Tornadoes · United States · Kentucky · 2011
EF1 tornado, Stanford to Grab Orchard, Kentucky, February 28, 2011
From Stanford to Grab Orchard, this EF1 tornado ran 8.7 miles across Lincoln County on February 28, 2011, touching down at 6:49 AM EST and reaching 250 yards wide. It killed nobody, and did $100,000 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
- February 28, 2011
- Touchdown
- 6:49 AM EST (11:49 UTC)
- Lifted
- 6:56 AM EST (11:56 UTC)
- On the ground
- 7 minutes
- Path length
- 8.7 miles (14.0 km)
- Path width
- 250 yards (229 m)
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- $100,000
- County
- Lincoln County
- Touchdown point
- 37.520, -84.680
- Lift-off point
- 37.491, -84.525
- Record number
- 1102280549-01
What the Weather Service recorded
A cold front moved through southern Indiana and central Kentucky on the morning of February 28. A strong low low level jet developed ahead of this front with winds of 60-80 knots at 2-3 thousand feet, resulting in very high speed shear and storm relative helicity values. A squall line with bowing segments developed to the west of the Louisville forecast area and crossed the region during the early to mid morning hours. This line produced multiple tornadoes across the region as well as straight line wind damage.
An NWS storm survey confirmed an EF-1 tornado with maximum wind speeds of 100 mph touched down about a mile southwest of Stanford. It traveled southeast damaging the middle school complex on Highway 27 about a mile south of Stanford. The tornado continued to damage large barns and out buildings as well as snap trees until it lifted about 2.1 miles northwest of Crab Orchard.
From NOAA NCEI's Storm Events Database, the narrative the local forecast office wrote for Storm Data.
The warnings
1 minute of warning. NWS LMK issued a tornado warning for this county at 11:48 UTC, 1 minute before the tornado touched down, in force until 12:15 UTC.
The county was under a tornado watch, issued at 10:06 UTC and running to 12:52 UTC.
| Issued (UTC) | Expired | Product | Office |
|---|---|---|---|
| 03:00 UTC | 21:00 UTC | Flood Watch | LMK |
| 10:06 UTC | 12:52 UTC | Tornado Watch | LMK |
| 11:06 UTC | 11:45 UTC | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | LMK |
| 11:44 UTC | 12:15 UTC | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | LMK |
| 11:48 UTC | 12:15 UTC | Tornado Warning | LMK |
| 12:00 UTC | 12:30 UTC | Tornado Warning | LMK |
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 05:58 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.
Cncnati-Daytn, OH (KILN), 00:00Z
11.8 hours before the tornado, 225 km from the path. February 28, 2011.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 0 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -222 J/kg
- Surface CAPE
- 1 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 539 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 72 kt
- 0-1 km bulk shear
- 34 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 325 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 380 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.1
- 0-3 km lapse rate
- 4.7 K/km
Cncnati-Daytn, OH (KILN), 12:00Z
0.2 hours after it, 225 km from the path. February 28, 2011.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 0 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -1 J/kg
- Surface CAPE
- 24 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 539 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 67 kt
- 0-1 km bulk shear
- 37 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- -195 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- -105 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.0
- 0-3 km lapse rate
- 5.3 K/km
The surface observations
Danville (DVK), 17 km from the path, in the two hours either side.
| Time (UTC) | Temp (°F) | Dew point (°F) | Wind | Gust (kt) | Pressure (mb) | Weather |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 09:56 UTC | 68 | 57.2 | 0° | 1004.4 | ||
| 10:16 UTC | 68 | 57.2 | 0° | 1004.1 | ||
| 10:36 UTC | 66.2 | 57.2 | 0° | 1004.4 | ||
| 10:56 UTC | 66.2 | 57.2 | 0° | 1004.4 | ||
| 11:16 UTC | 66.2 | 57.2 | 0° | 1004.4 | ||
| 11:36 UTC | 66.2 | 59 | 0° | 1005.1 | ||
| 12:16 UTC | 55.4 | 53.6 | 0° | 1007.5 | ||
| 12:36 UTC | 55.4 | 53.6 | 0° | 1007.8 | ||
| 12:56 UTC | 55.4 | 53.6 | 0° | 1007.8 | ||
| 13:16 UTC | 55.4 | 53.6 | 0° | 1007.1 | ||
| 13:36 UTC | 55.4 | 53.6 | 0° | 1007.8 |
From the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of airport observations.
The radar
The Jackson,KY radar (KJKL), 114 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the touchdown began at 11:47 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11:46 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | Stanford | Lincoln, KY | NUMEROUS TREES DOWN AND POWER LINES AND ALSO SOME ROOFS BLOWN OFF. |
| 11:49 UTC | TORNADO | 1 Sw Stanford | Lincoln, KY | AN NWS STORM DAMAGE SURVEY CONFIRMED AN EF-1 TORNADO WITH MAXIMUM WIND SPEEDS OF 100 MPH TOUCHED DOWN ABOUT A MILE SOUTHWEST OF STANFORD. THE TORNADO TRAVELED 8 MILES BEFORE LIFTING 2 MILES NORTHWEST OF CRAB ORCHARD. ALO |
| 11:55 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | Irvine | Estill, KY | THE ESTILL COUNTY HIGHWAY DEPT REPORTED THAT NUMEROUS TREES AND POWER LINES HAD BEEN BLOWN DOWN ACROSS THE COUNTY. AREAS AFFECTED INCLUDED RAVENNA, WAGERSVILLE, MCKEE, COW CREEK, AND RICHMOND RD. POWER OUTAGES WERE ALSO |
| 12:00 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | Irvine | Estill, KY | ESTIL COUNTY EM RELAYED REPORT OF NUMEROUS TREES BLOWN DOWN AROUND THE COUNTY BETWEEN ABOUT 7 AND 10 A.M. 4 TO 5 THOUSAND PEOPLE WERE WITHOUT POWER DURING THE MORNING HOURS. |
| 12:00 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | Palmer | Estill, KY | TREES WERE BLOWN DOWN ON WINCHESTER ROAD JUST NORTH OF THE TOWN OF PALMER ON THE ESTILL CLARK COUNTY LINE. |
| 12:22 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | Irvine | Estill, KY | POWER OUTAGES AROUND THE COUNTY. NUMEROUS REPORTS OF TREES DOWN THROUGHOUT THE COUNTY. |
| 12:40 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | Pulaski | Pulaski, KY | TREE BRANCHES THE SIZE OF A PERSONS ARM WERE BEING BLOWN DOWN IN THE COMMUNITY OF PULASKI SOUTH OF EUBANK. |
| 12:45 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | Somerset | Pulaski, KY | THE PULASKI COUNTY EMERGENCY MANAGER RECEIVED NUMEROUS REPORTS OF DOWNED TREES AND STRUCTURAL DAMAGE FROM AROUND THE COUNTY. REPORTS WERE RECEIVED OF SHINGLES BEING BLOWN OFF ROOFS AND A CAR PORT WAS BLOWN INTO A STREET |
| 12:45 UTC | HAIL 0.25 | Somerset | Pulaski, KY | NUMEROUS REPORTS OF PEA TO DIME SIZED HAIL WERE RECEIVED FROM IN AND AROUND SOMERSET. |
| 12:50 UTC | TSTM WND GST 50 | Burnside | Pulaski, KY | A TRAINED SPOTTER REPORTED A THUNDERSTORM WIND GUST OF 50 MPH IN THE COMMUNITY OF BURNSIDE. |
| 12:57 UTC | HAIL 0.25 | Mckee | Jackson, KY | PEA SIZED HAIL WAS REPORTED IN THE MCKEE AREA. |
| 13:15 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | Somerset | Pulaski, KY | THE PULASKI COUNTY EMERGENCY MANAGER RECEIVED NUMEROUS REPORTS OF DOWNED TREES AND STRUCTURAL DAMAGE FROM AROUND THE COUNTY. REPORTS WERE RECEIVED OF SHINGLES BEING BLOWN OFF ROOFS AND A CAR PORT WAS BLOWN INTO A STREET |
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 KentuckyEvery tornado in Kentucky since 1950Warnings in force in Kentucky nowThe forecast where you are
The other tornadoes of February 28, 2011
25 more were confirmed in the United States that day.
| Date | Time | Rating | Where | Path (mi) | Width (yd) | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| February 28 | 12:03 AM CST | EF0 | Washington, IL | 2.8 | 50 | |||
| February 28 | 12:08 AM CST | EF2 | Washington, IL | 2.3 | 100 | |||
| February 28 | 12:27 AM CST | EF2 | Fayette, IL | 1.3 | 90 | |||
| February 28 | 12:32 AM CST | EF1 | Fayette, IL | 0.1 | 10 | |||
| February 28 | 12:33 AM CST | EF2 | Fayette, IL | 0.1 | 50 | |||
| February 28 | 1:36 AM CST | EF1 | Gibson, IN | 23.3 | 250 | $150,000 | ||
| February 28 | 1:51 AM CST | EF2 | Gibson, IN | 22.0 | 550 | $600,000 | ||
| February 28 | 3:10 AM EST | EF0 | Pike, IN | 1.9 | 200 | $150,000 | ||
| February 28 | 3:19 AM EST | EF2 | Dubois, IN | 14.2 | 225 | 1 | $500,000 | |
| February 28 | 3:29 AM CST | EF1 | Clark, IN to KY | 3.0 | 100 | $7,000 | ||
| February 28 | 4:43 AM EST | EF1 | Oldham, KY | 1.2 | 75 | |||
| February 28 | 4:59 AM EST | EF3 | Henry, KY | 2.3 | 150 | 1 | $500,000 | |
| February 28 | 6:00 AM EST | EF1 | Fairfield, OH | 2.4 | 75 | $100,000 | ||
| February 28 | 7:37 AM EST | EF1 | Wolfe, KY | 0.3 | 100 | $75,000 | ||
| February 28 | 12:18 PM CST | EF2 | Franklin, TN | 16.1 | 600 | 1 | 4 | $40,000 |
| February 28 | 12:18 PM CST | EF1 | Madison, AL | 3.9 | 200 | $30,000 | ||
| February 28 | 1:00 PM CST | EF0 | Marion, TN | 0.0 | 20 | $20,000 | ||
| February 28 | 2:25 PM EST | EF1 | Hamilton, TN | 2.2 | 90 | $1.3 million | ||
| February 28 | 2:30 PM EST | EF1 | Hamilton, TN | 2.6 | 150 | $5.0 million | ||
| February 28 | 3:53 PM CST | EF0 | Talladega, AL | 0.3 | 50 | $8,000 | ||
| February 28 | 5:02 PM EST | EF0 | Greenville, SC | 1.5 | 50 | |||
| February 28 | 5:05 PM CST | EF0 | Autauga, AL | 8.9 | 200 | $77,000 | ||
| February 28 | 5:28 PM CST | EF0 | Chambers, AL | 1.9 | 30 | $45,000 | ||
| February 28 | 5:37 PM CST | EF1 | Lowndes, AL | 5.0 | 200 | $60,000 | ||
| February 28 | 7:24 PM EST | EF1 | Newberry, SC | 3.4 | 100 | $120,000 |
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.