tornadoes knock down trees in the forest and houses in the suburbs
Source: National Archives, Suffolk, VA, 4/30/08 (by Liz Roll/FEMA)
tornadoes knock down trees in the forest and houses in the suburbs
Source: National Archives, Suffolk, VA, 4/30/08 (by Liz Roll/FEMA)
Multiple locations in Virginia have been identified with consistently higher-than-average winds. Those sites are in the mountains and along the coastline, and are the preferred locations for building wind turbines to generate electricity. Tornadoes offer the greatest concentration of windpower energy in Virginia, but their locations can no be predicted and their energy can not be harvested by wind turbines.
Tornadoes are tightly-concentrated, high-energy, violently rotating columns of air. Tornadoes appear and disappear quickly, usually within minutes, and move across the surface of the earth in unpredictable paths. Some are spawned by hurricanes moving west from the Atlantic Ocean or north from the Gulf Coast. Others spin out of strong storms that typically move east across the continent into Virginia.
tornadoes are powerful enough to destroy structures and kill people
Source: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), April 19 Tornado Paths Virginia
Tornadoes occur in the Appalachian mountains and on the Blue Ridge, as well as on the more-open Piedmont and Coastal Plain physiographic provinces. Richmond was struck by a tornado in 1816, 1820, 1912, 1936, 1951, 1956 (twice), 1969, 1980, 1984, 1989, 2003, 2004 (twice), 2010 - and five times in 2018. The most significant damage from a Virginia tornado occurred in 1951, when the tornado stayed on the ground for 15 minutes and a dozen people were injured.
Between 1999-2018, there was an average of 1,225 tornadoes annually in the United States. Two states in the heart of "Tornado Alley" experienced the most - Texas with an average 155, and Kansas with 96. The risk of a tornadic thunderstorm moves north after April-May as the strong jet stream winds move north.
Between 1991-2010, on average Virginia experienced 18 tornadoes annually.1
Virginia experiences only 1% of the tornadoes that touch down in the United States each year, on average
Source: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Historical Records and Trends
Tornadoes are classified by wind speeds which are correlated to their effects on the ground, particularly on human-built structures. The original Fujita Scale was "enhanced" in 2007 to align wind speeds with property damage more closely.
Only the National Weather Service determines if a wind event was a tornado and can assign an official tornado Enhanced Fujita Scale rating. EF ratings are based on after-the-fact estimates of wind speed based on the visible effects on structures, rather than actual measurements by scientific instruments or sensors. Where tornadoes cross open fields, damage is particularly hard to estimate. A 2021 study using Doppler radar measurements suggested that the National Weather Service has underestimated the power of such tornadoes, with ratings 1.2 to 1.5 categories too low.2
tornadoes knock down trees in the forest and houses in the suburbs
Source: National Weather Service, January 13 2013 EF0 Eagleville Tornado
Tornadoes can kill people as well as destroy property at any location in Virginia. The First Baptist Church in Williamsburg, founded by free and enslaved black people in 1776, was destroyed by a tornado in 1834. A new church was not constructed by the congregation until 1856.3
Between 1950-1994, the 279 tornadoes recorded in Virginia killed 25 people. Though Virginia has only 1% of the tornadoes that touch down in the United States each year, on average, it is in the middle of the 50 states for number of tornadoes causing fatalities and the total number of deaths.
in 2011, there were 49 tornadoes in Virginia
Source: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, U.S. Annual Tornado Maps (1952-2011)
Tornadoes peak in April and again in September, when hurricanes are likely to strike Virginia. Most strike in the afternoon, when the sun has heated the atmosphere and instability is greater.
Less than 20% of the tornadoes in Virginia are rated as EF-2 or higher on the Enhanced Fujita Scale, but the most powerful storms cause roughly 80% of the property damage and injuries and almost 90% of the fatalities. The less-intense EF-0 tornadoes touch down only briefly, with a track on the ground averaging 1.7 miles. The EF-2 tornadoes stay on the ground for an average of five miles, while EF-3 tornadoes touch down for an average of 10 miles. As a result, EF-2 and stronger tornadoes have a greater opportunity to encounter structures as well as more power to demolish buildings.4
tornado paths between 1950-2019
Source: Storm Prediction Center, National Weather Service, SVRGIS
Though news stories often highlight the highly-visible damage to rural trailer homes, cities are not immune. On July 1, 2021, an EF-1 tornado touched down in Arlington County and stayed on the ground for over four miles. The tornado moved from the Cherrydale neighborhood through Lyon Village, crossed Rosslyn, then left the ground near 16th Street and Constitution Avenue NW in Washington, DC.
Two EF-0 ornadoes touched down on March 31, 2022 in two Fairfax County locations. One was on the ground for just a minute near Cub Run Elementary School in Centreville, leaving a track 30 yards wide and 80 yards long. Another tornado damaged two gas stations along Chain Bridge Road, just northwest of Tysons Corner Center. Debris ended up on the Silver Line Metro track.
On August 6, 1993, 18 tornadoes swept across southern Virginia. A tornado with winds reaching 225 miles per hour blasted downtown Petersburg.
It damaged more than half of Old Towne’s buildings and destroyed the eastern freight wing of the South Side Railroad Depot. The tornado then destroyed 47 of the 57 buildings on Pocahontas Island. In one of the quirks of tornado damage, a church was blown away but the Bible on a podium was left undisturbed.
The storm finished crossing the Appomattox River and demolished the Wal-Mart in Colonial Heights, a site previously struck by tornadoes in the 1850s and in May 1990. In 2008, another F1 tornado touched down near there, stacking cars on top of each other in the Best Buy parking lot.
A total of 259 were injured and four people were killed on that day. No one died in Old Towne, but three died in the Colonial Heights Wal-Mart and one was crushed when a cinderblock building collapsed at a sand and gravel pit company in Prince George County. The tornado caused $50 million in damage, the greatest in Virginia history. As remembered by the National Weather Service:5
18 tornadoes crossed southern Virginia on August 6, 1993
Source: National Weather Service, Remembering the Tornado Outbreak of August 6, 1993
The economic impact on Petersburg was significant. The wing of the South Side Station was not rebuilt, and empty lots were still present in downtown Petersburg three decades later. The city had been starting to redevelop its downtown and attract small independent businesses, tourists, and residents. The mayor estimated that the economic recovery of Petersburg was delayed 15 years by the storm, because many of the damaged buildings had been listed as National Historic Landmarks and could not be bulldozed:6
A quick-forming July, 2014 tornado with winds around 100 miles per hour knocked trees onto tents and recreational vehicles at a campground filled with 1,300 people near Cape Charles on the Eastern Shore. Two campers were killed, and 36 others injured.7
between 1950-2020, six tornadoes were documented in Northampton County
Source: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Storm Events Database
The deadliest tornado to hit Virginia, so far, was in 1929 in Scott County's Rye Cove. The two-story wooden school building, with eight rooms and an auditorium, was demolished. Of the 150 people at the Rye Cove Consolidated School just as recess ended, 56 were injured. Of the 13 who were killed, 12 were students and one was a teacher. Her body was carried 75 yards away as the building was smashed by the powerful wind.
Virginia's most-deadly tornado killed 12 students and one teacher at Rye Cove in 1929
Source: Newspapers.com, The Springfield Press (May 4, 1929)
According to one teacher, there was no time to seek cover and "the building collapsed with a smash" as soon as the storm hit. The school principal described how the tornado was a complete surprise:8
Virginia's most-deadly tornado killed 12 students and one teacher at Rye Cove in 1929
Source: ESRI, ArcGIS Online
One of the rescuers, A. P. Carter, composed a song about what he saw with the lyric:9
Source: You Tube, The Cyclone Of Rye Cove Carter Family
In addition to a spinning tornado, strong winds may also be dangerous. When the Blue Ridge is at the edge of high pressure systems from the north in January/February, and low-pressure systems are located to the southeast near the warmer ocean, the winter winds can flow through the gap at speeds up to 120 miles per hour. That is sufficient to rip the doors off of vehicles, overturn trucks, and even lift people into the air.
On January 24, 2003, five tractor-trailer trucks were flipped onto their sides on Interstate 77 at Fancy Gap. A state trooper who reported to the accident scene claimed he had to hold onto the guardrail to avoid being tossed over the edge of the roadbed that had been carved into the side of the mountain. Another said:10
Federal and state officials assessed damage from a 2008 tornado in Suffolk
Source: National Archives, Suffolk, VA, 5/01/08
the 2008 EF-3 tornado in Suffolk created a debris field, including a toilet left in the yard
Source: NARA & DVIDS Public Domain Archive, Suffolk, VA, 4/30/08
Any spot in Virginia can experience a "derecho." A derecho (Spanish for "straight") is a band of wind at the front of a storm. A June, 2012 a storm complex caused a derecho with 80 mile per hour winds that created havoc for 600 miles, as it moved from the Midwest to the Delmarva Peninsula. In Virginia, 15 people died. Trees falling on power lines caused the third-largest power outage in the state's history (exceeded only by hurricanes Isabel and Irene), and led to a move to place distribution lines underground in the most outage prone areas.11
Virginia experiences a derecho once every four years, on average
Source: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), About Derechos
Port City Brewing Company in Alexandria saved its 13,000 gallons of beer by allowing one batch to ferment at higher temperatures. The beer in process was supposed to be fermented at cool temperatures, but the brewery made steam beer (California common) instead of lager and labelled it "Derecho Common." A year later, an anniversary party at the brewery got an added dose of authenticity when there was a brief power outage, and the celebration required flashlights.12
the 2012 derecho knocked over trees and caused widespread power outages for a week after the storm
Source: Virginia Derecho Blog, power outages as of July 5, 2012
In 2016, a rare February tornado touched down in Campbell and Appomattox counties. The strong EF-3 tornado stayed on the ground for 17 minutes and left a swath of destruction for 17 miles; Doppler radar recorded debris 10,000 feet above the ground. Seven people were injured and one was killed.
Five years later in December 2021, a major outbreak of tornadoes killed over 80 people across eight states from Indiana to Georgia. The Appomattox Fire Department responded by donating their 1990 Pierce Fire Engine to the fire department in Samburg-Reelfoot, Tennessee.13
a tornado in February, 2016 crossed through 17 miles in Campbell and Appomattox counties
Source: National Weather Service, Rare February Tornadoes in Mid-Atlantic: Focus on tornadoes in Appomattox and Patrick Counties of Virginia, February 24, 2016 (Figure 6)
the EF-3 tornado in February, 2016 started its track on the ground near the community of Evergreen in Appomattox County
Source: National Weather Service, Rare February Tornadoes in Mid-Atlantic: Focus on tornadoes in Appomattox and Patrick Counties of Virginia, February 24, 2016 (Figure 6)
The Peter's Mountain Roar in Giles County is a Spring phenomenon almost every year, sounding like "a tremendous thundering roar of giant waves breaking over rocky reefs." It is described as:14
the Peters Mountain Roar at the West Virginia border is caused by winds from the Atlantic Ocean
Source: ESRI, ArcGIS Online
All parts of Virginia are at risk of experiencing a tornado. On April 30, 2023, an EF-3 tornado swept though the Great Neck section of Virginia Beach, just west of First Landing State Park. The storm caused $15 million in damage to about 100 homes, but no deaths. The city opened a shelter at Great Neck Recreation Center, but most people affected by the storm were able to find a hotel room.
The storm struck before the peak of the tourist season, so there was excess hotel capacity in the resort area. Heavy rain earlier that day had forced cancellation of the third day of the Something in the Water festival organized by Pharrell Williams, who had grown up in Virginia Beach.15
on average, Virginia experiences more tornadoes in September than in any other month
Source: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 25-Year Average Number of Tornadoes per State by Month (All tornadoes, 1997-2022)
shade trees next to houses can become projectiles and bludgeons in a tornado
Source: Flickr, Bedford County Virginia Tornado Damage April 2002 (by Kipp Teague)
tornado winds lift roofs off structures without hurricane roof clips
Source: Flickr, Bedford County Virginia Tornado Damage April 2002 (by Kipp Teague)
an EF3 tornado struck Grade Spring on April 27, 2011
Source: Brent Moore, 4/27 Tornado Damage - Glade Spring, VA
most tornadoes strike in the Great Plains or near the Gulf Coast
Source: Storm Prediction Center WCM Page, National Weather Service, Tornado Climatology -- All Tornadoes