Tornadoes · United States · Missouri · 2011
EF0 tornado, Hunter, Missouri, May 25, 2011
This EF0 tornado ran 0.5 miles across Carter County on May 25, 2011, touching down at 4:44 PM CDT and reaching 50 yards wide. It killed nobody, and did $2,000 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 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
- May 25, 2011
- Touchdown
- 4:44 PM CDT (21:44 UTC)
- Lifted
- 4:45 PM CDT (21:45 UTC)
- On the ground
- 1 minutes
- Path length
- 0.5 miles (0.8 km)
- Path width
- 50 yards (46 m)
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- $2,000
- County
- Carter County
- Touchdown point
- 36.885, -90.906
- Lift-off point
- 36.890, -90.900
- Record number
- 1105251544-01
What the Weather Service recorded
Numerous strong to severe thunderstorms occurred in the warm sector of a low pressure system over central Missouri. The air mass in the warm sector was very unstable, with afternoon mixed-layer cape values in the 2500 to 4000 j/kg range. A 65 to 75 knot mid level jet was located across Arkansas, with the nose of the jet moving into western Kentucky. This feature enhanced the lift and strong deep-layer shear already in place, creating an environment very favorable for supercells and tornadoes. A 40 to 55 knot low level jet across eastern Arkansas moved into western Kentucky during the evening, resulting in a long-track strong tornado.
A few trees and tree limbs were downed along Highway E near the Current River. Peak winds were estimated near 70 mph.
From NOAA NCEI's Storm Events Database, the narrative the local forecast office wrote for Storm Data.
The warnings
33 minutes of warning. NWS PAH issued a tornado warning for this county at 21:11 UTC, 33 minutes before the tornado touched down, in force until 21:45 UTC.
The county was under a tornado watch, issued at 16:14 UTC and running to 00:56 UTC.
| Issued (UTC) | Expired | Product | Office |
|---|---|---|---|
| 15:00 UTC | 01:00 UTC | Lake Wind Advisory | PAH |
| 16:14 UTC | 00:56 UTC | Tornado Watch | PAH |
| 20:02 UTC | 20:45 UTC | Tornado Warning | PAH |
| 20:40 UTC | 21:15 UTC | Tornado Warning | PAH |
| 21:11 UTC | 21:45 UTC | Tornado Warning | PAH |
| 21:14 UTC | 22:00 UTC | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | PAH |
| 21:43 UTC | 22:30 UTC | Tornado Warning | PAH |
| 22:37 UTC | 23:15 UTC | Tornado Warning | PAH |
| 23:15 UTC | 23:45 UTC | Tornado Warning | PAH |
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 High Risk, with a 0.30 chance of a tornado within 25 miles, in the hatched area where significant tornadoes were expected. The outlook in force was issued at 19:39 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.
Little Rock, AR (KLZK), 12:00Z
9.7 hours before the tornado, 244 km from the path. May 25, 2011.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 2124 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -14 J/kg
- Surface CAPE
- 1926 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 600 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 69 kt
- 0-1 km bulk shear
- 49 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 445 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 413 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 6.0
- Supercell composite
- 20.1
- 0-3 km lapse rate
- 5.3 K/km
Little Rock, AR (KLZK), 00:00Z
2.3 hours after it, 244 km from the path. May 26, 2011.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 2 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -10 J/kg
- Surface CAPE
- 167 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 2470 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 64 kt
- 0-1 km bulk shear
- 28 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 65 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 163 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- -0.1
- 0-3 km lapse rate
- 8.6 K/km
The surface observations
Popular Bluff (POF), 53 km from the path, in the two hours either side.
| Time (UTC) | Temp (°F) | Dew point (°F) | Wind | Gust (kt) | Pressure (mb) | Weather |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19:53 UTC | 82 | 71 | 180° 18 kt | 28 | 1000 | |
| 20:53 UTC | 81 | 71 | 180° 13 kt | 23 | 998.3 | |
| 21:53 UTC | 83 | 70 | 180° 20 kt | 28 | 996.6 | |
| 22:07 UTC | 80.6 | 71.6 | 170° 17 kt | 26 | 996.3 | VCTS -RA |
| 22:37 UTC | 73.4 | 66.2 | 200° 33 kt | 45 | 997.3 | -TSRA |
| 22:44 UTC | 69.8 | 64.4 | 190° 21 kt | 41 | 997.3 | -TSRA |
| 22:53 UTC | 69 | 61 | 190° 15 kt | 30 | 997.3 | TS |
| 23:13 UTC | 71.6 | 62.6 | 280° 11 kt | 18 | 999 | |
| 23:25 UTC | 71.6 | 62.6 | 270° 12 kt | 17 | 999.7 | VCTS -RA |
From the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of airport observations.
The radar
The Paducah radar (KPAH), 190 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the touchdown began at 21:46 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19:56 UTC | TORNADO | 3 N Myrtle | Oregon, MO | A NWS SURVEY TEAM DETERMINED THAT AN EF-1 TORNADO WITH WINDS OF 90 TO 100 MPH OCCURRED IN SOUTHERN OREGON COUNTY ON WEDNESDAY. THE TORNADO TOUCHED DOWN ABOUT 3 MILES NORTH OF MYRTLE ABOUT 256 PM AND STAYED ON THE GROUND |
| 20:00 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 3 N Myrtle | Oregon, MO | TREES AND POWER LINES DOWN ALONG COUNTY ROAD 244 |
| 20:00 UTC | HAIL 1.75 | Couch | Oregon, MO | |
| 20:02 UTC | HAIL 1.75 | Ellington | Reynolds, MO | |
| 20:05 UTC | HAIL 1 | Gatewood | Ripley, MO | QUARTER SIZE HAIL REPORTED. |
| 20:05 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 11 Ese Alton | Oregon, MO | TREES DOWN ALONG COUNTY ROAD 225 JUST SOUTH OF COUNTY ROAD 305. |
| 20:06 UTC | HAIL 1.75 | Ellington | Reynolds, MO | HAIL COVERED GROUND. |
| 20:10 UTC | HAIL 1.75 | 6 N Ellington | Reynolds, MO | |
| 20:21 UTC | FUNNEL CLOUD | Freemont | Carter, MO | |
| 20:22 UTC | FUNNEL CLOUD | Freemont | Carter, MO | FUNNEL CLOUD REPORTED NEAR THE COMMUNITY. |
| 20:23 UTC | HAIL 1.75 | Ellington | Reynolds, MO | |
| 20:45 UTC | FUNNEL CLOUD | 1 W Piedmont | Wayne, MO | |
| 20:49 UTC | FUNNEL CLOUD | 2 S Ellsinore | Carter, MO | ALONG K HIGHWAY. |
| 20:50 UTC | TORNADO | Grandin | Carter, MO | 2 MOBILE HOMES DESTROYED. |
| 20:51 UTC | HAIL 0.75 | Ellsinore | Carter, MO | |
| 20:56 UTC | TORNADO | 1 S Ellsinore | Carter, MO | REPORTED JUST SOUTH OF TOWN. |
| 20:56 UTC | TORNADO | 2 W Ellsinore | Carter, MO | ...UPDATE...3 MILE DEBRIS FIELD 2 TO 5 MILES WEST OF TOWN. TWO PEOPLE TRAPPED IN SEMI BETWEEN TWO TREES. ALL CELL PHONE SERVICE IS OUT. THIS DAMAGE OCCURRED FROM THE FIRST TORNADO NEAR THE COMMUNITY. |
| 20:56 UTC | TORNADO | Ellsinore | Carter, MO | TORNADO DAMAGE REPORTED BY STATE POLICE. TREES AND DEBRIS BLOCKING HWY 60. 1 HOME DESTROYED. POWER LINES DOWN. LAW ENFORCEMENT AND FIRE/RESCUE RESPONDING. |
| 20:56 UTC | TORNADO | Grandin | Carter, MO | TREES DOWN AND COMMUNITY IS WITHOUT POWER. STRUCTURAL DAMAGE REPORTED TO INCLUDE A CHURCH. |
| 20:57 UTC | HAIL 0.75 | Ellsinore | Carter, MO | DIME SIZE HAIL REPORTED AT INTERSECTION OF HWY 21 AND HWY 60. |
| 21:00 UTC | TORNADO | Ellsinore | Carter, MO | TORNADO ALONG HWY 21 AND HWY 60 BETWEEN ELLSINORE AND VAN BUREN. |
| 21:01 UTC | TORNADO | Ellsinore | Carter, MO | TORNADO IS SUCKING UP TREES INTO THE FUNNEL ALONG HIGHWAY 60. |
| 21:15 UTC | HAIL 1 | Birch Tree | Shannon, MO | |
| 21:19 UTC | HAIL 1.75 | Mill Spring | Wayne, MO | GOLF BALL SIZE HAIL REPORTED. REPORTED BETWEEN MILL SPRING AND WILLIAMSVILLE. |
| 21:19 UTC | TSTM WND GST 50 | Birch Tree | Shannon, MO | BLOWING LAWN FURNITURE ACROSS YARD |
| 21:21 UTC | HAIL 0.88 | Greenville | Wayne, MO | NICKEL HAIL AND DEBRIS FALLING FROM THE SKY. STORM IS SOUTHWEST OF THE COMMUNITY. |
| 21:23 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 2 E Eminence | Shannon, MO | SEVERAL TREES DOWN ON STATE ROUTE 106 |
| 21:23 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | Birch Tree | Shannon, MO | SEVERAL TREES DOWN ON HWY 60 |
| 21:30 UTC | TORNADO | Greenville | Wayne, MO | LARGE TORNADO REPORTED JUST NORTH OF COMMUNITY MOVING NORTHEAST REPORTED BY EM. |
| 21:33 UTC | TORNADO | Greenville | Wayne, MO | TORNADO REPORTED IN THE COMMUNITY OF GREENVILLE. |
| 21:37 UTC | TORNADO | 1 Se Patterson | Wayne, MO | DAMAGE SURVEY REVEALED AN EF1 TORNADO THAT BEGAN AROUND MILL SPRINGS AND MOVED NORTHEAST TO SAM A BAKER STATE PARK. DETAILS CAN BE FOUND IN THE PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT. |
| 21:42 UTC | HAIL 1.75 | 4 S Doniphan | Ripley, MO | GOLF BALL SIZE HAIL REPORTED SOUTH OF DONIPHAN. |
| 21:44 UTC | TORNADO | 3 W Hunter | Carter, MO | AN EF0 TORNADO DOWNED A FEW TREES AND TREE LIMBS ALONG HIGHWAY E NEAR THE CURRENT RIVER. |
| 21:47 UTC | TORNADO | Silva | Wayne, MO | TORNADO CROSSED U.S. 67 3N OF GREENVILLE NEAR THE COMMUNITY OF SILVA. |
| 21:58 UTC | TORNADO | Oxly | Ripley, MO | BRIEF TOUCHDOWN. |
| 22:01 UTC | HAIL 1.25 | 1 W Myrtle | Oregon, MO | |
| 22:14 UTC | TORNADO | 2 Wsw Poplar Bluff | Butler, MO | BRIEF TOUCHDOWN. |
| 22:19 UTC | FUNNEL CLOUD | Poplar Bluff | Butler, MO | MULTIPLE FUNNEL CLOUDS REPORTED ALONG HIGHWAY 67. |
| 22:21 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | Birch Tree | Shannon, MO | LARGE TREE FELL ON POLICE VEHICLE. |
| 22:34 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | Poplar Bluff | Butler, MO | LARGE TREE DOWN ALONG 11TH 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 MissouriEvery tornado in Missouri since 1950Warnings in force in Missouri 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 | 4:45 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 | ||
| May 25 | 7:58 PM CDT | EF0 | Union Parish, LA | 5.5 | 150 |
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.