Eight of the 61 reported tornadoes were considered "strong," rated as EF2 or EF3 on the Enhanced
Fujita Scale. Oklahoma also had 22 confirmed tornado touchdowns in April.
Forecasters ranked the worst of the outbreak at step four of the six-step Enhanced
Fujita scale of tornado strength.
The so-called
Fujita scale measures wind speed and the corresponding destructive power of a tornado.
We examine the trajectories of four historical markers displaced during an enhanced
Fujita scale 2 (EF2) tornado at the Fort Pulaski National Monument located on Cockspur Island, east of Savannah in southeast Georgia.
The most notable tornado occurred in Taylorsville in Christian County, ranked as an EF-3 on the Enhanced
Fujita Scale. With a path of greater than one-half mile wide and wind speeds of 155 mph, the tornado caused major damage to 100 homes, and 22 injuries were reported.
The name refers to the
Fujita scale of tornado strength, specifically those that produce winds of 261-318 mph.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has gone back and reevaluated the records of the damage inflicted by tornados over the years, as measured by the
Fujita Scale that came into existence in 1971.
The storm was rated 2 on the five-step Enhanced
Fujita scale, with winds of up to 130 mph (210 kph), and there were no reports of damage from the Oceanside tornado.
Worth metroplex proximity, the new Plano, Texas, facility is built to withstand exposure to 360-mph winds, well above the National Weather Service's 200-mph threshold for (Enhanced
Fujita Scale) EF5 tornadoes.
It was named the
Fujita scale, or F-Scale, which was later modified and is now officially called the Enhanced Fujita or EF-Scale (see Page 59).