Tornadoes · United States · Alabama · 2022
EF0 tornado, Phipps, Alabama, April 13, 2022
This EF0 tornado ran 0.7 miles across Hale County on April 13, 2022, touching down at 10:11 PM CDT and reaching 50 yards wide. It killed nobody.
The rating scale
Tracks are drawn in the color of the rating. The Enhanced Fujita scale rates the damage rather than measuring the wind: the speeds are what that damage is taken to imply.
EF065 to 85 mphthis tornado
Light damage. Surface peeled off some roofs, gutters and siding damaged, branches broken, shallow-rooted trees pushed over.
EF186 to 110 mph
Moderate damage. Roofs badly stripped, mobile homes overturned or badly damaged, exterior doors lost, windows broken.
EF2111 to 135 mph
Considerable damage. Roofs torn off well-built houses, frame homes shifted on their foundations, mobile homes destroyed, large trees snapped or uprooted, cars lifted off the ground.
EF3136 to 165 mph
Severe damage. Whole stories of well-built houses destroyed, large buildings badly damaged, trains overturned, trees debarked, heavy cars lifted and thrown.
EF4166 to 200 mph
Devastating damage. Well-built houses leveled, structures with weak foundations moved some distance, cars thrown and large missiles generated.
EF5over 200 mph
Incredible damage. Strong frame houses swept off their foundations, car-sized missiles thrown more than 100 meters, steel-reinforced concrete badly damaged, high-rise buildings deformed.
Unrated
The survey recorded a tornado but could not put a number on it, most often because it crossed open country and damaged nothing a rating can be read from.
The record
- Rating
- EF0
- Date
- April 13, 2022
- Touchdown
- 10:11 PM CDT (03:11 UTC)
- Lifted
- 10:12 PM CDT (03:12 UTC)
- On the ground
- 1 minutes
- Path length
- 0.7 miles (1.0 km)
- Path width
- 50 yards (46 m)
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- County
- Hale County
- Touchdown point
- 32.951, -87.444
- Lift-off point
- 32.960, -87.440
- Record number
- 2204132111-01
The damage survey
24 damage points were recorded along this path by NWS BMX, in the Damage Assessment Toolkit the survey teams carry. The strongest indicator was rated EF1. The highest wind the damage implies is 87 mph.
Survey points are preliminary and are the raw material the published rating was built from. Source: NWS Damage Assessment Toolkit.
What the Weather Service recorded
A quasi-linear convective system (QLCS) developed across Mississippi and tracked eastward across Central Alabama on the evening of April 13th. Numerous trees were uprooted as surface winds gusted to 60-70 mph in some locations. A few tornadoes also formed within the line and impacted portions of Greene, Hale, and Tuscaloosa Counties.
National Weather Service meteorologists surveyed damage in northeast Hale County and determined that it was consistent with an EF0 tornado, with maximum winds near 80 mph. The brief tornado touched down near County Road 50 about 500 yards east of County Road 49. Before dissipating, several trees were uprooted and snapped along its short path.
From NOAA NCEI's Storm Events Database, the narrative the local forecast office wrote for Storm Data.
The warnings
No tornado warning for this county appears in the archive as in force at the moment the tornado touched down. One was issued for the county at another hour that day.
The county was under a severe thunderstorm watch, issued at 23:44 UTC and running to 03:27 UTC.
| Issued (UTC) | Expired | Product | Office |
|---|---|---|---|
| 23:44 UTC | 03:27 UTC | Severe Thunderstorm Watch | BMX |
| 02:33 UTC | 03:30 UTC | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX |
| 03:15 UTC | 03:26 UTC | Tornado Warning | BMX |
Every warning and watch covering the touchdown point that day, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service products. Lead time is measured from the issue of the warning in force to the touchdown time in the database, both of which were recorded to the minute by different people.
The forecast that day
The Storm Prediction Center had this point in a Slight Risk, with a 0.05 chance of a tornado within 25 miles. The outlook in force was issued at 01:00 UTC.
SPC's Day 1 convective outlook as it stood when the tornado began, read at the touchdown point. The same archive is on the radar archive.
The air that afternoon
The radiosonde launches on either side of the tornado, from the nearest station that was launching then, drawn and analyzed the way Storm Lab does: the same diagram, the same parcel and shear definitions SPC's mesoanalysis uses.
Birmingham, AL (KBMX), 00:00Z
3.2 hours before the tornado, 67 km from the path. April 14, 2022.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 164 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -125 J/kg
- Surface CAPE
- 401 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 1260 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 35 kt
- 0-1 km bulk shear
- 23 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 97 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 218 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.2
- 0-3 km lapse rate
- 6.5 K/km
Birmingham, AL (KBMX), 12:00Z
8.8 hours after it, 67 km from the path. April 14, 2022.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 2 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -42 J/kg
- Surface CAPE
- 26 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 627 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 43 kt
- 0-1 km bulk shear
- 10 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 10 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 151 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.0
- 0-3 km lapse rate
- 4.0 K/km
The surface observations
Tuscaloosa Municipal (TCL), 33 km from the path, in the two hours either side.
| Time (UTC) | Temp (°F) | Dew point (°F) | Wind | Gust (kt) | Pressure (mb) | Weather |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01:15 UTC | 160° 11 kt | 1010.2 | ||||
| 01:20 UTC | 160° 9 kt | 1010.2 | ||||
| 01:25 UTC | 170° 10 kt | 15 | 1009.8 | |||
| 01:30 UTC | 150° 8 kt | 1009.8 | ||||
| 01:35 UTC | 160° 11 kt | 1009.8 | ||||
| 01:40 UTC | 160° 11 kt | 1009.8 | ||||
| 01:45 UTC | 160° 7 kt | 1009.8 | ||||
| 01:50 UTC | 170° 13 kt | 1009.8 | ||||
| 01:53 UTC | 76 | 63 | 170° 14 kt | 22 | 1009.8 | |
| 01:55 UTC | 170° 13 kt | 18 | 1010.2 | |||
| 02:00 UTC | 170° 13 kt | 19 | 1010.2 | -RA | ||
| 02:05 UTC | 170° 10 kt | 1010.5 | -RA | |||
| 02:10 UTC | 160° 15 kt | 1010.5 | -RA | |||
| 02:15 UTC | 170° 11 kt | 16 | 1010.8 | -RA | ||
| 02:17 UTC | 75 | 63 | 170° 11 kt | 21 | 1010.8 | -TSRA |
| 02:20 UTC | 170° 14 kt | 1010.8 | -RA | |||
| 02:25 UTC | 180° 10 kt | 1011.2 | -RA | |||
| 02:30 UTC | 170° 14 kt | 1011.2 | -RA | |||
| 02:35 UTC | 170° 11 kt | 17 | 1011.5 | RA | ||
| 02:40 UTC | 160° 7 kt | 1011.5 | RA | |||
| 02:45 UTC | 160° 9 kt | 1011.5 | RA | |||
| 02:50 UTC | 150° 5 kt | 1011.2 | -RA | |||
| 02:53 UTC | 71 | 66 | 140° 8 kt | 1011.2 | TSRA | |
| 02:55 UTC | 140° 8 kt | 1011.2 | RA | |||
| 03:00 UTC | 9 kt | 1010.8 | RA | |||
| 03:05 UTC | 9 kt | 15 | 1010.5 | +RA | ||
| 03:10 UTC | 160° 11 kt | 17 | 1010.8 | +RA BR | ||
| 03:10 UTC | 70 | 66 | 160° 11 kt | 20 | 1010.8 | +TSRA BR |
| 03:15 UTC | 20 kt | 1010.8 | +RA BR | |||
| 03:20 UTC | 69 | 65 | 200° 20 kt | 29 | 1011.2 | VCTS RA BR |
| 03:20 UTC | 200° 21 kt | 1011.2 | RA BR | |||
| 03:23 UTC | 69 | 65 | 200° 24 kt | 31 | 1011.5 | VCTS RA BR |
| 03:25 UTC | 21 kt | 27 | 1011.9 | RA BR | ||
| 03:30 UTC | 17 kt | 22 | 1012.2 | RA BR | ||
| 03:35 UTC | 15 kt | 1012.5 | +RA BR | |||
| 03:40 UTC | 15 kt | 1012.5 | +RA BR | |||
| 03:45 UTC | 250° 8 kt | 1012.5 | +RA BR | |||
| 03:50 UTC | 230° 10 kt | 1012.5 | RA BR | |||
| 03:53 UTC | 66 | 64 | 220° 8 kt | 1012.9 | VCTS RA BR | |
| 03:55 UTC | 220° 7 kt | 1012.5 | RA BR | |||
| 04:00 UTC | 240° 2 kt | 1012.5 | RA BR | |||
| 04:05 UTC | 130° 2 kt | 1012.2 | RA BR | |||
| 04:10 UTC | 160° 4 kt | 1012.5 | RA BR | |||
| 04:15 UTC | 160° 4 kt | 1012.2 | RA BR | |||
| 04:16 UTC | 66 | 63 | 150° 4 kt | 1012.2 | VCTS RA BR | |
| 04:20 UTC | 1011.9 | RA BR | ||||
| 04:25 UTC | 80° 11 kt | 1010.5 | -RA BR | |||
| 04:27 UTC | 66 | 63 | 90° 10 kt | 14 | 1009.8 | -RA BR |
| 04:30 UTC | 100° 7 kt | 1010.2 | RA BR | |||
| 04:35 UTC | 65 | 63 | 180° 7 kt | 1011.9 | VCTS -RA | |
| 04:35 UTC | 180° 7 kt | 1011.9 | -RA | |||
| 04:40 UTC | 200° 5 kt | 1012.2 | -RA | |||
| 04:45 UTC | 210° 5 kt | 1012.5 | -RA | |||
| 04:50 UTC | 240° 5 kt | 1012.5 | -RA | |||
| 04:53 UTC | 66 | 63 | 3 kt | 1012.2 | -RA | |
| 04:55 UTC | 150° 5 kt | 1011.5 | -RA | |||
| 05:00 UTC | 200° 5 kt | 1012.5 | -RA | |||
| 05:05 UTC | 240° 7 kt | -RA | ||||
| 05:08 UTC | 65 | 63 | 220° 7 kt | 1013.5 | -RA | |
| 05:10 UTC | 210° 7 kt | -RA |
From the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of airport observations.
The radar
The Birmingham radar (KBMX), 67 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the touchdown began at 03:08 UTC.
Open the radar archive at this moment, over the track
Reflectivity and velocity, decoded from the Level II archive in the browser. Volumes take a few seconds to open the first time.
What was reported nearby
Local storm reports within 60 km of the path, in the three hours either side.
| Time (UTC) | Report | Where | County | Remark |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 02:30 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 4 Ne Clinton | Greene, AL | TREES BLOWN DOWN ON SR 39. |
| 02:31 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 1 Ssw Eutaw | Greene, AL | MULTIPLE TREES WERE BLOWN DOWN IN THE BRANCH HEIGHTS COMMUNITY. ONE PERSON IS TRAPPED, APARTMENTS HAVE ROOF DAMAGE AND VEHICLES WERE MOVED. |
| 02:35 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | Union | Greene, AL | TREES WERE BLOWN DOWN IN UNION. |
| 02:35 UTC | TORNADO | 2 Ssw Eutaw | Greene, AL | NWS METEOROLOGISTS HAVE CONFIRMED VIA DAMAGE SURVEY THAT A RELATIVELY LONG TRACK QLCS TORNADO MOVED THROUGH GREENE AND HALE COUNTIES. THE TORNADO FORMED JUST SOUTHWEST OF THE BRANCH HEIGHTS COMMUNITY ON THE SOUTH SIDE OF |
| 02:47 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 2 Ne Akron | Hale, AL | NUMEROUS TREES WERE BLOWN DOWN ALONG CR 42 BETWEEN AKRON AND STEWART. THE ROAD IS COMPLETELY BLOCKED. |
| 02:52 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 2 Nw Havana | Hale, AL | MULTIPLE TREES DOWN ON CEDARWOOD ROAD NEAR HAVANA JUNCTION. |
| 02:55 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 3 Wsw Newbern | Hale, AL | TREES WERE SPORADICALLY BLOWN DOWN ACROSS THE SOUTHERN PART OF HALE COUNTY. |
| 02:58 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | Greensboro | Hale, AL | TWO LARGE TREES WERE BLOWN DOWN AND BLOCKED THE ROADWAY. TWO VEHICLES RAN INTO THE FALLEN TREES AND TOTALED THE VEHICLES. NO INJURIES WERE REPORTED. |
| 03:04 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 4 Nw Phipps | Hale, AL | SEVERAL TREES AND POWER LINES WERE BLOWN DOWN. A FIRE STARTED DUE TO THE POWER LINES BEING DOWN. MOST OF THE TREES ARE DOWN NEAR CR 44 AND CR 50. |
| 03:05 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 1 E Flatwoods | Tuscaloosa, AL | CORRECTS PREVIOUS TSTM WND DMG REPORT FROM 1 E FLATWOODS. TREES DOWN WITH MULTIPLE HOMES DAMAGED. |
| 03:05 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 1 Ese Flatwoods | Tuscaloosa, AL | CORRECTS PREVIOUS TSTM WND DMG REPORT FROM 1 ESE FLATWOODS. MULTIPLE TREES AND POWER LINES DOWN ON 32ND STREET. |
| 03:11 UTC | TORNADO | 4 Ene Phipps | Hale, AL | NWS METEOROLOGISTS CONFIRMED A BRIEF EF-0 QLCS TORNADO IN NORTHEASTERN HALE COUNTY VIA A DAMAGE SURVEY. ASSESSING THE DAMAGE WAS DIFFICULT AS IT TOOK A VERY SIMILAR TRACK TO THE STRONGER LOW GAP TORNADO ON FEBRUARY 3. A |
| 03:13 UTC | TORNADO | 2 Wsw Low Gap | Hale, AL | TDS WAS DETECTED ON KBMX RADAR. MOST LIKELY TORNADO. |
| 03:20 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | Flatwoods | Tuscaloosa, AL | TREES WERE BLOWN DOWN ON MOBILE HOMES ON FLATWOODS ROAD. |
| 03:21 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 2 Ene Marion | Perry, AL | NUMEROUS TREES DOWN, SOME COVERING ROADWAYS. MOST ARE NORTHEAST OF MARION. |
| 03:25 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 1 Ese Flatwoods | Tuscaloosa, AL | MULTIPLE TREES AND POWER LINES DOWN ON 32ND STREET. |
| 03:34 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 2 N Brent | Bibb, AL | SOME TREES BLOWN DOWN ON N SCOTTSVILLE RD. |
| 03:49 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 2 S Lawley | Chilton, AL | TREES DOWN ON HWY 82. ONE FELL ON A MOTORISTS VEHICLE WHILE TRAVELING. |
| 03:56 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 1 E Flatwoods | Tuscaloosa, AL | TREES DOWN WITH MULTIPLE HOMES DAMAGED. |
| 04:03 UTC | TORNADO | 2 Ene Campbell | Chilton, AL | TDS DETECTED BY RADAR. MOSTLY LIKELY TORNADO. |
From the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service local storm reports.
This ground now
The live radar over the trackEvery 2022 tornado in AlabamaEvery tornado in Alabama since 1950Warnings in force in Alabama nowThe forecast where you are
The other tornadoes of April 13, 2022
39 more were confirmed in the United States that day.
| Date | Time | Rating | Where | Path (mi) | Width (yd) | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| April 13 | 8:50 AM CDT | EF1 | Adair, OK | 6.5 | 700 | 1 | $300,000 | |
| April 13 | 2:36 PM CDT | EF1 | Craighead, AR | 5.4 | 200 | $75,000 | ||
| April 13 | 2:50 PM CDT | EF0 | Dunklin, AR to MO | 7.8 | 100 | $370,000 | ||
| April 13 | 3:00 PM CDT | EF0 | Mississippi, AR | 1.9 | 75 | $50,000 | ||
| April 13 | 4:06 PM CDT | EF0 | Hickman, KY | 2.7 | 50 | $45,000 | ||
| April 13 | 4:23 PM CDT | EF1 | Graves, KY | 3.1 | 100 | $60,000 | ||
| April 13 | 4:38 PM CDT | EF1 | Warren, MS | 1.3 | 200 | $10,000 | ||
| April 13 | 4:50 PM CDT | EF0 | Marshall, KY | 0.9 | 25 | $10,000 | ||
| April 13 | 4:51 PM CDT | EF1 | Lyon, KY | 4.8 | 150 | $12,000 | ||
| April 13 | 4:53 PM CDT | EF0 | Marshall, KY | 0.7 | 25 | $8,000 | ||
| April 13 | 5:01 PM CDT | Unrated | Yazoo, MS | 1.6 | 50 | |||
| April 13 | 5:11 PM CDT | EF2 | Winn Parish, LA | 18.7 | 625 | $250,000 | ||
| April 13 | 5:22 PM CDT | EF0 | Christian, KY | 0.1 | 30 | |||
| April 13 | 5:34 PM CDT | EF0 | Hopkins, KY | 0.9 | 25 | $2,000 | ||
| April 13 | 6:19 PM CDT | EF0 | Rankin, MS | 2.8 | 25 | $1,000 | ||
| April 13 | 6:45 PM CDT | EF0 | Alcorn, MS | 0.2 | 25 | $30,000 | ||
| April 13 | 8:13 PM EDT | EF1 | Larue, KY | 2.6 | 200 | |||
| April 13 | 8:23 PM EDT | EF0 | Larue, KY | 3.8 | 200 | |||
| April 13 | 8:23 PM EDT | EF1 | Jefferson, KY | 7.2 | 175 | |||
| April 13 | 8:27 PM EDT | EF0 | Decatur, IN | 0.1 | 25 | $15,000 | ||
| April 13 | 8:30 PM EDT | EF0 | Spencer, KY | 0.1 | 30 | |||
| April 13 | 7:35 PM CDT | EF1 | Rankin, MS | 4.9 | 250 | $25,000 | ||
| April 13 | 8:35 PM EDT | EF0 | Spencer, KY | 0.1 | 60 | |||
| April 13 | 8:44 PM EDT | EF0 | Shelby, KY | 0.1 | 50 | |||
| April 13 | 8:45 PM EDT | EF1 | Shelby, KY | 0.2 | 100 | |||
| April 13 | 8:48 PM EDT | EF1 | Shelby, KY | 3.5 | 125 | |||
| April 13 | 7:57 PM CDT | EF1 | Rankin, MS | 9.7 | 670 | $35,000 | ||
| April 13 | 8:05 PM CDT | EF1 | Leake, MS | 10.5 | 400 | $27,000 | ||
| April 13 | 8:17 PM CDT | EF1 | Scott, MS | 2.3 | 200 | $2,000 | ||
| April 13 | 8:21 PM CDT | EF1 | Neshoba, MS | 24.7 | 1,500 | $170,000 | ||
| April 13 | 8:29 PM CDT | EF1 | Newton, MS | 2.6 | 250 | $5,000 | ||
| April 13 | 8:36 PM CDT | EF2 | Jasper, MS | 43.1 | 1,800 | $740,000 | ||
| April 13 | 8:44 PM CDT | EF1 | Jones, MS | 14.6 | 500 | $75,000 | ||
| April 13 | 8:51 PM CDT | EF1 | Oktibbeha, MS | 5.8 | 700 | $6,000 | ||
| April 13 | 8:51 PM CDT | EF1 | Oktibbeha, MS | 10.7 | 150 | $8,000 | ||
| April 13 | 9:03 PM CDT | EF1 | Oktibbeha, MS | 9.3 | 450 | $40,000 | ||
| April 13 | 9:11 PM CDT | EF1 | Noxubee, MS | 7.5 | 1,000 | $320,000 | ||
| April 13 | 9:35 PM CDT | EF1 | Greene, AL | 17.6 | 400 | |||
| April 13 | 10:30 PM CDT | EF0 | Tuscaloosa, AL | 5.2 | 300 |
What this means
Ratings are the survey's, read off the damage rather than measured; the rating scale is above. Tornado counts rise through the record as reporting improved, so a year in the 1950s is not comparable with one today except for the strongest tornadoes, which were always noticed.
Sources
NOAA Storm Prediction Center tornado database, 1950-2025, the official record kept by NOAA's Storm Prediction Center.