injuries.
- During a news conference Monday evening, Jack County Emergency Management coordinator Frank Hefner said the apparent tornado was rain-wrapped and that debris fields spanned two miles wide.
An EF-2 tornado that blew through Houston County damaged 20 to 25 homes.
There was also a tornado reported near Bowie in Montague County where multiple structures were reportedly damaged.