Tornadoes · United States · Indiana · 2011
EF1 tornado, Kirby, Indiana, May 25, 2011
This EF1 tornado ran 1.0 miles across Monroe County on May 25, 2011, touching down at 10:14 PM EDT and reaching 150 yards wide. It killed nobody, and did $200,000 of property damage.
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 mph
Light damage. Surface peeled off some roofs, gutters and siding damaged, branches broken, shallow-rooted trees pushed over.
EF186 to 110 mphthis tornado
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
- EF1
- Date
- May 25, 2011
- Touchdown
- 10:14 PM EDT (02:14 UTC)
- Lifted
- 10:16 PM EDT (02:16 UTC)
- On the ground
- 2 minutes
- Path length
- 1.0 miles (1.6 km)
- Path width
- 150 yards (137 m)
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- $200,000
- County
- Monroe County
- Touchdown point
- 39.125, -86.611
- Lift-off point
- 39.134, -86.597
- Record number
- 1105252014-01
What the Weather Service recorded
The approach of a strong low pressure system from the west set the stage for a significant severe weather outbreak across central Indiana on May 25th. Eight tornadoes touched down in central Indiana, with an additional one moving into the area from southern Indiana. In addition, widespread wind damage and large hail impacted the area. Straight line winds to over 70 mph impacted the area as well, knocking down trees, power lines, as well as damaging structures and blowing over trucks. Straight line wind damage was noted near the tornado paths as well. Hail into the 3 to 4 inch range fell from some of the storms, causing damage. The large hail stones were also blown into structures by the strong straight line winds, causing additional damage.
A brief EF-1 tornado overturned and destroyed several mobile homes just west of Bloomington. The Bloomington tornado damage was along SR45. The same storm also produced a broad, long swath of significant straight-line wind damage along SR45 to SR37 and continued east across the south side of Bloomington. Winds within this path were estimated at over 80 mph.
From NOAA NCEI's Storm Events Database, the narrative the local forecast office wrote for Storm Data.
The warnings
10 minutes of warning. NWS IND issued a tornado warning for this county at 02:04 UTC, 10 minutes before the tornado touched down, in force until 02:45 UTC.
The county was under a tornado watch, issued at 22:45 UTC and running to 03:49 UTC.
| Issued (UTC) | Expired | Product | Office |
|---|---|---|---|
| 13:52 UTC | 22:45 UTC | Tornado Watch | IND |
| 19:26 UTC | 20:15 UTC | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | IND |
| 19:49 UTC | 20:34 UTC | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | IND |
| 20:33 UTC | 05:14 UTC | Flash Flood Watch | IND |
| 21:31 UTC | 22:15 UTC | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | IND |
| 21:46 UTC | 22:30 UTC | Tornado Warning | IND |
| 22:25 UTC | 22:57 UTC | Tornado Warning | IND |
| 22:42 UTC | 23:15 UTC | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | IND |
| 22:45 UTC | 03:49 UTC | Tornado Watch | IND |
| 23:07 UTC | 23:37 UTC | Tornado Warning | IND |
| 23:11 UTC | 00:00 UTC | Tornado Warning | IND |
| 23:43 UTC | 23:54 UTC | Tornado Warning | IND |
| 00:56 UTC | 01:13 UTC | Tornado Warning | IND |
| 02:04 UTC | 02:45 UTC | Tornado Warning | IND |
| 02:25 UTC | 02:53 UTC | Tornado Warning | IND |
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, in the hatched area where significant tornadoes were expected. The outlook in force was issued at 00:57 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.
Lincoln, IL (KILX), 12:00Z
9.8 hours after it, 205 km from the path. May 26, 2011.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 0 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- 0 J/kg
- Surface CAPE
- 3 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 472 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 27 kt
- 0-1 km bulk shear
- 12 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 67 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 86 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.0
- 0-3 km lapse rate
- 4.4 K/km
The surface observations
Bloomington (BMG), 2 km from the path, in the two hours either side.
| Time (UTC) | Temp (°F) | Dew point (°F) | Wind | Gust (kt) | Pressure (mb) | Weather |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 00:53 UTC | 71 | 68 | 130° 6 kt | 1000.7 | ||
| 01:53 UTC | 71 | 68 | 140° 6 kt | 999.7 | ||
| 02:16 UTC | 71.6 | 66.2 | 290° 30 kt | 46 | 1002.4 | VCTS SQ |
| 02:25 UTC | 62.6 | 60.8 | 250° 12 kt | 46 | 1004.1 | +TSRA BR |
| 02:29 UTC | 62.6 | 60.8 | 250° 12 kt | 24 | 1004.1 | +TSRA BR |
| 02:35 UTC | 62.6 | 60.8 | 280° 12 kt | 21 | 1003.4 | +TSRA BR |
| 02:53 UTC | 62 | 60 | 220° 9 kt | 1004.7 | TSRA BR | |
| 03:19 UTC | 62.6 | 60.8 | 150° 5 kt | 1004.4 | VCTS RA BR | |
| 03:35 UTC | 62.6 | 60.8 | 120° 6 kt | 1003.7 | VCTS RA BR | |
| 03:53 UTC | 61 | 60 | 130° 6 kt | 1003.4 | TSRA |
From the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of airport observations.
The radar
The Indianapolis radar (KIND), 70 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the touchdown began at 02:15 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 23:18 UTC | FUNNEL CLOUD | Ellettsville | Monroe, IN | SPOTTER WAS ON MAPLE GROVE RD. |
| 23:20 UTC | HAIL 1.25 | 3 S Paragon | Morgan, IN | GETTING LARGER AS FALLING. |
| 23:25 UTC | HAIL 1.75 | Paragon | Morgan, IN | |
| 23:26 UTC | HAIL 1 | 1 E Stinesville | Monroe, IN | |
| 23:46 UTC | FUNNEL CLOUD | Mitchell | Lawrence, IN | |
| 23:49 UTC | HAIL 2.75 | Bedford | Lawrence, IN | PEA TO BASEBALL SIZE HAIL. |
| 23:50 UTC | HAIL 1.25 | 4 Nnw Bedford | Lawrence, IN | |
| 23:54 UTC | HAIL 2.75 | Bedford | Lawrence, IN | SOUTHERN BEDFORD. |
| 00:00 UTC | TORNADO | Bedford | Lawrence, IN | |
| 00:12 UTC | TORNADO | 6 Nw Brownstown | Jackson, IN | POSSIBLE DEBRIS BALL ON RADAR |
| 00:17 UTC | TORNADO | 9 Ene Bedford | Lawrence, IN | |
| 00:46 UTC | FUNNEL CLOUD | 4 Se Waymansville | Jackson, IN | |
| 00:49 UTC | HAIL 1 | 3 Sw Columbus | Bartholomew, IN | |
| 00:57 UTC | HAIL 1.75 | Columbus | Bartholomew, IN | CENTRAL AVE AND US 31. |
| 01:01 UTC | FUNNEL CLOUD | 4 S Columbus | Bartholomew, IN | WALL CLOUD WITH NO ROTATION AT US 31 AND 400 S. |
| 01:01 UTC | HAIL 1.75 | Columbus | Bartholomew, IN | ROCKY FORD AND 330 CENTRAL. |
| 01:25 UTC | TSTM WND GST 70 | W Dugger | Sullivan, IN | |
| 02:02 UTC | TSTM WND GST 53 | 4 Sw Bloomington | Monroe, IN | |
| 02:05 UTC | TSTM WND GST 70 | Loogootee | Martin, IN | |
| 02:15 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | Bloomington | Monroe, IN | MANY TREES AND LIMBS DOWN...ONE WAS 2 FEET IN DIAMETER AT 2ND ST AND WAYMAN. |
| 02:15 UTC | TSTM WND GST 65 | Bloomington | Monroe, IN | |
| 02:22 UTC | TORNADO | 2 S Orleans | Orange, IN | EF-2 WITH 115 MPH WINDS. TWO BRICK HOMES AND ONE WOOD FRAME HOME HEAVILY DAMAGED. WOOD BARN AND METAL OUTBUILDINGS DESTROYED. 4.7 MILE LONG PATH. |
| 02:25 UTC | TSTM WND GST 69 | Odon | Daviess, IN | |
| 02:28 UTC | TORNADO | 2 Ne Leipsic | Orange, IN | EF-1 WITH 100 MPH WINDS. LARGE WOOD BARN DESTROYED. MANY TREES SNAPPED OR UPROOTED. 3.2 MILE PATH. |
| 02:30 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | Coal City | Owen, IN | 14132 STATE HIGHWAY 246. BARN DESTROYED AND BLOWN ACROSS ROAD. POWER LINES DOWN. TREES DOWN AND LAW ENFORCEMENT REPORTS THE TOPS ARE TWISTED. TIME ESTIMATED. |
| 02:31 UTC | TORNADO | 3 W Mount Carmel | Washington, IN | EF-1 WITH 95 MPH WINDS. METAL OUTBUILDING HEAVILY DAMAGED. MANY TREES SNAPPED OR UPROOTED. |
| 02:45 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | Bloomington | Monroe, IN | TREES DOWN ON SOUTH SIDE OF BLOOMINGTON. |
| 02:50 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | Bloomington | Monroe, IN | SEVERAL LARGE TREES DOWN. |
| 02:51 UTC | TSTM WND GST 50 | Brownstown | Jackson, IN | |
| 02:56 UTC | TSTM WND GST 60 | Edinburgh | Johnson, IN | |
| 03:22 UTC | FLASH FLOOD | Bedford | Lawrence, IN | SEVERAL ROADS FLOODED SEVERAL INCHES DEEP. |
From the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service local storm reports.
This ground now
The live radar over the trackEvery 2011 tornado in IndianaEvery tornado in Indiana since 1950Warnings in force in Indiana nowThe forecast where you are
The other tornadoes of May 25, 2011
93 more were confirmed in the United States that day.
| Date | Time | Rating | Where | Path (mi) | Width (yd) | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 25 | 1:30 AM CDT | EF1 | Webster, MO | 9.3 | 100 | $20,000 | ||
| May 25 | 7:35 AM CDT | EF1 | Macon, IL | 1.0 | 75 | $165,000 | ||
| May 25 | 7:39 AM CDT | EF1 | Macon, IL | 1.5 | 75 | $100,000 | ||
| May 25 | 9:04 AM CDT | EF1 | Kankakee, IL | 5.8 | 50 | $250,000 | ||
| May 25 | 9:13 AM CDT | EF0 | Newton, IN | 0.1 | 20 | $25,000 | ||
| May 25 | 9:19 AM CDT | EF2 | Newton, IN | 1.9 | 300 | $50,000 | ||
| May 25 | 9:24 AM CDT | EF1 | Jasper, IN | 2.9 | 100 | $500 | ||
| May 25 | 9:26 AM CDT | EF1 | Jasper, IN | 1.9 | 100 | $50,000 | ||
| May 25 | 10:45 AM EDT | EF0 | Pulaski, IN | 0.8 | 50 | |||
| May 25 | 10:45 AM CDT | EF0 | Miami, KS | 0.1 | 40 | $5,000 | ||
| May 25 | 11:10 AM CDT | EF0 | Johnson, KS | 0.7 | 60 | $10,000 | ||
| May 25 | 11:22 AM CDT | EF0 | Johnson, KS | 0.1 | 40 | |||
| May 25 | 11:35 AM CDT | EF0 | Cass, MO | 0.1 | 40 | |||
| May 25 | 11:38 AM CDT | EF0 | Johnson, KS | 0.1 | 40 | |||
| May 25 | 12:22 PM CDT | EF2 | Pettis, MO | 2.1 | 500 | 20 | $4.0 million | |
| May 25 | 12:33 PM CDT | EF0 | Clay, MO | 0.1 | 40 | |||
| May 25 | 12:45 PM CDT | EF0 | Clay, MO | 0.1 | 40 | |||
| May 25 | 12:52 PM CDT | EF0 | Pettis, MO | 0.1 | 40 | |||
| May 25 | 1:04 PM CDT | EF0 | Cooper, MO | 0.1 | 40 | |||
| May 25 | 1:07 PM CDT | EF0 | Lafayette, MO | 0.1 | 40 | |||
| May 25 | 2:15 PM CDT | EF1 | Montgomery, MO | 7.1 | 100 | |||
| May 25 | 3:26 PM EDT | EF0 | Van Wert, OH | 0.1 | 40 | |||
| May 25 | 2:56 PM CDT | EF1 | Oregon, MO | 2.5 | 100 | $20,000 | ||
| May 25 | 3:49 PM CDT | EF3 | Carter, MO | 47.4 | 1,200 | 2 | $800,000 | |
| May 25 | 4:13 PM CDT | EF1 | Jackson, AR | 5.5 | 500 | $40,000 | ||
| May 25 | 5:15 PM EDT | EF1 | Decatur, IN | 0.8 | 600 | $500,000 | ||
| May 25 | 5:20 PM EDT | EF1 | Decatur, IN | 0.1 | 400 | $250,000 | ||
| May 25 | 4:35 PM CDT | EF1 | Madison, MO | 5.5 | 40 | |||
| May 25 | 4:37 PM CDT | EF1 | Wayne, MO | 17.8 | 150 | $70,000 | ||
| May 25 | 4:44 PM CDT | EF0 | Carter, MO | 0.5 | 50 | $2,000 | ||
| May 25 | 4:45 PM CDT | EF1 | Des Moines, IA | 4.8 | 100 | $250,000 | ||
| May 25 | 4:46 PM CDT | EF1 | Madison, MO | 5.3 | 440 | |||
| May 25 | 4:47 PM CDT | EF1 | Madison, MO | 4.3 | 580 | |||
| May 25 | 4:51 PM CDT | EF0 | Perry, MO | 0.3 | 60 | $3,000 | ||
| May 25 | 4:58 PM CDT | EF0 | Ripley, MO | 0.7 | 50 | |||
| May 25 | 6:00 PM EDT | EF1 | Huron, OH | 8.0 | 50 | $250,000 | ||
| May 25 | 5:00 PM CDT | EF1 | Des Moines, IA | 3.6 | 50 | $50,000 | ||
| May 25 | 5:14 PM CDT | EF0 | Butler, MO | 0.7 | 40 | |||
| May 25 | 6:14 PM EDT | EF0 | Hardin, OH | 0.2 | 25 | |||
| May 25 | 5:26 PM CDT | EF1 | Bollinger, MO | 13.0 | 250 | $30,000 | ||
| May 25 | 6:06 PM CDT | EF0 | McLean, IL | 0.9 | 25 | $8,000 | ||
| May 25 | 6:09 PM CDT | EF1 | McLean, IL | 10.3 | 75 | $10,000 | ||
| May 25 | 7:10 PM EDT | EF0 | Montgomery, OH | 0.1 | 25 | $5,000 | ||
| May 25 | 6:18 PM CDT | EF1 | Cape Girardeau, MO | 2.1 | 250 | $20,000 | ||
| May 25 | 6:18 PM CDT | EF0 | St. Francis, AR | 1.1 | 100 | |||
| May 25 | 6:28 PM CDT | EF2 | Jefferson, IL | 13.5 | 250 | $4.0 million | ||
| May 25 | 6:30 PM CDT | EF0 | Scott, MO | 0.4 | 50 | $1,000 | ||
| May 25 | 7:30 PM EDT | EF0 | Summit, OH | 4.2 | 50 | $200,000 | ||
| May 25 | 6:39 PM CDT | EF1 | Union, IL | 2.0 | 125 | $150,000 | ||
| May 25 | 6:40 PM CDT | EF1 | Pulaski, IL | 5.5 | 250 | $50,000 | ||
| May 25 | 6:45 PM CDT | EF1 | Pulaski, IL | 10.0 | 120 | $40,000 | ||
| May 25 | 6:48 PM CDT | EF1 | Crittenden, AR | 2.5 | 100 | $500,000 | ||
| May 25 | 6:55 PM CDT | EF2 | Pulaski, IL | 19.9 | 325 | $255,000 | ||
| May 25 | 6:58 PM CDT | EF0 | Champaign, IL | 0.2 | 15 | $5,000 | ||
| May 25 | 7:58 PM EDT | EF3 | Lawrence, IN | 6.8 | 300 | $150,000 | ||
| May 25 | 5:08 PM PDT | EF1 | Glenn, CA | 21.6 | 120 | $200,000 | ||
| May 25 | 5:12 PM PDT | EF1 | Glenn, CA | 26.4 | 120 | $150,000 | ||
| May 25 | 7:18 PM CDT | EF1 | Clay, IL | 1.0 | 75 | $510,000 | ||
| May 25 | 7:35 PM CDT | EF0 | Richland, IL | 0.2 | 10 | |||
| May 25 | 7:57 PM CDT | EF2 | Crawford, IL | 5.5 | 200 | $920,000 |
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.