Tornadoes of 1998

Synopsis

The 1998 tornado season saw record numbers of tornadoes and also the most fatalities since 1974 (surpassed in 2011). A number of tornado events resulted in large loss of life. In February, a series of tornadoes caused 42 fatalities in Florida. In March, a tornado killed 12 in Georgia. In April an F5 tornado killed 32 in the Birmingham, Alabama area (no stranger to killer tornadoes). By year's end, 130 people had been killed in the United States.

Events

Confirmed tornado total for the entire year 1998 in the United States.

January

There were 47 tornadoes confirmed in the U.S. in January.

February

There were 72 tornadoes confirmed in the U.S. in February.

February 9–12

A rare February derecho affected parts of Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi with widespread damaging winds and produced 18 tornadoes.

February 22–23

The 1998 Kissimmee tornado outbreak of February 22–23, 1998, was the deadliest tornado event in Florida history. Forty-two people were killed and 260 were injured; seven tornadoes were involved in the event (max rated F3). The previous record for the highest tornado death toll in Florida history was 17 on March 31, 1962.

March

There were 72 tornadoes confirmed in the U.S. in March.

March 7–9

On March 7, a large storm system produced 15 tornadoes across the southeast. In addition, heavy rain caused flooding.

March 20

The 1998 Gainesville–Stoneville tornado outbreak was a deadly tornado outbreak that struck portions of the southeastern United States on March 20, 1998. Particularly hard hit was the Gainesville, Georgia region where at least 12 people were killed in an early morning F3 tornado. The entire outbreak killed 14 people and produced 12 tornadoes across three states with the town of Stoneville, North Carolina being also hard hit by the storms.

March 28

A tornado touched down at approximately 5:25 AM in the town of Mattoon, Illinois. Winds reached around 152 miles per hour and damaged over 90 homes damaged and eight homes and six businesses were destroyed. Tornado Warnings were in effect but had expired at 5:00 AM leaving no warning from tornado sirens or trained spotters in the field. Unusually, the tornado spawned at the back end of a storm instead of the front. At least three people were injured.

March 29

The 1998 Comfrey–St. Peter tornado outbreak was an unseasonably-strong tornado outbreak which affected the Upper Midwest region of the United States on March 29, 1998. Sixteen tornadoes struck across the region—fourteen in Minnesota and two in Wisconsin. Thirteen of the tornadoes in Minnesota were spawned by a single supercell thunderstorm. Two people were killed, and 21 others were injured. Most of the damage was caused by three tornadoes—one rated F4 on the Fujita scale that hit the town of Comfrey, Minnesota, an F3 that hit St. Peter, Minnesota, and an F2 that hit Le Center, Minnesota.

April

There were 182 tornadoes confirmed in the U.S. in April.

April 6–9

The Birmingham Tornado was a tornadic event that occurred on April 8 striking the western part of Jefferson County, Alabama, near Birmingham, and continuing into neighboring St. Clair County. The Dunwoody, Georgia tornado was a significant tornado that tore across the northern suburbs of metro Atlanta late on April 8, striking parts of DeKalb and Gwinnett counties. The most severe damage was in the Dunwoody area, where the storm reached a high-end F2 on the Fujita scale, making it one of the strongest and most damaging recorded to have hit that area.

These tornadoes were part of a larger outbreak that started on April 6 across the Great Plains and ended on April 9 across the Carolinas and Georgia. A total of 62 tornadoes touched down from the Middle Atlantic States to the Midwestern United States and Texas. The Birmingham Tornado was one of only two F5 tornadoes that year. The other hit in Lawrence County, Tennessee on April 16, as part of the same outbreak as the Nashville tornadoes. The tornado outbreak was responsible for at least 41 deaths, including 7 in Georgia and 34 in Alabama.

April 15–16

The tornado outbreak of April 15–16, 1998 was a two-day tornado outbreak which affected portions of the Midwestern United States, Mississippi and Tennessee Valleys on April 15 and April 16, 1998, with the worst of the outbreak taking place on the second day. On that day, at least ten tornadoes swept through Middle Tennessee—three of them touching down in Nashville, causing significant damage to the downtown and East Nashville areas. Nashville became the first major city in nearly 20 years to have an F2 or larger tornado make a direct hit in the downtown area.

In addition, the outbreak produced several other destructive tornadoes in Middle Tennessee. One of them, southwest of Nashville, was an F5 tornado—one of only two ever recorded in the state. That tornado remained mainly in rural areas of Wayne and Lawrence counties. Other tornadoes during the 2-day outbreak struck Arkansas, Alabama, Illinois and Kentucky.

Twelve people were killed by tornadoes during the outbreak including two in Arkansas, three in Kentucky and seven in Tennessee including one in Nashville and three by the F5.

May

There were 310 tornadoes confirmed in the U.S. in May. On May 7, a tornado outbreak in the Southeast spawned 20 tornadoes in North Carolina, including an F3 tornado in Clemmons and an F4 tornado in Caldwell County.

May 4

Two tornadoes hit Los Altos and Sunnyvale in California's Santa Clara County (Silicon Valley).

May 30–31

The Late-May 1998 Tornado Outbreak and Derecho was a historic tornado outbreak and derecho that began on the afternoon of May 30 extending throughout May 31, 1998, across a large portion of the northern half of the United States and southern Ontario from southeastern Montana east and southeastward to the Atlantic Ocean. The initial tornado outbreak, including the devastating Spencer tornado, hit southeast South Dakota on the evening of the May 30. The Spencer tornado was the most destructive and second deadliest tornado in South Dakota history. Thirteen people were killed; seven by tornadoes and six by the derecho, and damage was estimated at at least $500 million in damage. Over two million people lost electrical power, some for up to 10 days.

June

There were 376 tornadoes confirmed in the U.S. in June.

June 2

The 1998 Eastern Tornado Outbreak of June 2, 1998 was one of the most significant tornado outbreaks in recent history over the east-central United States. This severe weather event spawned a total of 50 tornadoes from New York to South Carolina and caused an estimated $42 million in damage, 80 injuries and 2 fatalities. For portions of New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania, it was the second historic severe weather outbreak in three days, as it immediately followed the Late-May 1998 Tornado Outbreak and Derecho on May 30–31, 1998, which spawned 41 tornadoes over NY, NJ, PA and Vermont, caused an estimated $83 million in damage, 109 injuries and 1 fatality.

June 13

June 13 saw over forty tornadoes touchdown in the United States, primarily across Kansas, Nebraska, and Oklahoma. Significant tornadoes include an F2 which struck downtown Sabetha, Kansas, and four tornadoes which struck the North Oklahoma City area.

July

There were 82 tornadoes confirmed in the U.S. in July.

August

There were 61 tornadoes confirmed in the U.S. in August.

September

There were 104 tornadoes confirmed in the U.S. in September.

September 24–30

The 1998 Hurricane Georges tornado outbreak was a six-day tornado outbreak associated with the passage of Hurricane Georges in the Southeast United States. Most of the tornadoes produced by the storm formed in the outer bands of the storm and were relatively weak; however, one F2 tornado touched down in Florida. The outbreak produced 47 tornadoes—20 in Alabama, 17 in Florida and 10 in Georgia—and was the most extensive tornado event in Florida history, with touchdowns reported the entire length of the state.

October

There were 86 tornadoes confirmed in the U.S. in October.

October 4

October 4 saw 29 tornadoes touch down in the United States, 26 of which struck Oklahoma. The day was Oklahoma's largest October tornado outbreak on record.

November

There were 26 tornadoes confirmed in the U.S. in November.

December

There were 6 tornadoes confirmed in the U.S. in December.