Significant Tornado Events - Global Edition

[MNTornadoGuy]

First time poster here, i haven't seen much info on the 1934 Kiuruvesi F4 in Finland so i'm gonna post what i know here for anyone who might want to know. Eyewitnesses say it started over the lake with "quickly forming funnel-like vorticies" it then moved NW along the coast of Kiuruvesi where it ripped off roofs "throwing one 3 km", "flattened" a park, threw cars and destroyed old trees, it had a width of 100-200 meters and lasted for about 10 minutes.

Here are the pictures i found of the damage.

View attachment 15100

View attachment 15101View attachment 15102
View attachment 15099

View attachment 15103


The path it took.
View attachment 15106

Simple recreation of that path in google earth.
View attachment 15107

I also found this picture of tree damage caused by the Pulkkila F3 that happened on the same day.
View attachment 15108

Thing of note is that this is the northernmost F4 rated tornado in the world.

All this info was gathered from archived newspapers.

Welcome to TalkWeather! That event is very interesting as no violent tornado has occurred that far north before/since. I do wonder what damage resulted in an F4 rating for that tornado as the damage photos don’t show anything that violent.

 

[ciberbull]

Welcome to TalkWeather! That event is very interesting as no violent tornado has occurred that far north before/since. I do wonder what damage resulted in an F4 rating for that tornado as the damage photos don’t show anything that violent.

Thanks! I imagine it was rated based on tree damage since there were no descriptions of buildings being completely destroyed, the Pulkkila F3 does look stronger based on photos, i might've missed some photos but i think they're lost to time.

 

[TH2002]

On September 18 and 19, a significant two-day tornado outbreak spawned six tornadoes in Russia and Ukraine. Two tornadoes killed three people and at least eight other people were injured.

Buryn, Ukraine F2
This high-end F2 tornado devastated residential areas in Buryn, Ukraine. One person was killed after being crushed by a collapsing wall and eight others were injured, some severely. Homes had their roofs completely torn off, and some lost exterior walls. Vehicles were tossed and destroyed as well.

Shurovo, Ukraine F1
This tornado downed trees and power poles and partially to completely stripped roofs from homes.

Olgovka, Russia F1-F2
This tornado destroyed outbuildings and partially to completely stripped roofs from homes in Olgovka. Trees were snapped and denuded as well. It appeared as a thin rope tornado for much of its life, though took on the appearance of a large cone/small wedge tornado in its mature stage. The ESWD mentions that the F1 rating may be upgraded to F2.

L'gov, Russia F2-F3
This massive wedge tornado impacted at least 200 homes, some of which lost roofs and exterior walls. Multiple large trees were also uprooted, snapped or denuded, and high tension power poles were destroyed.

Kursk, Russia F1-F2
A significant nighttime tornado struck the Automotive Technical College in the Volokno district of Kursk. Two people were killed, one by flying debris as a dormitory had its roof torn off, and another person was killed by a falling tree. The rating may be upgraded to F2.

Svecha, Russia F2
This significant tornado fortunately didn't impact any structures, but devastated forested areas. Large trees were reduced to stumps with 100% blowdown in some areas. The maximum path width was at least 200 meters wide. In my opinion this tornado (along with the Buryn F2) almost certainly reached F3 intensity.

 

[TH2002]

The 2009 Mimasaka, Japan tornado is an unusual event in my eyes, because the worst structural damage was confined to the F2 range (homes with roofs torn off) but some non structural damage potentially indicative of a more violent event occurred. Vehicles were tossed for 100+ meters, trees were snapped at or near their bases and pavement was scoured from a road. This is particularly notable because it's one of the few verifiable instances of pavement scouring occurring outside of the United States (Ivanovo allegedly scoured pavement from a highway although this claim is unfounded). Two people were injured by this tornado.

 

[Sawmaster]

It's good to remember that like buildings, cars are different elsewhere too. Japan has lots of very small very light cars which can get tossed about a lot more easily than ours, which tend to be larger and heavier. That's also a concern of mine regards the concept of adding vehicles as a DI- there's just too much variation for that to accurately portray potential windspeeds. Still, when very long tossing distances and 'balling up' of vehicles occurs it is for certain a strong tornado doing that damage. The debarking and snapping of trees, plus the scouring of asphalt are more accurate indicators so yeah Mimisaka was definitely an F5 contender at those points IMHO.

Phil

 

[Juliett Bravo Kilo]

It's good to remember that like buildings, cars are different elsewhere too. Japan has lots of very small very light cars which can get tossed about a lot more easily than ours, which tend to be larger and heavier. That's also a concern of mine regards the concept of adding vehicles as a DI- there's just too much variation for that to accurately portray potential windspeeds. Still, when very long tossing distances and 'balling up' of vehicles occurs it is for certain a strong tornado doing that damage. The debarking and snapping of trees, plus the scouring of asphalt are more accurate indicators so yeah Mimisaka was definitely an F5 contender at those points IMHO.

Phil

An automobile DI would work if it takes into account stuff like regulars cars/pickups/vans vs. buses or massive 18-wheelers, dump trucks, etc.

 

[MNTornadoGuy]

The 2009 Mimasaka, Japan tornado is an unusual event in my eyes, because the worst structural damage was confined to the F2 range (homes with roofs torn off) but some non structural damage potentially indicative of a more violent event occurred. Vehicles were tossed for 100+ meters, trees were snapped at or near their bases and pavement was scoured from a road. This is particularly notable because it's one of the few verifiable instances of pavement scouring occurring outside of the United States (Ivanovo allegedly scoured pavement from a highway although this claim is unfounded). Two people were injured by this tornado.
View attachment 15203
View attachment 15204
View attachment 15205
View attachment 15207

The contextual damage around the asphalt scouring is not impressive at all considering the buildings, signs and vegetation right next to it is completely unharmed. Also the tree damage looks pretty EF2ish to me. So I don’t think it was much stronger than what it is rated. It is not even close to being a violent tornado.

 

[TH2002]

The contextual damage around the asphalt scouring is not impressive at all considering the buildings, signs and vegetation right next to it is completely unharmed. Also the tree damage looks pretty EF2ish to me. So I don’t think it was much stronger than what it is rated. It is not even close to being a violent tornado.

I don't think it was a violent tornado, but I wouldn't be surprised if it had winds capable of causing at least lower-end F3 damage. The JMA is generally pretty conservative with how they rate their tornadoes.

 

[Marios Wallace]

The 2009 Mimasaka, Japan tornado is an unusual event in my eyes, because the worst structural damage was confined to the F2 range (homes with roofs torn off) but some non structural damage potentially indicative of a more violent event occurred. Vehicles were tossed for 100+ meters, trees were snapped at or near their bases and pavement was scoured from a road. This is particularly notable because it's one of the few verifiable instances of pavement scouring occurring outside of the United States (Ivanovo allegedly scoured pavement from a highway although this claim is unfounded). Two people were injured by this tornado.
View attachment 15203
View attachment 15204
View attachment 15205
View attachment 15207

I don't know if Pavement scouring here is a good indicator of violent intensity. Especially given the fact there's a building right next to it that is still standing, and vegetation isn't affected much. However the tree damage I have seen here in these photos is likely indicative of the tornado pushing a more intense EF3 status at points.
It's important to keep in mind that pavement scouring has a-lot more variables than your typical DI. I would argue that we know a-lot more about ground scouring, than pavement scouring.

 

[buckeye05]

Hey haven't been as busy on here due to school and work craziness, but I'm surprised nobody has mentioned the town of Bihucourt, France, which was hit by a confirmed EF3 tornado about a day ago. Damage throughout the town was intense and widespread.

Damage video:


Video of the tornado itself:

 

[ciberbull]

Finnish tornadoes are very poorly documented but here's another one.

The 1994 Raudaskylä F3 was a short-lived and small tornado it only lasted for a few minutes with a path length of 350 meters and width of 150 meters however the core was estimated to have been only 10 meters wide, in the western edge of Raudaskylä it downed hundreds of trees, broke doors, ripped part of the roof off a farmhouse, flung the top of a silo, broke chimneys, largely destroyed a new 300 square meter machine shop and completely swept a small garage.


wall of the garage


garage debris pile


view of the garage slab


another angle of the slab


the machine shop


some of the tree damage


While it was officially considered a tornado i don't think it was, the FMI said it was caused by "unusually unstable air along a cold front" and eyewitnesses said it was just heavy rain and wind for a few minutes, which leads me to believe it was just a gustnado along a squall line.

Here are some soundings from ERA5 reanalysis for those of you who can read them.

an hour before it hit


the hour it hit (contaminated)

I also think it was overrated maybe a low-end EF1 at most but i would like to hear your opinions and theories on it.

 

[UK_EF4]

Finnish tornadoes are very poorly documented but here's another one.

The 1994 Raudaskylä F3 was a short-lived and small tornado it only lasted for a few minutes with a path length of 350 meters and width of 150 meters however the core was estimated to have been only 10 meters wide, in the western edge of Raudaskylä it downed hundreds of trees, broke doors, ripped part of the roof off a farmhouse, flung the top of a silo, broke chimneys, largely destroyed a new 300 square meter machine shop and completely swept a small garage.


wall of the garage
View attachment 15461

garage debris pile
View attachment 15462

view of the garage slab
View attachment 15463

another angle of the slab
View attachment 15464

the machine shop
View attachment 15465

some of the tree damage
View attachment 15466

While it was officially considered a tornado i don't think it was, the FMI said it was caused by "unusually unstable air along a cold front" and eyewitnesses say it was just heavy rain and wind for a few minutes, which leads me to believe it was just a gustnado along a squall line.

Here are some soundings from ERA5 reanalysis for those of you who can read them.

an hour before it hitView attachment 15467


the hour it hit (contaminated)View attachment 15468

I also think it was overrated maybe a low-end EF1 at most but i would like to hear your opinions and theories on it.

Damage looks quite weak - reminds me a lot of tornado damage we see here in the UK with temporary structures destroyed but debris itself not really broken down (particularly evident in first picture). Could have possibly been a tornado spawned along the cold frontal rainband, we get that lots here in UK too! I agree with yout it probably looks around EF1 intensity.

 

[TH2002]

One significant tornado event to occur in southern Asia is the Hải Phòng, Vietnam tornado that struck the city on June 23 (take a guess what year)... 2011
Two people were killed and at least 79 others were injured, though some sources say hundreds were injured. The tornado was on the ground for only 10-15 minutes, but over 1,000 structures were impacted, including hundreds of roofs partially to completely torn from homes, and at least sixteen houses collapsed completely. I believe this tornado was at least a high end F2 and possibly a solid F3.

Footage of the tornado itself:




Damage photos:

 

[buckeye05]

One significant tornado event to occur in southern Asia is the Hải Phòng, Vietnam tornado that struck the city on June 23 (take a guess what year)... 2011
Two people were killed and at least 79 others were injured, though some sources say hundreds were injured. The tornado was on the ground for only 10-15 minutes, but over 1,000 structures were impacted, including hundreds of roofs partially to completely torn from homes, and at least sixteen houses collapsed completely. I believe this tornado was at least a high end F2 and possibly a solid F3.

Footage of the tornado itself:




Damage photos:

The more I look at these pics, the more impressed I am. That's some pretty intense damage to masonry buildings. I agree that this may have been an F3.

 

[Lake Martin EF4]

Tornade EF3 à Bihucourt (Pas-de-Calais) le 23 octobre 2022

Tornade de Bihucourt du 23 octobre 2022 : une tornade de forte intensité (bas de l'échelon EF3) dévaste une commune du Pas-de-Calais et parcourt une trajectoire exceptionnelle de 206 kilomètres de la Normandie au Hainaut Belge, lors d'un outbreak.

www.keraunos.org

Wait, 128 miles?

 

[buckeye05]

Tornade EF3 à Bihucourt (Pas-de-Calais) le 23 octobre 2022

Tornade de Bihucourt du 23 octobre 2022 : une tornade de forte intensité (bas de l'échelon EF3) dévaste une commune du Pas-de-Calais et parcourt une trajectoire exceptionnelle de 206 kilomètres de la Normandie au Hainaut Belge, lors d'un outbreak.

www.keraunos.org

Wait, 128 miles?

Yup. This was the longest tracked tornado in the history of France. Now there is a bit of a discrepancy because the ESWD has it listed at 91 miles, which isn't quite as insane, but is still extremely impressive. I'm not sure what the longest-tracked European tornado is, but this one has got to be up there.

 

[MNTornadoGuy]

Yup. This was the longest tracked tornado in the history of France. Now there is a bit of a discrepancy because the ESWD has it listed at 91 miles, which isn't quite as insane, but is still extremely impressive. I'm not sure what the longest-tracked European tornado is, but this one has got to be up there.

This tornado is the longest tracked in European history and possibly in the world outside the United States.

 

[UK_EF4]

Somewhat related but less impressive - same storm system that spawned that EF3 tornado in France with the insane track length also produced at least 6 tornadoes in South Central England, including multiple at T3/4 intensity (low end EF2). None of the track lengths were as impressive as the French one but most tornadoes seem to have been produced along an track 20-30 miles in length - possibly a cyclic supercell or embedded tornadic segment in the line.

 

[buckeye05]

Somewhat related but less impressive - same storm system that spawned that EF3 tornado in France with the insane track length also produced at least 6 tornadoes in South Central England, including multiple at T3/4 intensity (low end EF2). None of the track lengths were as impressive as the French one but most tornadoes seem to have been produced along an track 20-30 miles in length - possibly a cyclic supercell or embedded tornadic segment in the line.

Where can I find info on the other four tornadoes in England? ESWD only lists the one in New Milton and the one at the Marwell Zoo. Had no idea there were 6.

 

[Ivanthetornadoenthusiast]

The Indonesian tornado that i wish there are more informations was found was the Halloween 2000 Cilacap tornado. The only thing that was known for this tornado is that it killed 9 people and not much else is found. The other Indonesian tornado that i wish more informations was found was the 2002 Cianjur tornado, 1977 Banyumas tornado (the only information of it is that hundreds of homes were destroyed and it killed 7), 1998 Cianjur tornado, 1991 Bandung tornado, 1998 Timor Tengah Utara (NTT) tornado and 1998 Bima (NTB/Nusa Tenggara Barat) tornado