Severe weather outbreak leaves trail of damage across 3 states
By
Lauren Fox, AccuWeather staff writer
Updated Oct 27, 2021 4:08 AM EDT
Severe weather broke out across the central United States on Sunday, and apparent tornadoes caused destruction and knocked out power but spared lives and, according to reports, resulted in no injuries. At least 18 preliminary tornado reports were filed meaning there is a possibility that October could become a record-breaking month for tornadoes in the United States.
Throughout Illinois, Kansas and Missouri, trees were downed, snapped and destroyed, along with power lines. Parts of Missouri, in the vicinity of St. Louis, were hit particularly hard. Some of those twisters were caught on camera and video footage of the aftermath showed extensive damage, uprooted trees and blown-apart homes.
Aerial footage from Purdin, Missouri, about 275 miles to the northwest of St. Louis, captured the damage left after a tornado tore through the town. A young boy named Myles Johnson was also able to capture a video of the tornado as it touched down on Sunday.
Aerial footage shows damage in Purdin, Missouri, that was caused by a tornado that swept through the area on Oct. 24. (SevereStudios/John Humphress)
"It's touched down, guys. Get in your bunkers," Johnson can be heard saying in the video as the tornado spins.
The storms also unleashed significant hail. Hailstones in the state reached up to 1.75 inches in diameter, which equates to about the size of a golf ball, AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Dan Pydynowski said.
On Monday morning, the National Weather Service (NWS) office in St. Louis sent out two survey teams to assess the damages caused in southeastern Missouri and southwestern Illinois as a result of the severe weather. The office in Kansas City also sent out a survey team.
The tornado that touched down near Fredericktown, Missouri, was rated a preliminary rating of EF3 with winds between 136 and 165 mph, the strongest of all the tornadoes reported on Sunday. Another twister that occurred in St. Mary, Missouri was rated an EF2.
According to the NWS office in Kansas City, this outburst of severe weather is the first one to bring tornadoes in October to its area of coverage since 2018, when tornadoes broke out in the area on Oct. 8 and 9.
The storms resulted in record-breaking rainfall in Kirksville, Missouri. Kirksville received 4.54 inches of rain, smashing the previous record for the date of 0.76 of an inch that was set in 1967. The rainfall brought the day just a bit shy of breaking the city's record for the wettest October day in history, which was 4.56 inches on Oct. 2, 2005. Sunday also marked the 11th-wettest day the city has ever faced since record-keeping began in 1948.
The part of the U.S. where tornadoes most commonly spin up in late October is along the Gulf coast. While it is not unheard of for tornadoes to form in states like Missouri, due to the lack of moisture in the air, tornadoes are less common there at this time of year. Tornadoes in the central U.S. are more common in spring, during the peak of severe weather season, and summer months.
"By late October, usually you have cooler, drier air in place which is more stable," Pydynowski explained, adding that moisture from the Gulf of Mexico, which is typically a necessary ingredient for severe weather, doesn't frequently make it that far north the way it does in the late spring and summer.
A funnel cloud was spotted in Cowgill, Missouri, on Sunday, Oct. 24, amid multiple tornado warnings across the region. (Jessica Lynn Farmer via Storyful)
On Sunday, St. Louis experienced a bout of warmer weather, reaching 81 degrees Fahrenheit. Then farther south on Monday, record highs were broken across the state of Texas.
The warm weather, combined with a strong cold front, made conditions conducive to severe weather and tornadoes.
So far this month, 119 preliminary tornado reports were made to the NWS. The record number of tornadoes filed for October came in 2018, with 123 total reports for the month.
With less than a week left in the month and a possibility for tornadoes again on Wednesday and Thursday, it is likely the count of 119 preliminary tornado reports will rise. Additionally, as the damage from Sunday's severe weather is surveyed, the number of confirmed tornadoes from past events is likely to grow and possibly break the record for the month of October.
For the latest weather news check back on AccuWeather.com. Watch AccuWeather Network on DIRECTV, DIRECTVstream, Frontier, Spectrum, fuboTV, Philo, and Verizon Fios. AccuWeatherNOW is streaming on Roku and XUMO.
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News / Severe Weather
Severe weather outbreak leaves trail of damage across 3 states
By Lauren Fox, AccuWeather staff writer
Updated Oct 27, 2021 4:08 AM EDT
Severe weather broke out across the central United States on Sunday, and apparent tornadoes caused destruction and knocked out power but spared lives and, according to reports, resulted in no injuries. At least 18 preliminary tornado reports were filed meaning there is a possibility that October could become a record-breaking month for tornadoes in the United States.
Throughout Illinois, Kansas and Missouri, trees were downed, snapped and destroyed, along with power lines. Parts of Missouri, in the vicinity of St. Louis, were hit particularly hard. Some of those twisters were caught on camera and video footage of the aftermath showed extensive damage, uprooted trees and blown-apart homes.
Aerial footage from Purdin, Missouri, about 275 miles to the northwest of St. Louis, captured the damage left after a tornado tore through the town. A young boy named Myles Johnson was also able to capture a video of the tornado as it touched down on Sunday.
Aerial footage shows damage in Purdin, Missouri, that was caused by a tornado that swept through the area on Oct. 24. (SevereStudios/John Humphress)
"It's touched down, guys. Get in your bunkers," Johnson can be heard saying in the video as the tornado spins.
The storms also unleashed significant hail. Hailstones in the state reached up to 1.75 inches in diameter, which equates to about the size of a golf ball, AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Dan Pydynowski said.
On Monday morning, the National Weather Service (NWS) office in St. Louis sent out two survey teams to assess the damages caused in southeastern Missouri and southwestern Illinois as a result of the severe weather. The office in Kansas City also sent out a survey team.
The tornado that touched down near Fredericktown, Missouri, was rated a preliminary rating of EF3 with winds between 136 and 165 mph, the strongest of all the tornadoes reported on Sunday. Another twister that occurred in St. Mary, Missouri was rated an EF2.
According to the NWS office in Kansas City, this outburst of severe weather is the first one to bring tornadoes in October to its area of coverage since 2018, when tornadoes broke out in the area on Oct. 8 and 9.
The storms resulted in record-breaking rainfall in Kirksville, Missouri. Kirksville received 4.54 inches of rain, smashing the previous record for the date of 0.76 of an inch that was set in 1967. The rainfall brought the day just a bit shy of breaking the city's record for the wettest October day in history, which was 4.56 inches on Oct. 2, 2005. Sunday also marked the 11th-wettest day the city has ever faced since record-keeping began in 1948.
The part of the U.S. where tornadoes most commonly spin up in late October is along the Gulf coast. While it is not unheard of for tornadoes to form in states like Missouri, due to the lack of moisture in the air, tornadoes are less common there at this time of year. Tornadoes in the central U.S. are more common in spring, during the peak of severe weather season, and summer months.
"By late October, usually you have cooler, drier air in place which is more stable," Pydynowski explained, adding that moisture from the Gulf of Mexico, which is typically a necessary ingredient for severe weather, doesn't frequently make it that far north the way it does in the late spring and summer.
A funnel cloud was spotted in Cowgill, Missouri, on Sunday, Oct. 24, amid multiple tornado warnings across the region. (Jessica Lynn Farmer via Storyful)
On Sunday, St. Louis experienced a bout of warmer weather, reaching 81 degrees Fahrenheit. Then farther south on Monday, record highs were broken across the state of Texas.
The warm weather, combined with a strong cold front, made conditions conducive to severe weather and tornadoes.
So far this month, 119 preliminary tornado reports were made to the NWS. The record number of tornadoes filed for October came in 2018, with 123 total reports for the month.
With less than a week left in the month and a possibility for tornadoes again on Wednesday and Thursday, it is likely the count of 119 preliminary tornado reports will rise. Additionally, as the damage from Sunday's severe weather is surveyed, the number of confirmed tornadoes from past events is likely to grow and possibly break the record for the month of October.
In other news:
For the latest weather news check back on AccuWeather.com. Watch AccuWeather Network on DIRECTV, DIRECTVstream, Frontier, Spectrum, fuboTV, Philo, and Verizon Fios. AccuWeatherNOW is streaming on Roku and XUMO.
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