Tornadoes · United States · Missouri · 2012

EF0 tornado, Harrelson to Raymore, Missouri, May 6, 2012

From Harrelson to Raymore, this EF0 tornado ran 0.2 miles across Cass County on May 6, 2012, touching down at 5:15 PM CDT and reaching 25 yards wide. It killed nobody.

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.

  1. EF065 to 85 mphthis tornado

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

  2. EF186 to 110 mph

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

  3. 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.

  4. 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.

  5. EF4166 to 200 mph

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

  6. 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.

  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
EF0
Date
May 6, 2012
Touchdown
5:15 PM CDT (22:15 UTC)
Lifted
5:16 PM CDT (22:16 UTC)
On the ground
1 minutes
Path length
0.2 miles (0.3 km)
Path width
25 yards (23 m)
Deaths
0
Injuries
0
County
Cass County
Touchdown point
38.769, -94.490
Lift-off point
38.769, -94.486
Record number
1205061615-01

What the Weather Service recorded

A cold front moved southeast across the area, during the late morning through|evening hours, of May 6, 2012. The front produced scattered thunderstorms, with a|few becoming severe. There were numerous reports of hail, along with two reported|tornadoes, and several reports of damaging winds.

A brief EF0 tornado touchdown was observed at 1615CST, about a mile south of Raymore and just east of Highway 71. It barely moved east and lifted at 1616CST. |No damage was observed.

A brief EF0 tornado touchdown was observed at 1717CST, in an open field near 195th Street and Old School Road. The tornado barely moved east and lifted at 1718CST. No damage was observed.

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 severe thunderstorm watch, issued at 20:49 UTC and running to 04:00 UTC.

Issued (UTC)ExpiredProductOffice
20:49 UTC04:00 UTCSevere Thunderstorm WatchEAX
21:31 UTC22:00 UTCSevere Thunderstorm WarningEAX
22:01 UTC22:30 UTCSevere Thunderstorm WarningEAX
22:16 UTC22:45 UTCTornado WarningEAX
22:39 UTC23:15 UTCSevere Thunderstorm WarningEAX
22:51 UTC23:15 UTCSevere Thunderstorm WarningEAX
23:02 UTC23:30 UTCSevere Thunderstorm WarningEAX
23:15 UTC23:45 UTCSevere Thunderstorm WarningEAX
23:18 UTC04:30 UTCFlash Flood WarningEAX
23:30 UTC00:00 UTCSevere Thunderstorm WarningEAX
04:30 UTC15:00 UTCFlood WarningEAX

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 Slight Risk, with a 0.02 chance of a tornado within 25 miles. The outlook in force was issued at 20:03 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.

Topeka, KS (KTOP), 12:00Z

10.3 hours before the tornado, 103 km from the path. May 6, 2012.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Topeka, KS at 12:00Z on 2012-05-06Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel lifted from the surface. Mixed-layer CAPE 1880 joules per kilogram, CIN -240, lifted condensation level 732 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, Topeka, KS at 12:00Z on 2012-05-06The 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 286 square meters per square second, 0 to 6 km bulk shear 22 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
1880 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-240 J/kg
Surface CAPE
1123 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
732 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
22 kt
0-1 km bulk shear
30 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
286 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
218 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0
0-3 km lapse rate
4.2 K/km

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

Topeka, KS (KTOP), 00:00Z

1.7 hours after it, 103 km from the path. May 7, 2012.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Topeka, KS at 00:00Z on 2012-05-07Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel lifted from the surface. Mixed-layer CAPE 2839 joules per kilogram, CIN -1, lifted condensation level 698 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, Topeka, KS at 00:00Z on 2012-05-07The 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 62 square meters per square second, 0 to 6 km bulk shear 28 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
2839 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-1 J/kg
Surface CAPE
3348 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
698 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
28 kt
0-1 km bulk shear
9 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
62 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
169 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.9
Supercell composite
5.0
0-3 km lapse rate
7.1 K/km

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The surface observations

Lee s Summit (LXT), 24 km from the path, in the two hours either side.

Time (UTC)Temp (°F)Dew point (°F)WindGust (kt)Pressure (mb)Weather
20:53 UTC8271120° 10 kt1010.2
21:45 UTC80.669.8120° 6 kt1009.1VCTS
21:53 UTC8170110° 7 kt1009.8TS
22:17 UTC7771.6240° 6 kt1010.8+TSRA
22:53 UTC7370130° 10 kt161009.1+TSRA BR
23:08 UTC6862.6180° 18 kt271009.8TSRA
23:17 UTC64.459170° 17 kt271009.1TSRA
23:22 UTC64.457.2180° 13 kt241009.1-TSRA
23:53 UTC6958150° 9 kt221010.2TS

From the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of airport observations.

The radar

The Pleasant Hill radar (KEAX), 20 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the touchdown began at 22:15 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)ReportWhereCountyRemark
21:47 UTCHAIL 0.88RaymoreCass, MOPENNY TO NICKEL SIZE HAIL FALLING IN SOUTH RAYMORE.
22:03 UTCHAIL 0.881 S BeltonCass, MO
22:15 UTCTORNADORaymoreCass, MOOFF DUTY METEOROLOGIST REPORTED A BRIEF TOUCHDOWN ON THE SOUTH SIDE OF RAYMORE EAST OG HIGHWAY 71.
22:17 UTCHAIL 0.88PeculiarCass, MO
22:17 UTCTORNADO1 S RaymoreCass, MOBRIEF TORNADO TOUCHDOWN REPORTED AT 195TH AND OLD SCHOOL ROAD.
22:20 UTCHAIL 0.88RaytownJackson, MODIME TO NICKEL HAIL NEAR RAYTOWN. REPORT RELAYED FROM WFO DMX.
22:31 UTCHAIL 1RaymoreCass, MOQUARTER SIZE HAIL REPORTED IN DOWNTOWN RAYMORE.
22:36 UTCHAIL 0.75IndependenceJackson, MOINTERSTATE 70 AND NOLAND ROAD.
22:41 UTCHAIL 1RaymoreCass, MO
22:48 UTCHAIL 1GreenwoodJackson, MOREPORTED BY RETIRED NWS EMPLOYEE.
22:50 UTCHAIL 0.75Lee'S SummitJackson, MOREPORTED AT INTERSTATE 470 AND HIGHWAY 50.
22:55 UTCHAIL 12 Nne ArchieCass, MO
23:15 UTCFLASH FLOODPleasant HillCass, MOALL STREETS IMPASSABLE IN DOWNTOWN PLEASANT HILL
23:16 UTCHAIL 0.75Pleasant HillCass, MO
23:21 UTCHAIL 0.753 W Pleasant HillCass, MO
23:45 UTCFLASH FLOOD2 Nw GreenwoodJackson, MO2 INCHES OF RAIN IN 45 MINUTES REPORTED BY RETIRED NWS EMPLOYEE.
23:45 UTCHAIL 12 E HarrisonvilleCass, MO
00:00 UTCHEAVY RAIN 3.2Pleasant HillCass, MOTHE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OFFICE MEASURED 3.20 INCHES OF RAIN SINCE 7 AM CDT.

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

This ground now

The live radar over the trackEvery 2012 tornado in MissouriEvery tornado in Missouri since 1950Warnings in force in Missouri nowThe forecast where you are

The other tornadoes of May 6, 2012

5 more were confirmed in the United States that day.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
May 64:48 PM CDTEF1Iroquois, IL1.3200$25,000
May 65:17 PM CDTEF0Cass, MO0.125
May 65:18 PM CDTEF0Vermilion, IL2.175$65,000
May 66:10 PM CDTEF0Johnson, KS0.125
May 66:22 PM CDTEF0Johnson, KS0.125

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.