Tornadoes · United States · Missouri · 2017
EF1 tornado, Branson Mem Arpt to Taneyville, Missouri, May 19, 2017
From Branson Mem Arpt to Taneyville, this EF1 tornado ran 8.7 miles across Taney County on May 19, 2017, touching down at 1:30 AM CDT and reaching 200 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.
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
- May 19, 2017
- Touchdown
- 1:30 AM CDT (06:30 UTC)
- Lifted
- 1:40 AM CDT (06:40 UTC)
- On the ground
- 10 minutes
- Path length
- 8.7 miles (14.0 km)
- Path width
- 200 yards (183 m)
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- County
- Taney County
- Touchdown point
- 36.700, -93.159
- Lift-off point
- 36.768, -93.034
- Record number
- 1705190030-01
The damage survey
11 damage points were recorded along this path by NWS SGF, in the Damage Assessment Toolkit the survey teams carry. The strongest indicator was rated EF1. The highest wind the damage implies is 99 mph.
- Numerous trees uprooted and 2 houses had minor damage due to trees falling on them.
Survey points are preliminary and are the raw material the published rating was built from. Source: NWS Damage Assessment Toolkit.
What the Weather Service recorded
Multiple rounds of severe thunderstorms over a two day period produced numerous weak tornadoes and wind damage reports across the Missouri Ozarks. Training of storms led to localized heavy rainfall and minor flooding reports.
A brief EF-0 tornado touched down in Branson. It damaged a hotel and the local outlet mall. There was one person with a head injury. Estimated maximum winds were up to 75 mph.
An EF-1 tornado tracked from Rockaway Beach to just northwest of Taneyville. Numerous trees were damaged and uprooted. Estimated maximum winds were up to 100 mph.
From NOAA NCEI's Storm Events Database, the narrative the local forecast office wrote for Storm Data.
The warnings
14 minutes of warning. NWS SGF issued a tornado warning for this county at 06:16 UTC, 14 minutes before the tornado touched down, in force until 07:00 UTC.
The county was under a tornado watch, issued at 04:06 UTC and running to 07:43 UTC.
| Issued (UTC) | Expired | Product | Office |
|---|---|---|---|
| 04:06 UTC | 07:43 UTC | Tornado Watch | SGF |
| 06:16 UTC | 07:00 UTC | Tornado Warning | SGF |
| 06:47 UTC | 07:45 UTC | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | SGF |
| 06:56 UTC | 07:18 UTC | Tornado Warning | SGF |
| 20:11 UTC | 02:48 UTC | Tornado Watch | SGF |
| 21:11 UTC | 22:15 UTC | Severe Thunderstorm 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 Slight Risk, with a 0.02 chance of a tornado within 25 miles. The outlook in force was issued at 06:00 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
6.5 hours before the tornado, 65 km from the path. May 19, 2017.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 2055 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -4 J/kg
- Surface CAPE
- 3169 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 1439 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 33 kt
- 0-1 km bulk shear
- 12 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 44 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 52 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.2
- Supercell composite
- 2.4
- 0-3 km lapse rate
- 7.2 K/km
Springfield, MO (KSGF), 12:00Z
5.5 hours after it, 65 km from the path. May 19, 2017.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 0 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -80475 J/kg
- Surface CAPE
- 0 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 968 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 35 kt
- 0-1 km bulk shear
- 29 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- -97 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 118 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.0
- 0-3 km lapse rate
- 4.3 K/km
The surface observations
Branson (BBG), 24 km from the path, in the two hours either side.
| Time (UTC) | Temp (°F) | Dew point (°F) | Wind | Gust (kt) | Pressure (mb) | Weather |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 04:35 UTC | 73.4 | 68 | 130° 3 kt | 1012.5 | ||
| 04:55 UTC | 71.6 | 68 | 130° 4 kt | 1012.2 | VCTS | |
| 05:15 UTC | 71.6 | 68 | 130° 6 kt | 1012.2 | ||
| 05:35 UTC | 71.6 | 68 | 130° 9 kt | 1011.5 | ||
| 05:55 UTC | 71.6 | 68 | 140° 9 kt | 1010.8 | ||
| 06:15 UTC | 71.6 | 68 | 150° 7 kt | 1011.5 | ||
| 06:35 UTC | 66.2 | 62.6 | 240° 11 kt | 35 | 1013.9 | VCTS RA |
| 06:55 UTC | 62.6 | 62.6 | 240° 11 kt | 20 | 1014.6 | VCTS -RA |
| 07:15 UTC | 62.6 | 62.6 | 250° 9 kt | 18 | 1014.6 | TSRA |
| 07:35 UTC | 62.6 | 60.8 | 260° 4 kt | 1014.6 | VCTS -RA | |
| 07:55 UTC | 62.6 | 60.8 | 250° 4 kt | 1014.2 | -RA | |
| 08:15 UTC | 62.6 | 60.8 | 230° 4 kt | 1014.2 | -RA |
From the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of airport observations.
The radar
The Springfield radar (KSGF), 62 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the touchdown began at 06:30 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 06:04 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 3 Se Shell Knob | Barry, MO | REPORT OF DOCKS DAMAGED AND BOATS UPSIDE DOWN IN THE WATER ON FARM ROAD 1252. TREE DAMAGE WAS ALSO REPORTED. |
| 06:04 UTC | TORNADO | 3 Se Shell Knob | Barry, MO | EF-0 TORNADO UPROOTED NUMEROUS TREES AND DAMAGED DOCKS SOUTHEAST OF SHELL KNOB. OTHER DAMAGE OCCURRED ACROSS THE LAKE BUT COULD NOT DETERMINE SEVERITY. |
| 06:10 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 3 Sse Jenkins | Barry, MO | TREES REPORTED DOWN ON HIGHWAY 39 NORTH OF FARM ROAD 2135. |
| 06:27 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | Reeds Spring | Stone, MO | A POWERLINE WAS REPORTED DOWN ON HIGHWAY 413 ACROSS FROM THE REEDS SPRING HIGH SCHOOL. |
| 06:30 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 2 W Branson | Taney, MO | *** 1 INJ *** RELAYED REPORT FROM LEO, SHINGLES BLOWN OF THE CAMDEN HOTEL. FENCE BLOWN DOWN NEAR THE TANGER MALL. ONE PERSON REPORTED WITH A HEAD INJURY AT THE CAMDEN HOTEL. |
| 06:30 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 3 W Branson | Taney, MO | *** 1 INJ *** RELAYED REPORT FROM LEO, SHINGLES BLOWN OF THE CAMDEN HOTEL. FENCE BLOWN DOWN NEAR THE TANGER MALL. ONE PERSON REPORTED WITH A HEAD INJURY AT THE CAMDEN HOTEL. |
| 06:30 UTC | TORNADO | 3 W Branson | Taney, MO | *** 1 INJ *** EF-0 TORNADO WITH WINDS UP TO 75MPH CAUSED DAMAGE TO A MOTEL. ONE PERSON SUFFERED INJURIES. |
| 06:36 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 3 E Battlefield | Greene, MO | REPORT OF 6 DIAMETER TREE DOWN ON COX ROAD ACROSS FROM WANDA GRAY ELEMENTARY. |
| 06:39 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | Merriam Woods | Taney, MO | REPORTS OF MULTIPLE POWER LINES AND TREES DOWN. |
| 06:39 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | Rockaway Beach | Taney, MO | 40 INCH DIAMETER TREE DOWN AT 137 LOTUS IN ROCKAWAY BEACH. TIME ESTIMATED VIA RADAR. |
| 06:40 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 1 E Forsyth | Taney, MO | REPORTS OF LIMBS FROM 3 TO 4 INCHES IN DIAMETER ON THE ROAD. |
| 06:40 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 1 Ese Forsyth | Taney, MO | REPORTS OF LIMBS FROM 3 TO 4 INCHES IN DIAMETER ON THE ROAD. |
| 06:46 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 1 Sw Taneyville | Taney, MO | A LARGE TREE WAS REPORTED DOWN ACROSS HIGHWAY 76. |
| 06:47 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 1 Sw Taneyville | Taney, MO | NUMEROUS TREES REPORTED DOWN ON HULLS FORD ROAD. |
| 06:47 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | Merriam Woods | Taney, MO | ROOF DAMAGE REPORTED TO HOMES. |
| 06:48 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | Taneyville | Taney, MO | ROOF DAMAGE REPORTED TO HOMES. |
| 06:48 UTC | TORNADO | 1 Nnw Taneyville | Taney, MO | EF-1 TORNADO WITH WINDS OF 100 MPH OCCURRED FROM ROCKAWAY BEACH TO JUST NORTHWEST OF TANEYVILLE. NUMEROUS TREES WERE DAMAGED AND UPROOTED. |
| 06:50 UTC | HAIL 0.75 | 2 S Highlandville | Christian, MO | |
| 06:54 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 1 Ssw Turners | Greene, MO | TREES BLOWN ONTO TWO HOMES CAUSING DAMAGE. |
| 06:54 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | Turners | Greene, MO | TREES BLOWN ONTO TWO HOMES CAUSING DAMAGE. |
| 06:54 UTC | TORNADO | 1 Ssw Turners | Greene, MO | EF-0 TORNADO UPROOTED NUMEROUS TREES ALONG ITS PATH. SOME TREES FELL ON HOMES. MAXIMUM WINDS WERE ESTIMATED AT 85 MPH WITH A PATH LENGTH OF 2.4 MILES. |
| 06:54 UTC | TORNADO | 1 Sw Turners | Greene, MO | EF-0 TORNADO UPROOTED NUMEROUS TREES ALONG ITS PATH. SOME TREES FELL ON HOMES. MAXIMUM WINDS WERE ESTIMATED AT 85 MPH WITH A PATH LENGTH OF 2.4 MILES. |
| 06:56 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | Turners | Greene, MO | LARGE TREE REPORTED DOWN NEAR THE INTERSECTION OF STATE HIGHWAY D AND HIGHWAY 125. |
| 06:57 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | Turners | Greene, MO | MULTIPLE TREES WERE REPORTED DOWN IN THE 6400 BLOCK OF EAST SKYLINE DRIVE AND RIDGELINE BLOCKING ROAD.. |
| 07:00 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | Chadwick | Christian, MO | REPORTS RELAYED FROM FIRE DEPT OF TREE DOWN ON HIGHWAY 125. TREES REPORTED DOWN ON TWO HOMES. |
| 07:00 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | Chadwick | Christian, MO | A TREE WAS BLOWN ONTO A HOME CAUSING SIGNIFICANT ROOF DAMAGE. |
| 07:00 UTC | TORNADO | 1 S Chadwick | Christian, MO | EF-0 TORNADO WITH 85 MPH WINDS UPROOTED NUMEROUS TREES AND TWO HOMES HAD DAMAGE DUE TO TREES FALLING ON THEM. |
| 07:02 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 2 Nw Rome | Douglas, MO | REPORTS OF TREES DOWN FROM DD HIGHWAY SOUTH OF GOODHOPE CLOSE TO PLAINVIEW SCHOOL. |
| 07:02 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 3 S Goodhope | Douglas, MO | REPORTS OF TREES DOWN FROM DD HIGHWAY SOUTH OF GOODHOPE CLOSE TO PLAINVIEW SCHOOL. |
| 07:07 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | Rogersville | Webster, MO | SEVERAL LARGE TREES BLOWN DOWN IN ROGERSVILLE. PICTURES WERE FROM SOCIAL MEDIA. |
| 07:09 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 2 Ese Elkhead | Christian, MO | TWO VERY LARGE OAK TREES REPORTED DOWN ON 194 LEMING ROAD AT THE DOUGLAS AND CHRISTIAN COUNTY LINE. |
| 07:09 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 2 Ese Elkhead | Douglas, MO | TWO VERY LARGE OAK TREES REPORTED DOWN ON 194 LEMING ROAD AT THE DOUGLAS AND CHRISTIAN COUNTY LINE. |
| 07:20 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 1 W Ava | Douglas, MO | A LARGE TREE WAS REPORTED DOWN ON THE ROAD. |
| 07:20 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 1 Wsw Ava | Douglas, MO | A LARGE TREE WAS REPORTED DOWN ON THE ROAD. |
| 07:20 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 5 Se Strafford | Webster, MO | 80 FOOT TALL TREE WITH 4 FOOT CIRCUMFERENCE AT BASE FELL TAKING OUT POWER POLES AND POWER LINES. LOTS OF 7 TO 10 INCH LIMBS DOWN ON TRAILER HOUSE. NUMEROUS 4 TO 6 INCH LIMBS DOWN IN AREA. TIME ESTIMATED VIA RADAR. |
| 07:20 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 5 Se Strafford | Webster, MO | LOTS OF 7 TO 10 INCH LIMBS DOWN ON TRAILER HOUSE. NUMEROUS 4 TO 6 INCH LIMBS DOWN IN AREA. TIME ESTIMATED VIA RADAR. |
| 07:22 UTC | LIGHTNING | 1 N Ava | Douglas, MO | LIGHTNING STRUCK A HOME. OWNER INDICATED SPARKS FROM APPLIANCES WHEN IT OCCURRED. |
| 07:22 UTC | LIGHTNING | Ava | Douglas, MO | LIGHTNING STRUCK A HOME. OWNER INDICATED SPARKS FROM APPLIANCES WHEN IT OCCURRED. |
| 07:28 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 2 E Brushyknob | Douglas, MO | LARGE LIMB REPORTED DOWN ON CAR ON HIGHWAY C. |
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 May 19, 2017
43 more were confirmed in the United States that day.
| Date | Time | Rating | Where | Path (mi) | Width (yd) | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 19 | 1:04 AM CDT | EF0 | Barry, MO | 0.1 | 100 | $50,000 | ||
| May 19 | 1:28 AM CDT | EF0 | Taney, MO | 0.3 | 75 | 1 | $10,000 | |
| May 19 | 1:54 AM CDT | EF0 | Greene, MO | 2.5 | 200 | $100,000 | ||
| May 19 | 2:00 AM CDT | EF0 | Christian, MO | 3.0 | 500 | $100,000 | ||
| May 19 | 2:15 AM CDT | EF1 | Webster, MO | 2.0 | 300 | $10,000 | ||
| May 19 | 3:00 AM CDT | EF0 | Wright, MO | 0.3 | 50 | $5,000 | ||
| May 19 | 3:12 AM CDT | EF0 | Oregon, MO | 0.8 | 300 | $50,000 | ||
| May 19 | 4:15 AM CDT | EF1 | Callaway, MO | 1.6 | 50 | |||
| May 19 | 4:23 AM CDT | EF0 | Montgomery, MO | 4.0 | 75 | |||
| May 19 | 2:55 PM CDT | EF1 | McDonald, MO | 2.0 | 10 | $50,000 | ||
| May 19 | 3:10 PM CDT | EF0 | Newton, MO | 4.1 | 300 | $50,000 | ||
| May 19 | 4:22 PM EDT | EF1 | Crawford, IN | 0.2 | 50 | $250,000 | ||
| May 19 | 3:23 PM CDT | Unrated | Runnels, TX | 0.0 | 30 | |||
| May 19 | 3:37 PM CDT | EF0 | Barber, KS | 0.4 | 50 | |||
| May 19 | 3:42 PM CDT | EF1 | Lawrence, MO | 4.2 | 300 | $50,000 | ||
| May 19 | 3:53 PM CDT | EF0 | Barber, KS | 3.0 | 150 | |||
| May 19 | 3:57 PM CDT | EF0 | Lawrence, MO | 1.0 | 100 | $5,000 | ||
| May 19 | 4:05 PM CDT | EF0 | Dade, MO | 0.9 | 100 | |||
| May 19 | 4:11 PM CDT | EF0 | Pratt, KS | 2.2 | 50 | |||
| May 19 | 4:12 PM CDT | EF0 | Dade, MO | 0.5 | 75 | |||
| May 19 | 4:14 PM CDT | EF0 | Pratt, KS | 4.5 | 75 | |||
| May 19 | 4:19 PM CDT | EF0 | Polk, MO | 0.6 | 100 | $5,000 | ||
| May 19 | 4:22 PM CDT | EF0 | Kingman, KS | 0.2 | 50 | |||
| May 19 | 4:53 PM CDT | EF0 | Kingman, KS | 0.3 | 50 | |||
| May 19 | 5:10 PM CDT | EF0 | Kingman, KS | 0.3 | 50 | |||
| May 19 | 5:32 PM CDT | EF0 | Reno, KS | 0.7 | 50 | |||
| May 19 | 5:37 PM CDT | EF0 | Reno, KS | 0.6 | 50 | |||
| May 19 | 6:00 PM CDT | Unrated | Archer, TX | 0.5 | 50 | |||
| May 19 | 6:27 PM CDT | EF1 | Cole, MO | 0.9 | 75 | |||
| May 19 | 7:15 PM CDT | EF0 | Clay, KS | 0.0 | 20 | |||
| May 19 | 7:22 PM CDT | Unrated | Carter, OK | 0.2 | 50 | |||
| May 19 | 7:24 PM CDT | Unrated | Carter, OK | 0.2 | 50 | |||
| May 19 | 7:27 PM CDT | Unrated | Coleman, TX | 0.1 | 25 | |||
| May 19 | 7:31 PM CDT | Unrated | Carter, OK | 0.2 | 50 | |||
| May 19 | 7:47 PM CDT | Unrated | Carter, OK | 2.0 | 400 | |||
| May 19 | 7:48 PM CDT | EF0 | Chase, KS | 0.2 | 50 | |||
| May 19 | 8:09 PM CDT | EF0 | Morris, KS | 0.0 | 25 | |||
| May 19 | 8:25 PM CDT | EF1 | Chase, KS | 0.8 | 60 | |||
| May 19 | 8:38 PM CDT | EF0 | Lyon, KS | 0.0 | 25 | |||
| May 19 | 9:32 PM CDT | Unrated | Johnston, OK | 1.5 | 50 | |||
| May 19 | 9:44 PM CDT | Unrated | Johnston, OK | 2.0 | 50 | |||
| May 19 | 9:56 PM CDT | Unrated | Johnston, OK | 6.0 | 50 | |||
| May 19 | 10:13 PM CDT | Unrated | Coal, OK | 3.0 | 50 |
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.