An F1 tornado moved diagonally across the city of Columbus and Muscogee County before ending about one mile into Harris County. The tornado began at 5:12 pm EST on the southside of Columbus first touching down on Martin Luther King Boulevard where a business was partially de-roofed.
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Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
The episode as NWS BMX wrote it up.
An F1 tornado moved diagonally across the city of Columbus and Muscogee County before ending about one mile into Harris County. The total tornado track was about 10 and a quarter miles long, one mile in Harris County and the rest in Muscogee County.The tornado began at 5:12 pm EST on the southside of Columbus first touching down on Martin Luther King Boulevard where a business was partially de-roofed. The tornado moved northeastward through primarily residential sections such as Wynnton Grove, Averett Woods and Hilton Heights. Damage in these areas was primarily to trees and power lines.The tornado crossed Interstate 185 in the vicinity of Columbus College. Hardaway High School suffered roof damage to the sym as well as damage to the athletic field and equipment. A couple of portable classrooms at Columbus College were destroyed, one was thrown across I-185.The tornado continued northeast across the Peachtree Mall and the Columbus airport terminal. Relatively minor damage was done in these areas. The observation equipment at the Columbus airport recorded a wind gust to 58 knots (67 mph) at 5:23 pm. Damage increased as the tornado moved into the residential areas of Wayne Terrace, Windsor Park, and Lyn Hills located north of the airport. Tornado intensity was stronger in this area though damage continued to be primarily to trees with many falling on house. A number of houses sustained roof damage but few actually lost portions of their roofs.Continuing northeast, the tornado moved through the North Oaks, Charter Oaks, and Bridlewood residential areas with only minor damage to trees and house tops - generally shingles blown off. The tornado crossed J. R. Allen Parkway just to the south-southwest of Shaw High School. Additional damage in the form of downed trees occurred on Pierce Chapel Road at the Muscogee/Harris county line. Damage to trees continued approximately one mile into Harris County before the tornado dissipated.There was only one injury - a broken arm - attributed to the tornado. EMA reported 40 houses damaged, three uninhabitable. Immediately following the storm, 20,000 electric customers were without power.
The Maxwell AFB radar (KMXX), 79 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 22:14 UTC.
1 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.
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NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5590244.