Tornadoes · United States · Missouri · 2005

F1 tornado, Caulfield to Pottersville, Missouri, November 27, 2005

From Caulfield to Pottersville, this F1 tornado ran 3.0 miles across Howell County on November 27, 2005, touching down at 6:46 PM CST and reaching 100 yards wide. It killed nobody and injured 2, and did $70,000 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
November 27, 2005
Touchdown
6:46 PM CST (00:46 UTC)
Path length
3.0 miles (4.8 km)
Path width
100 yards (91 m)
Deaths
0
Injuries
2
Property damage
$70,000
County
Howell County
Touchdown point
36.530, -92.150
Lift-off point
36.550, -92.080
Record number
1250

What the Weather Service recorded

This tornado is a continuation of the tornado in Ozark County Missouri. A National Weather Service survey indicated that an F-1 tornado tracked out of Ozark County into extreme southwest Howell County to 5 miles south southeast of Caulfield or three miles northeast of Bakersfield approximately one half mile west of the intersection of Highways YY and 562. The tornado width was 100 yards with a length of approximately four miles.

A National Weather Service survey indicated that an F-1 tornado touched down two and half miles southeast of Pottersville and tracked five miles to three and a half miles northeast of Pottersville. The tornado crossed Highway K three miles east of Pottersville. The tornado width was approximately 100 yards. The heaviest damage occurred approximately two miles east southeast of Pottersville or one mile south of Highway K where a frame house and a mobile home were heavily damaged. Two injuries occurred from the tornado striking the mobile home.

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 tornado watch, issued at 21:07 UTC and running to 03:38 UTC.

Issued (UTC)ExpiredProductOffice
21:07 UTC03:38 UTCTornado WatchSGF
23:27 UTC05:30 UTCFlash Flood WarningSGF
23:46 UTC00:45 UTCTornado WarningSGF
03:00 UTC05:34 UTCHigh Wind WatchSGF
05:34 UTC07:07 UTCWind AdvisorySGF

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 19:59 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.

Springfield, MO (KSGF), 00:00Z

0.8 hours before the tornado, 155 km from the path. November 28, 2005.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Springfield, MO at 00:00Z on 2005-11-28Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel lifted from the surface. Mixed-layer CAPE 70 joules per kilogram, CIN -44, lifted condensation level 1004 meters above ground. Wind barbs in knots down the right edge.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°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, Springfield, MO at 00:00Z on 2005-11-28The 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 196 square meters per square second, 0 to 6 km bulk shear 80 knots.1939587897117136Sfc1 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
70 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-44 J/kg
Surface CAPE
162 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1004 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
80 kt
0-1 km bulk shear
26 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
196 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
204 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.1
Supercell composite
0.4
0-3 km lapse rate
6.3 K/km

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

Springfield, MO (KSGF), 12:00Z

11.2 hours after it, 155 km from the path. November 28, 2005.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Springfield, MO at 12:00Z on 2005-11-28Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel lifted from the surface. Mixed-layer CAPE 2 joules per kilogram, CIN -2, lifted condensation level 939 meters above ground. Wind barbs in knots down the right edge.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°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, Springfield, MO at 12:00Z on 2005-11-28The 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 52 square meters per square second, 0 to 6 km bulk shear 21 knots.1939587897117136Sfc1 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
2 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-2 J/kg
Surface CAPE
6 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
939 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
21 kt
0-1 km bulk shear
20 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
52 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
121 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0
0-3 km lapse rate
4.9 K/km

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The radar

The Springfield radar (KSGF), 138 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the touchdown began at 00:44 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)ReportWhereCountyRemark
22:40 UTCTORNADOPottersvilleHowell, MOPOSSIBLE TORNADO. PORCH BLOWN OFF A HOUSE. BARNED DAMAGED NEAR INTERSECTION OF HIGHWAY K AND KK.
00:45 UTCTSTM WND DMGBakersfieldOzark, MOBARN BLOWN DOWN JUST EAST OF BAKERSFIELD. POSSIBLE TORNADO DAMAGE. A NWS SURVEY WILL BE CONDUCTED TODAY.
01:09 UTCTSTM WND DMGPottersvilleHowell, MO*** 2 INJ *** 4 MOBILE HOMES BLOWN OFF FOUNDATION. ONE MOBILE HOME TOTALLY DESTROYED. OUTBUILDINGS DESTROYED. DEBRIS IN TREES AND TREES UPROOTED. DAMAGE WAS REPORTED IN THE POTTERSVILLE AREA...ALONG HIGHWAY AB. POSSIBLE
01:12 UTCTSTM WND DMG5 S CaulfieldHowell, MOFRONT PORCH AND BARN REPORTED DESTROYED NEAR YY HIGHWAY. RELAYED BY WEST PLAINS SHERIFF OFFICE. POSSIBLE TORNADO DAMAGE. STORM SURVEY MAY BE NEEDED.
01:12 UTCTSTM WND DMG5 S CaulfieldHowell, MOREPORT OF FRONT PORCH AND BARN DESTROYED NEAR YY HIGHWAY. RELAYED BY WEST PLAINS SHERIFF OFFICE. POSSIBLE TORNADO DAMAGE. STORM SURVEY MAY BE NEEDED.
01:20 UTCTORNADO8 Se West PlainsHowell, MOPOSSIBLE TORNADO. EMERGENCY MANAGER REPORTED NUMEROUS TREES DOWN AND TWISTED. TWO TO THREE MOBILE HOMES OVERTURNED. TWO INJURIES REPORTED. EMS RESPONDING.
02:06 UTCTORNADOPottersvilleHowell, MOPOSSIBLE TORNADO. PORCH BLOWN OFF A HOUSE. BARNED DAMAGED NEAR INTERSECTION OF HIGHWAY K AND KK.

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 MissouriEvery tornado in Missouri since 1950Warnings in force in Missouri nowThe forecast where you are

The other tornadoes of November 27, 2005

64 more were confirmed in the United States that day.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
November 271:48 PM CSTF0Marion, KS0.150
November 271:48 PM CSTF0Marion, KS13.050
November 271:50 PM CSTF0Marion, KS2.050$1,000
November 272:04 PM CSTF0Marion, KS0.150
November 272:05 PM CSTF0Morris, KS0.3100
November 272:12 PM CSTF1Morris, KS20.0400$250,000
November 272:32 PM CSTF0Dickinson, KS1.5100
November 272:32 PM CSTF0Morris, KS6.0100
November 272:35 PM CSTF0Lyon, KS1.0100$20,000
November 272:48 PM CSTF0Montgomery, KS0.150
November 272:58 PM CSTF0Morris, KS0.3100
November 273:09 PM CSTF1Geary, KS2.0300$900,000
November 273:15 PM CSTF0Geary, KS0.3100
November 273:21 PM CSTF0Geary, KS2.0150$40,000
November 273:28 PM CSTF0Riley, KS0.3100
November 273:32 PM CSTF0Riley, KS0.3100$10,000
November 273:40 PM CSTF1Yell, AR4.550
November 273:49 PM CSTF0Riley, KS0.3100
November 273:57 PM CSTF0Yell, AR2.740
November 274:06 PM CSTF1Neosho, KS6.080$120,000
November 274:22 PM CSTF0Allen, KS0.250
November 274:25 PM CSTF1Pike, AR13.8401
November 274:42 PM CSTF1Montgomery, AR3.240
November 274:49 PM CSTF1Montgomery, AR4.540
November 274:56 PM CSTF1Garland, AR3.540
November 275:10 PM CSTF1Garland, AR1.250
November 275:19 PM CSTF0Jasper, MO0.075
November 275:20 PM CSTF2Hot Spring, AR4.2100
November 275:23 PM CSTF1Van Buren, AR2.850
November 275:26 PM CSTF2Garland, AR13.81001
November 275:27 PM CSTF1Searcy, AR2.750
November 275:30 PM CSTF1Garland, AR2.1100
November 275:32 PM CSTF1Saline, AR6.1100
November 275:37 PM CSTF2Conway, AR3.9250
November 275:41 PM CSTF3Perry, AR19.0800$4.0 million
November 275:42 PM CSTF2Pope, AR2.3250
November 275:44 PM CSTF1Clay, MO11.075$1.2 million
November 275:45 PM CSTF2Conway, AR11.8250
November 275:59 PM CSTF1Ray, MO2.075$30,000
November 276:00 PM CSTF3Conway, AR2.0150
November 276:09 PM CSTF3Conway, AR15.070018
November 276:15 PM CSTF1Baxter, AR3.7100
November 276:25 PM CSTF1Perry, AR0.825
November 276:26 PM CSTF1Pulaski, AR2.225
November 276:27 PM CSTF2Conway, AR6.1600
November 276:34 PM CSTF2Faulkner, AR2.6400
November 276:37 PM CSTF2Van Buren, AR13.1400
November 276:40 PM CSTF1Fulton, AR1.350
November 276:42 PM CSTF1Ozark, MO1.0100
November 276:55 PM CSTF1Van Buren, AR3.750
November 276:56 PM CSTF1Howell, MO5.01002$70,000
November 276:59 PM CSTF1Faulkner, AR7.775
November 277:02 PM CSTF1Cleburne, AR2.750
November 277:11 PM CSTF0Faulkner, AR4.040
November 277:19 PM CSTF2Van Buren, AR0.8100
November 277:20 PM CSTF2Cleburne, AR9.21001
November 277:47 PM CSTF0Cleburne, AR1.225
November 277:55 PM CSTF1Izard, AR5.8150
November 278:01 PM CSTF1Sharp, AR0.4100
November 278:02 PM CSTF1Fulton, AR5.8100

All 65 of them

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.