Tornadoes · United States · Georgia · 2005

F1 tornado, Polk County, Georgia, August 29, 2005

This F1 tornado ran 2.8 miles across Polk County on August 29, 2005, touching down at 5:24 PM EDT and reaching 50 yards wide. It killed nobody, and did $50,000 of property damage.

The rating scale

Tracks are drawn in the color of the rating. The Fujita scale rates the damage rather than measuring the wind: the speeds are what that damage is taken to imply.

  1. F040 to 72 mph

    Light damage. Surface peeled off some roofs, gutters and siding damaged, branches broken, shallow-rooted trees pushed over.

  2. F173 to 112 mphthis tornado

    Moderate damage. Roofs badly stripped, mobile homes overturned or badly damaged, exterior doors lost, windows broken.

  3. F2113 to 157 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.

  4. F3158 to 206 mph

    Severe damage. Whole stories of well-built houses destroyed, large buildings badly damaged, trains overturned, trees debarked, heavy cars lifted and thrown.

  5. F4207 to 260 mph

    Devastating damage. Well-built houses leveled, structures with weak foundations moved some distance, cars thrown and large missiles generated.

  6. F5261 to 318 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.

  7. 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
F1
Date
August 29, 2005
Touchdown
5:24 PM EDT (21:24 UTC)
Path length
2.8 miles (4.5 km)
Path width
50 yards (46 m)
Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
$50,000
County
Polk County
Touchdown point
34.020, -85.220
Lift-off point
34.050, -85.250
Record number
1121

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.

Issued (UTC)ExpiredProductOffice
21:30 UTC22:00 UTCTornado WarningFFC
21:30 UTC21:59 UTCTornado WarningFFC

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 Moderate Risk, with a 0.15 chance of a tornado within 25 miles. The outlook in force was issued at 19:53 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.

Peachtre/Fal Fld, GA (KFFC), 12:00Z

9.4 hours before the tornado, 100 km from the path. August 29, 2005.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Peachtre/Fal Fld, GA at 12:00Z on 2005-08-29Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel lifted from the surface. Mixed-layer CAPE 310 joules per kilogram, CIN -39, lifted condensation level 688 meters above ground. Wind barbs in knots down the right edge.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed. The warm shading is its CAPE, the cool shading the inhibition it has to break through.
HodographHodograph, Peachtre/Fal Fld, GA at 12:00Z on 2005-08-29The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers as a curve, rings every 10 meters per second labeled in knots. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 125 square meters per square second, 0 to 6 km bulk shear 30 knots.1939Sfc1 km3 km6 km9 kmRMLM
The wind turning with height, colored by layer: ground to 1 km, 1 to 3 km, 3 to 6 km, 6 to 10 km. RM and LM are the right and left moving storms Bunkers' method gives; the shaded area is the 0 to 1 km storm-relative helicity.
Mixed-layer CAPE
310 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-39 J/kg
Surface CAPE
955 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
688 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
30 kt
0-1 km bulk shear
26 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
125 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
131 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.1
Supercell composite
1.4
0-3 km lapse rate
5.0 K/km

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

Peachtre/Fal Fld, GA (KFFC), 00:00Z

2.6 hours after it, 100 km from the path. August 30, 2005.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Peachtre/Fal Fld, GA at 00:00Z on 2005-08-30Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel lifted from the surface. Mixed-layer CAPE 1046 joules per kilogram, CIN -8, lifted condensation level 650 meters above ground. Wind barbs in knots down the right edge.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed. The warm shading is its CAPE, the cool shading the inhibition it has to break through.
HodographHodograph, Peachtre/Fal Fld, GA at 00:00Z on 2005-08-30The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers as a curve, rings every 10 meters per second labeled in knots. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 331 square meters per square second, 0 to 6 km bulk shear 44 knots.193958Sfc1 km3 km6 km9 kmRMLM
The wind turning with height, colored by layer: ground to 1 km, 1 to 3 km, 3 to 6 km, 6 to 10 km. RM and LM are the right and left moving storms Bunkers' method gives; the shaded area is the 0 to 1 km storm-relative helicity.
Mixed-layer CAPE
1046 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-8 J/kg
Surface CAPE
1357 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
650 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
44 kt
0-1 km bulk shear
36 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
331 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
425 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
2.1
Supercell composite
10.9
0-3 km lapse rate
5.4 K/km

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

What was reported nearby

Local storm reports within 60 km of the path, in the three hours either side.

Time (UTC)ReportWhereCountyRemark
20:40 UTCTSTM WND DMG3 S CarrolltonCarroll, GAPOSSIBLE TORNADO ON HWY 27 SOUTH OF CARROLLTON.
21:10 UTCTORNADOFeltonHaralson, GAF0/ TORNADO STARTED 1 MILE SOUTHWEST WITH A PATH LENGTH OF 1.8 MILE. TORNADO WIDTH 75 YARDS. A POLE BARN WAS DESTROYED. NUMEROUS TREES DOWN.
21:15 UTCTORNADO1 Se FeltonHaralson, GAF0 TORNADO. DAMAGE PATH STARTED FROM 1 MILE SOUTHEAST OF FELTON TO ONE MILE NORTH OF FELTON. DAMAGE PATH WAS ONE MILES LONG AND 75 YARDS WIDE. NUMEROUS TREES WERE DOWN IN THE AREA AND A BARN WAS DESTROYED.
21:15 UTCTORNADONew GeorgiaPaulding, GAF0 TORNADO. DAMAGE WAS CONFINED MAINLY TO A SOUTH-NORTH PATH IN THE NEW GEORGIA AREA. DAMAGE PATH WAS 1 MILE LONG AND 25-50 YARDS WIDE. ROOF AND SHINGLE DAMAGE OCCURRED TO AN ESTIMATED 45 HOMES. NUMEROUS TREES WERE DOWN.
21:24 UTCTORNADO2 Ne CedartownPolk, GAF1 TORNADO. DAMAGE PATH FROM 2 MILES EAST OF CEDARTOWN TO 2 MILES NORTH OF CEDARTOWN. DAMAGE PATH 2.8 MILES LONG AND 50 YARDS WIDE. DAMAGE TO GAS STATION PORTICO...FLATTENING OF BRICK STORAGE UNITS, AND A LARGE HIGHWAY S
21:25 UTCTSTM WND DMG1 E CedartownPolk, GAPOSSIBLE TORNADO DAMAGED OR DESTROYED STRUCTURES ON EAST SIDE OF CEDARTOWN.
21:25 UTCTORNADO2 Ne CedartownPolk, GAF1/ DAMAGE STARTED 2.8 MILES EAST AND CONTINUED TO 2 MILES NORTH OF CEADARTOWN. TORNADO WIDTH 50 YARDS. BRICK STORAGE UNITS WERE FLATTEN.

From the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service local storm reports.

This ground now

The live radar over the trackEvery 2005 tornado in GeorgiaEvery tornado in Georgia since 1950Warnings in force in Georgia nowThe forecast where you are

The other tornadoes of August 29, 2005

39 more were confirmed in the United States that day.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
August 297:05 AM CDTF0Santa Rosa, FL3.030$10,000
August 297:07 AM CDTF0Escambia, FL1.030$10,000
August 297:30 AM CDTF0Escambia, AL2.030$10,000
August 298:42 AM CDTF0Okaloosa, FL1.030$10,000
August 298:47 AM CDTF0Santa Rosa, FL1.030$10,000
August 2911:25 AM CDTF1Forrest, MS0.550$2,000
August 2912:00 PM CDTF1Newton, MS13.0100$200,000
August 2912:06 PM CDTF2Newton, MS1.075$50,000
August 2912:14 PM CDTF1Lauderdale, MS3.075$30,000
August 2912:22 PM CDTF1Lauderdale, MS3.050$60,000
August 2912:27 PM CDTF2Neshoba, MS3.0100$70,000
August 2912:36 PM CDTF1Neshoba, MS3.075$50,000
August 2912:39 PM CDTF1Neshoba, MS3.050$80,000
August 2912:48 PM CDTF1Neshoba, MS4.0150$100,000
August 291:05 PM CDTF1Neshoba, MS2.075$10,000
August 291:21 PM CDTF1Leake, MS2.075$10,000
August 291:55 PM CDTF1Tallapoosa, AL3.3300$70,000
August 293:16 PM CDTF0Montgomery, AL6.0300$190,000
August 294:24 PM EDTF2Heard, GA5.520013$5.2 million
August 293:30 PM CDTF0Bullock, AL0.125$1,000
August 293:53 PM CDTF1Calhoun, AL1.530$120,000
August 295:15 PM EDTF0Haralson, GA1.075$10,000
August 295:15 PM EDTF0Paulding, GA1.050$400,000
August 294:19 PM CDTF0Macon, AL3.0400$30,000
August 296:15 PM EDTF0Forsyth, GA0.550$250,000
August 296:26 PM EDTF0Decatur, GA3.050
August 296:35 PM EDTF0Oconee, GA0.125$10,000
August 296:37 PM EDTF1Taylor, GA3.52501$250,000
August 295:41 PM CDTF0Russell, AL0.125$1,000
August 296:45 PM EDTF0Lumpkin, GA0.9125$40,000
August 297:06 PM EDTF0Evans, GA0.120
August 297:10 PM EDTF2Peach, GA4.0503$2.6 million
August 297:45 PM EDTF0Fannin, GA0.3100$250,000
August 297:45 PM EDTF1Spalding, GA1.01002$300,000
August 2910:25 PM EDTF0Walton, GA0.350$30,000
August 2911:05 PM EDTF0Barrow, GA1.5100$150,000
August 2911:35 PM EDTF0Jackson, GA1.020$20,000
August 2912:10 AM EDTF0Hall, GA11.050$260,000
August 2912:30 AM EDTF2White, GA5.0300$3.0 million

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.