Tennessee tornadoes timeline
One week after the deadly Tennessee tornadoes, I look at the timeline.
Published Mar 10, 2020 7:35 PM EDT
One week ago, the deadliest tornadoes in Tennessee since the 2011 Super Outbreak caused immense destruction in the middle of the night, killing at least 24 people. This new, incredible video of the storm has just been released:
Incredible video shows the EF3 tornado that went through Nashville March 3 throwing cars and other debris at a Kroger security camera in Hermitage, Tennessee.
Many incredible photos are available in the National Weather Service in Nashville, TN's report and from our news story:
Here's a summary of the two biggest twisters:
The first tornado struck Nashville shortly after midnight and stayed on the ground for over 60 miles to Gordonsville. This EF3 twister killed five people.
The regional radar image shows the storm setup as the tornado was moving through the northern fringes of Nashville.
The local radar image, showing the Tornado Warning. The bulbous mass to the northeast of Nashville is the tornado.
The second major tornado, which killed the most people, was an EF4 that tracked 8 miles just before 2 a.m. It stopped just before Cookeville.*
All in all, there were around 10 tornadoes:
Tornado reports Monday night. Most, but not all, were later confirmed by the National Weather Service.
By the end of the night, Tornado Warnings had been issued across much of Tennessee in an east to west line.
This image shows all Severe Thunderstorm and Tornado watches and warnings that night.
There were thousands of lightning strikes Monday night from Missouri into Ohio, and a brief flare-up in West Virginia and Pennsylvania the following evening.
Here are some related stats about the storm from the National Weather Service in Nashville, TN's report and from our news story:
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Deadliest tornadoes in Tennessee since the April 27, 2011 Tornado Outbreak in East Tennessee
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Worst tornadoes in Middle Tennessee since the February 5, 2008 Super Tuesday Outbreak
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10 tornadoes touched down across Tennessee from the late evening on March 2nd into the early morning hours on March 3rd
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All 10 tornadoes in Tennessee were spawned by the same supercell thunderstorm
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7 tornadoes affected Middle Tennessee
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3 tornado affected West Tennessee
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1 tornado affected East Tennessee
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Other severe thunderstorms spawned tornadoes across southeast Missouri (1 tornado), southern Kentucky (2 tornadoes), and central Alabama (2 tornadoes)
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Deadliest single tornado in Tennessee (18 deaths) since the EF-3 Sumner/Trousdale/Macon County Tornado on February 5, 2008 (22 deaths)
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Worst tornado in Putnam County on record
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Worst tornado in the Upper Cumberland since the April 3, 1974 Super Outbreak
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First deaths from a tornado in Putnam County since March 19, 2003
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First tornado to strike the downtown Nashville loop since February 13, 2000
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2 deaths in East Nashville were the first in Davidson County from a tornado since April 16, 1998
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3 deaths in Mount Juliet were the first in Wilson County from a tornado since April 11, 1944
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60.13 mile path length of this tornado is the longest in Middle Tennessee since official tornado records began in 1950
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Second longest known path length of any tornado in Middle Tennessee history going back to the 1800s (longest was 80 miles on May 27, 1917)
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One of the longest known tornado paths ever in the state of Tennessee
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Power still remained out for nearly 33,000 customers as of Wednesday evening, according to PowerOutage.us.
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The last time a monstrous tornado killed as many people was on May 20, 2013, when an EF5 strength twister claimed 24 lives in Moore, Oklahoma.
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In Putnam County, a tornado damaged over 100 structures.
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Planes were destroyed at the John C. Tune Airport near Nashville.
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At one point on Tuesday night, 77 people were unaccounted for, according to County Mayor Randy Porter. Per WBIR, Porter called it the largest natural disaster in the county's modern recorded history.
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Tennessee has seen six EF4 and 12 EF3 tornadoes in March since 1950, though none have been near Nashville, based on AccuWeather analysis of Storm Prediction Center (SPC) data.
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Country Singer Carrie Underwood told the Today Show in an interview her husband and children took shelter during the severe weather.
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One of the most devastated areas of Nashville, on Main Street, was previously struck by tornadoes in 1933 and 1998.
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Just hours before voting for Super Tuesday was set to begin in the state, four polling stations were moved because of the damage as well as closures to schools and courts. Polls opened and closed late in many areas.
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One of the damaged venues in East Nashville was the Basement East nightclub. According to the Tennessean, a benefit concert being held at the venue for Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders had only ended several hours prior to the twister.
Report a Typo
Weather Blogs / WeatherMatrix
Tennessee tornadoes timeline
One week after the deadly Tennessee tornadoes, I look at the timeline.
Published Mar 10, 2020 7:35 PM EDT
One week ago, the deadliest tornadoes in Tennessee since the 2011 Super Outbreak caused immense destruction in the middle of the night, killing at least 24 people. This new, incredible video of the storm has just been released:
Incredible video shows the EF3 tornado that went through Nashville March 3 throwing cars and other debris at a Kroger security camera in Hermitage, Tennessee.
Many incredible photos are available in the National Weather Service in Nashville, TN's report and from our news story:
Here's a summary of the two biggest twisters:
The first tornado struck Nashville shortly after midnight and stayed on the ground for over 60 miles to Gordonsville. This EF3 twister killed five people.
The regional radar image shows the storm setup as the tornado was moving through the northern fringes of Nashville.
The local radar image, showing the Tornado Warning. The bulbous mass to the northeast of Nashville is the tornado.
The second major tornado, which killed the most people, was an EF4 that tracked 8 miles just before 2 a.m. It stopped just before Cookeville.*
All in all, there were around 10 tornadoes:
Tornado reports Monday night. Most, but not all, were later confirmed by the National Weather Service.
By the end of the night, Tornado Warnings had been issued across much of Tennessee in an east to west line.
This image shows all Severe Thunderstorm and Tornado watches and warnings that night.
There were thousands of lightning strikes Monday night from Missouri into Ohio, and a brief flare-up in West Virginia and Pennsylvania the following evening.
Here are some related stats about the storm from the National Weather Service in Nashville, TN's report and from our news story:
Deadliest tornadoes in Tennessee since the April 27, 2011 Tornado Outbreak in East Tennessee
Worst tornadoes in Middle Tennessee since the February 5, 2008 Super Tuesday Outbreak
10 tornadoes touched down across Tennessee from the late evening on March 2nd into the early morning hours on March 3rd
All 10 tornadoes in Tennessee were spawned by the same supercell thunderstorm
7 tornadoes affected Middle Tennessee
3 tornado affected West Tennessee
1 tornado affected East Tennessee
Other severe thunderstorms spawned tornadoes across southeast Missouri (1 tornado), southern Kentucky (2 tornadoes), and central Alabama (2 tornadoes)
EF-4 Putnam County Tornado:
Deadliest single tornado in Tennessee (18 deaths) since the EF-3 Sumner/Trousdale/Macon County Tornado on February 5, 2008 (22 deaths)
Worst tornado in Putnam County on record
Worst tornado in the Upper Cumberland since the April 3, 1974 Super Outbreak
First deaths from a tornado in Putnam County since March 19, 2003
EF-3 Davidson/Wilson/Smith County Tornado
First tornado to strike the downtown Nashville loop since February 13, 2000
2 deaths in East Nashville were the first in Davidson County from a tornado since April 16, 1998
3 deaths in Mount Juliet were the first in Wilson County from a tornado since April 11, 1944
60.13 mile path length of this tornado is the longest in Middle Tennessee since official tornado records began in 1950
Second longest known path length of any tornado in Middle Tennessee history going back to the 1800s (longest was 80 miles on May 27, 1917)
One of the longest known tornado paths ever in the state of Tennessee
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Report a TypoPower still remained out for nearly 33,000 customers as of Wednesday evening, according to PowerOutage.us.
The last time a monstrous tornado killed as many people was on May 20, 2013, when an EF5 strength twister claimed 24 lives in Moore, Oklahoma.
In Putnam County, a tornado damaged over 100 structures.
Planes were destroyed at the John C. Tune Airport near Nashville.
At one point on Tuesday night, 77 people were unaccounted for, according to County Mayor Randy Porter. Per WBIR, Porter called it the largest natural disaster in the county's modern recorded history.
Tennessee has seen six EF4 and 12 EF3 tornadoes in March since 1950, though none have been near Nashville, based on AccuWeather analysis of Storm Prediction Center (SPC) data.
Country Singer Carrie Underwood told the Today Show in an interview her husband and children took shelter during the severe weather.
One of the most devastated areas of Nashville, on Main Street, was previously struck by tornadoes in 1933 and 1998.
Just hours before voting for Super Tuesday was set to begin in the state, four polling stations were moved because of the damage as well as closures to schools and courts. Polls opened and closed late in many areas.
One of the damaged venues in East Nashville was the Basement East nightclub. According to the Tennessean, a benefit concert being held at the venue for Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders had only ended several hours prior to the twister.