EF0 tornado, (Lbf)Bird Fld North to Stapleton, Nebraska, February 28, 2012

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.

Rating

EF0

Date

February 28, 2012

Touchdown

4:13 PM CST (22:13 UTC)

Lifted

4:19 PM CST (22:19 UTC)

On the ground

6 minutes

Path length

3.0 miles (4.8 km)

Path width

20 yards (18 m)

Deaths

0

Injuries

0

Property damage

$10,000

Counties

Logan and Lincoln counties

Touchdown point

41.384, -100.565

Lift-off point

41.420, -100.534

Record number

1202281613-01

A strong storm system brought thunderstorms, small hail, and an isolated tornado to Lincoln and Logan counties in west central Nebraska during the afternoon hours on February 28, 2012. A tornado was reported at 413 p.m. CST located 21 miles northeast of North Platte. The tornado tracked northeast into Logan County, and dissipated 4 miles southwest of Stapleton. The tornado path was 3 miles and was rated an EF0. Some tree damage occurred, and a portion of a center pivot irrigation system was overturned.

This tornado formed 21 miles north northeast of North Platte in rural Lincoln County. The tornado tracked northeast for less than a mile before exiting Lincoln County about 21.82 miles northeast of North Platte at 1635 CST. The tornado continued in Logan County another 5 miles before dissipating at 1639 CST. In Lincoln County the tornado moved across open rangeland where no damage was observed. While in Lincoln and Logan counties the tornado was rated an EF0. The average path width in Lincoln County was 20 yards.

This tornado formed 21 miles north northeast of North Platte in Lincoln County and entered Logan County about 6 miles southwest of Stapleton at 1635 CST. The tornado then continued for another 2 miles, briefly lifting after moving across the county line, and dissipating 4 miles southwest of Stapleton at 1639 CST. In Logan County scattered tree damage occurred to include damage to a tree wind break line and a center pivot irrigation system sustained damaged to three sections before the tornado dissipating. While in Lincoln and Logan counties the tornado was rated an EF0. Average path width in Logan County was 20 yards.

From NOAA NCEI's Storm Events Database, the narrative the local forecast office wrote for Storm Data.

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.

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 Storm Prediction Center had this point in a General Thunderstorms Risk. The outlook in force was issued at 19:50 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 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.

North Platte (LBF), 33 km from the path, in the two hours either side.

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

The North Platte radar (KLNX), 62 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.

Local storm reports within 60 km of the path, in the three hours either side.

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

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

12 more were confirmed in the United States that day.

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.

NOAA Storm Prediction Center tornado database, 1950-2025, the official record kept by NOAA's Storm Prediction Center.