Tornadoes · United States · Missouri · 2017
EF0 tornado, Ike to Forsyth, Missouri, March 9, 2017
From Ike to Forsyth, this EF0 tornado ran 1.9 miles across Taney County on March 9, 2017, touching down at 7:06 PM CST and reaching 100 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 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
- March 9, 2017
- Touchdown
- 7:06 PM CST (01:06 UTC)
- Lifted
- 7:07 PM CST (01:07 UTC)
- On the ground
- 1 minutes
- Path length
- 1.9 miles (3.1 km)
- Path width
- 100 yards (91 m)
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- $100,000
- County
- Taney County
- Touchdown point
- 36.687, -93.122
- Lift-off point
- 36.673, -93.097
- Record number
- 1703091906-01
What the Weather Service recorded
Severe thunderstorms producing numerous reports large hail along with scattered wind damage and a couple of tornadoes impacted Missouri Ozarks and southeastern Kansas Thursday, March 9, 2017.
A National Weather Service survey determined that an EF-0 tornado destroyed a wooden frame structure and caused minor roof damage to three homes. Estimated peak wind speed was 80 mph.
A National Weather Service survey determined that an EF-0 tornado damaged a strip mall roof and uprooted trees in the town of Forsyth. Estimated peak wind speed was 75 mph.
From NOAA NCEI's Storm Events Database, the narrative the local forecast office wrote for Storm Data.
The warnings
38 minutes of warning. NWS SGF issued a tornado warning for this county at 00:28 UTC, 38 minutes before the tornado touched down, in force until 01:15 UTC.
The county was under a severe thunderstorm watch, issued at 17:10 UTC and running to 02:45 UTC.
| Issued (UTC) | Expired | Product | Office |
|---|---|---|---|
| 17:10 UTC | 02:45 UTC | Severe Thunderstorm Watch | SGF |
| 00:28 UTC | 01:15 UTC | Tornado Warning | SGF |
| 00:56 UTC | 01:45 UTC | Tornado Warning | SGF |
| 01:41 UTC | 02:09 UTC | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | SGF |
| 01:43 UTC | 02:01 UTC | Tornado Warning | SGF |
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 Enhanced Risk, with a 0.05 chance of a tornado within 25 miles. The outlook in force was issued at 00:51 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 surface observations
Branson (BBG), 18 km from the path, in the two hours either side.
| Time (UTC) | Temp (°F) | Dew point (°F) | Wind | Gust (kt) | Pressure (mb) | Weather |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 23:45 UTC | 68 | 59 | 220° 14 kt | 22 | 1013.9 | |
| 00:17 UTC | 68 | 59 | 210° 9 kt | 17 | 1013.5 | TS |
| 00:48 UTC | 66.2 | 59 | 210° 12 kt | 19 | 1013.2 | TS |
| 01:48 UTC | 60.8 | 57.2 | 350° 10 kt | 1014.6 | +TSRA | |
| 02:48 UTC | 57.2 | 57.2 | 0° 0 kt | 1016.6 | -TSRA |
From the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of airport observations.
The radar
The Springfield radar (KSGF), 67 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the touchdown began at 01:05 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 23:15 UTC | HAIL 1 | 2 Ne Fordland | Webster, MO | NICKEL TO QUARTER SIZE HAIL REPORTED NEAR FORLAND ON SOCIAL MEDIA WITH A PICTURE. TIME WAS ESTIMATED. |
| 23:35 UTC | HAIL 1.25 | Springfield | Greene, MO | VIA FACEBOOK. |
| 23:50 UTC | TORNADO | 5 E Reeds Spring | Taney, MO | BRIEF EF-0 TORNADO DESTROYED A WOODEN FRAMED STRUCTURE AND DAMAGED ROOFS TO 3 HOMES. . |
| 00:01 UTC | TORNADO | 6 Sw Jenkins | Barry, MO | EF-0 TORNADO WITH MAX ESTIMATED WINDS OF 85 MPH UPROOTED AND SNAPPED SEVERAL TREES. |
| 01:01 UTC | HAIL 1 | Merriam Woods | Taney, MO | QUARTER SIZED HAIL REPORTED BY HAM RADIO OPERATOR 1 MILE SE OF F HIGHWAY AT 65. HAM REPORTS QUARTER SIZED HAIL AT MERRIAM WOODS - F HIGHWAY NEAR 160. |
| 01:05 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 2 Ene Forsyth | Taney, MO | TIME CORRECTED REPORT. REPORTS OF TREES DOWN ON HOUSES SKYLINE ROAD FORSYTH. ALSO ROOF ON TOP OF A CAR WITH ONE PERSON TRAPPED IN FORSYTH. |
| 01:07 UTC | TORNADO | Forsyth | Taney, MO | EF0 TORNADO CAUSED DAMAGE TO A STRIP MALL ROOF AND UPROOTED TREES IN FORSYTH. ESTIMATED WINDS WERE 60-70 MPH. |
| 01:08 UTC | HAIL 0.75 | Forsyth | Taney, MO | E45-50 MPH WINDS IN FORSYTH. |
| 01:13 UTC | HAIL 1.25 | 1 E Kissee Mills | Taney, MO | HAM RADIO REPORT QUARTER SIZED HAIL ON 76 HIGHWAY NEAR THE RIVER CHURCH (EAST OF FORSYTH 5 MILES). NOW HALF DOLLAR SIZED REPORTED BY SAME STATION. |
| 01:19 UTC | HAIL 0.88 | 1 W Fremont Hills | Christian, MO | NICKEL SIZE HAIL. VIA INTERNET SUBMISSION. |
| 01:35 UTC | HAIL 0.25 | Golden | Barry, MO | GOLF BALL SIZE HAIL NEAR GOLDEN REPORTED ON SOCIAL MEDIA WITH A PICTURE. TIME WAS ESTIMATED. |
| 01:35 UTC | HAIL 1.75 | 3 Se Shell Knob | Barry, MO | GOLF BALL SIZE HAIL NEAR VIOLA, MISSOURI. PICTURE ON SOCIAL MEDIA. TIME WAS ESTIMATED |
| 01:35 UTC | HAIL 1.75 | 3 Se Shell Knob | Barry, MO | GOLF BALL SIZE HAIL NEAR VIOLA, MISSOURI. PICTURE ON SOCIAL MEDIA. TIME WAS ESTIMATED. |
| 01:35 UTC | HAIL 1.75 | Golden | Barry, MO | GOLF BALL SIZE HAIL NEAR GOLDEN REPORTED ON SOCIAL MEDIA WITH A PICTURE. TIME WAS ESTIMATED. |
| 01:40 UTC | HAIL 1 | Blue Eye | Stone, MO | |
| 01:40 UTC | HAIL 1 | Blue Eye | Carroll, AR | |
| 01:41 UTC | HAIL 1 | Ridgedale | Taney, MO | QUARTER SIZED HAIL 86 HIGHWAY AT BIG CEDAR. |
| 01:42 UTC | HAIL 1 | Protem | Taney, MO | PICTURE OF QUARTER SIZE HAIL VIA FACEBOOK. . |
| 01:45 UTC | HAIL 1.5 | Ridgedale | Taney, MO | HAIL PICTURE ON SOCIAL MEDIA NEAR TOP OF THE ROCK. TIME WAS ESTIMATED. |
| 01:48 UTC | HAIL 1 | 2 Nw Ridgedale | Taney, MO | QUARTER SIZED HAIL HWY 65 AND HWY 86....QUARTER SIZED HAIL...RELAY FROM STONE COUNTY 911. |
| 01:51 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 2 Ene Forsyth | Taney, MO | REPORTS OF TREES DOWN ON HOUSES SKYLINE ROAD FORSYTH. ALSO ROOF ON TOP OF A CAR WITH ONE PERSON TRAPPED IN FORSYTH. |
| 01:52 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 5 Ene Golden | Stone, MO | HOUSE DAMAGE....REPORTS OF WINDOWS BLOWN OUT....CENTRAL CROSSING FIRE RESPONDING. |
From the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service local storm reports.
This ground now
The live radar over the trackEvery 2017 tornado in MissouriEvery tornado in Missouri since 1950Warnings in force in Missouri nowThe forecast where you are
The other tornadoes of March 9, 2017
16 more were confirmed in the United States that day.
| Date | Time | Rating | Where | Path (mi) | Width (yd) | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March 9 | 6:25 PM CST | EF2 | Ripley, MO | 9.6 | 600 | $30,000 | ||
| March 9 | 6:32 PM CST | EF1 | Butler, MO | 6.3 | 100 | $25,000 | ||
| March 9 | 6:42 PM CST | EF0 | Barry, MO | 0.1 | 100 | $25,000 | ||
| March 9 | 6:50 PM CST | EF0 | Taney, MO | 0.1 | 75 | $20,000 | ||
| March 9 | 7:00 PM CST | EF0 | Barry, MO | 0.1 | 100 | |||
| March 9 | 7:03 PM CST | EF1 | Stoddard, MO | 2.3 | 75 | $75,000 | ||
| March 9 | 7:14 PM CST | EF1 | Butler, MO | 2.7 | 200 | $500,000 | ||
| March 9 | 7:28 PM CST | EF1 | Stoddard, MO | 11.2 | 250 | $400,000 | ||
| March 9 | 8:00 PM CST | EF0 | Stoddard, MO | 0.7 | 100 | $20,000 | ||
| March 9 | 8:10 PM CST | EF1 | New Madrid, MO | 1.1 | 150 | $50,000 | ||
| March 9 | 8:26 PM CST | EF2 | Fulton, MO to KY | 9.7 | 250 | $270,000 | ||
| March 9 | 8:41 PM CST | EF2 | Fulton, KY to TN | 10.2 | 250 | $1.3 million | ||
| March 9 | 9:13 PM CST | EF1 | Calloway, KY | 5.6 | 150 | $75,000 | ||
| March 9 | 9:54 PM CST | EF0 | Carroll, TN | 1.0 | 150 | $30,000 | ||
| March 9 | 11:32 PM CST | EF0 | Marshall, TN | 3.1 | 100 | $25,000 | ||
| March 9 | 11:55 PM CST | EF1 | Moore, TN | 4.2 | 320 |
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.