Tornadoes · United States · Ohio · 2011

EF1 tornado, New Holland to Atlanta, Ohio, April 20, 2011

From New Holland to Atlanta, this EF1 tornado ran 4.2 miles across Pickaway County on April 20, 2011, touching down at 2:14 AM EDT and reaching 200 yards wide. It killed nobody, and did $75,000 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.

  1. EF065 to 85 mph

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

  2. EF186 to 110 mphthis tornado

    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
EF1
Date
April 20, 2011
Touchdown
2:14 AM EDT (06:14 UTC)
Lifted
2:19 AM EDT (06:19 UTC)
On the ground
5 minutes
Path length
4.2 miles (6.8 km)
Path width
200 yards (183 m)
Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
$75,000
County
Pickaway County
Touchdown point
39.548, -83.254
Lift-off point
39.556, -83.175
Record number
1104200014-01

What the Weather Service recorded

A line of storms moved through the area during the late night hours of April 19th and into the early morning hours of April 20th.

Two barns were destroyed along with a grain bin due to the tornado. In addition, debris was driven into a building and debris spread for about a mile into a field. Another barn was destroyed along with an overturned trailer along the path. Metal roofing was pulled in different directions. A couple of trees and large tree limbs were also down due to the tornado. The estimated maximum wind speed based on damage was around 105 miles per hour.

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.

The county was under a tornado watch, issued at 02:16 UTC and running to 07:50 UTC.

Issued (UTC)ExpiredProductOffice
18:30 UTC00:00 UTCFlood AdvisoryILN
02:16 UTC07:50 UTCTornado WatchILN
02:48 UTC05:12 UTCFlood WarningILN
03:00 UTC13:00 UTCFlood WatchILN
05:43 UTC06:22 UTCSevere Thunderstorm WarningILN
05:55 UTC06:45 UTCSevere Thunderstorm WarningILN
06:06 UTC06:45 UTCSevere Thunderstorm WarningILN
06:28 UTC12:30 UTCFlood AdvisoryILN
06:43 UTC07:15 UTCSevere Thunderstorm WarningILN
11:00 UTC09:10 UTCFlood WarningILN

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 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.

Cncnati-Daytn, OH (KILN), 00:00Z

6.2 hours before the tornado, 52 km from the path. April 20, 2011.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Cncnati-Daytn, OH at 00:00Z on 2011-04-20Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel lifted from the surface. Mixed-layer CAPE 1686 joules per kilogram, CIN -39, lifted condensation level 1003 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, Cncnati-Daytn, OH at 00:00Z on 2011-04-20The 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 387 square meters per square second, 0 to 6 km bulk shear 51 knots.19395878Sfc1 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
1686 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-39 J/kg
Surface CAPE
1143 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1003 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
51 kt
0-1 km bulk shear
41 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
387 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
474 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
4.3
Supercell composite
18.7
0-3 km lapse rate
4.4 K/km

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

Cncnati-Daytn, OH (KILN), 12:00Z

5.8 hours after it, 52 km from the path. April 20, 2011.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Cncnati-Daytn, OH at 12:00Z on 2011-04-20Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel lifted from the surface. Mixed-layer CAPE 14 joules per kilogram, CIN -160, lifted condensation level 668 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, Cncnati-Daytn, OH at 12:00Z on 2011-04-20The 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 499 square meters per square second, 0 to 6 km bulk shear 47 knots.1939587897117Sfc1 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
14 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-160 J/kg
Surface CAPE
21 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
668 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
47 kt
0-1 km bulk shear
46 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
499 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
462 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0
0-3 km lapse rate
4.9 K/km

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The surface observations

Rickenbacker Ang (LCK), 38 km from the path, in the two hours either side.

Time (UTC)Temp (°F)Dew point (°F)WindGust (kt)Pressure (mb)Weather
04:15 UTC6757.2180° 13 kt1003.4
04:35 UTC66.7457.38180° 10 kt1003.4
05:15 UTC68.1857.56180° 16 kt211002.7
05:35 UTC69.6257.38190° 13 kt1003
05:55 UTC70.1657.56190° 13 kt1003
06:15 UTC70.8857.56180° 17 kt1002.4
06:35 UTC67.2857.2280° 24 kt551007.1+VCTSRA
06:55 UTC61.1656.48270° 10 kt1006.8-TSRA
07:15 UTC60.856.48270° 8 kt151006.8-TSRA
07:35 UTC6156.48210° 5 kt1006.4-TSRA
07:55 UTC60.856.48210° 7 kt1006.8-RA

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

The radar

The Cincinnati radar (KILN), 54 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the touchdown began at 06:15 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
05:53 UTCTSTM WND GST 792 Sse WilmingtonClinton, OH69 KT WIND GUST MEASURED AT NWS WILMINGTON
06:00 UTCTSTM WND DMGKiln Wilmington AptClinton, OHROOF PEELED BACK ON ONE HANGAR AND ANOTHER HANGAR ROOF LIFTED UP. LARGE METAL SLIDING DOOR FORCED INWARD.
06:00 UTCTSTM WND GST 50ChillicotheRoss, OH
06:00 UTCTSTM WND GST 64Kiln Wilmington AptClinton, OH56 KT WIND GUST AT KILN ASOS
06:01 UTCTSTM WND DMG3 Ene New AntiochClinton, OHTIN ROOF OFF BARN, RAFTERS IN BARN ROOD BROKEN AND DOOR KNOCKED OFF BARN.
06:03 UTCHAIL 0.5LondonMadison, OH
06:05 UTCHAIL 0.5WilmingtonClinton, OH
06:08 UTCHAIL 0.5JamestownGreene, OH
06:09 UTCHAIL 1LondonMadison, OH
06:10 UTCTSTM WND DMG3 E JeffersonvilleFayette, OHSILOS BLOWN DOWN
06:10 UTCTSTM WND DMGWashington Court HouseFayette, OHSEVERAL POWER POLES AND TREES KNOCKED DOWN ALONG ST RTE. 734.
06:10 UTCTSTM WND DMGWashington Court HouseFayette, OHSEVERAL STRUCTURES HAD WINDOWS BLOWN IN.
06:14 UTCTSTM WND DMGNew HollandFayette, OHSIGNIFICANT STRUCTURAL DAMAGE TO SEVERAL HOUSES... GARAGES...AND BARNS IN NEW HOLLAND. ALSO SOME TREE DAMAGE.
06:14 UTCTORNADOSse New HollandPickaway, OHSURVEY CONFIRMED EF1 TORNADO WITH MAXIMUM WINDS OF 105 MPH. PATH LENGTH OF 4.2 MILES. PATH WIDTH OF 200 YARDS.
06:15 UTCHAIL 0.5MartinsvilleClinton, OH
06:17 UTCTSTM WND DMGJeffersonvilleFayette, OHDAMAGE TO BUILDING.
06:18 UTCHAIL 11 N BloomingburgFayette, OHHAIL UP TO QUARTER SIZE
06:20 UTCTSTM WND DMG1 S OrientPickaway, OHTREES DOWN
06:20 UTCTSTM WND DMG4 Ne WilliamsportPickaway, OHROOF OFF OF A HOUSE ON YANKEETOWN PIKE. DAMAGE TO A RESIDENCE AND BARN ON FIVE POINTS PIKE EAST OF GRANGE HALL.
06:25 UTCHAIL 0.75Washington Court HouseFayette, OHALSO SMALL BRANCHES BREAKING
06:25 UTCTORNADO4 Ssw GroveportFranklin, OHSURVEY CONFIRMED EF1 TORNADO WITH MAXIMUM WINDS OF 109 MPH. 2.6 MILE PATH LENGTH BEGAN JUST EAST OF RICKENBACKER AFB AND EXTENDED TO LANCASTER ROAD. MAXIMUM PATH WIDTH WAS 100 YARDS.
06:26 UTCHAIL 0.25LondonMadison, OH
06:27 UTCTORNADO2 Ene GroveportFranklin, OHA SURVEY CONFIRMED AN EF0 TORNADO WITH MAXIMUM WINDS OF 83 MPH AT A GREENHOUSE COMPLEX. THE PATH LENGTH WAS 250 YARDS AND THE MAXIMUM PATH WIDTH WAS 50 YARDS. TWELVE GREENHOUSES WERE DAMAGED. BALLED AND BURLAPPED TREES A
06:29 UTCHAIL 0.88GroveportFranklin, OH
06:30 UTCTSTM WND DMG1 Ne CirclevillePickaway, OHTREES UPROOTED...BARN LIFTED OFF FOUNDATION...AND POWER LINES DOWNED ON NICHOLAS ROAD.
06:30 UTCTSTM WND DMG1 S BaltimoreFairfield, OHBARN DESTROYED/TREES UPROOTED/HOUSE DAMAGED
06:30 UTCTSTM WND DMG2 S OrientPickaway, OHTREES DOWNED
06:30 UTCTSTM WND DMG2 Wsw BaltimoreFairfield, OHBARN COMPLETELY DESTROYED. LARGE TREE SNAPPED AND UPROOTED. SNAPPED POWER POLES.
06:32 UTCTSTM WND GST 60Canal WinchesterFranklin, OH
06:33 UTCTSTM WND DMGCarrollFairfield, OHMULTIPLE LARGE PINE AND MAPLE TREES 10 TO 15 INCHES IN DIAMETER BROKEN AT GROUND LEVEL. ONE TREE FELL ONTO HOUSE.
06:35 UTCTSTM WND DMG4 Sse GroveportFranklin, OHHALF OF A ROOF BLOWN OFF OF A POLE BARN. SHED DESTRYOED. GARAGE WALL BLOWN IN AND BACK OF GARAGE SHIFTED FROM FOUNDATION ON RICHARDSON ROAD.
06:35 UTCTSTM WND DMGLockbourneFranklin, OHNUMEROUS TREES AND POWER POLES DOWN JUST SOUTH OF RICKENBACKER AIRPORT.
06:35 UTCTSTM WND GST 63Klck Rickenbacker AptFranklin, OH55 KT WIND GUST AT KLCK AWOS
06:40 UTCTORNADO3 Sse GroveportFranklin, OH
06:42 UTCTSTM WND DMGChillicotheRoss, OHDAMAGE TO BUILDING
06:45 UTCTSTM WND DMGWaverlyPike, OHTREE DOWNED
06:50 UTCFUNNEL CLOUDGroveportFranklin, OH
06:51 UTCHAIL 1LondonderryRoss, OH
06:51 UTCTORNADOS PiketonPike, OHSURVEY CONFIRMED EF0 TORNADO. DISCONTINUOUS DAMAGE PATH FROM PIKE COUNTY FAIRGROUNDS EAST TWO MILES TO WADSWORTH AVENUE NEAR ZHANS CORNER. MAXIMUM PATH WIDTH 200 YARDS.
06:52 UTCTSTM WND DMG2 Sse PiketonPike, OH10 TREES DOWN AND SHINGLES OFF ROOF

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 OhioEvery tornado in Ohio since 1950Warnings in force in Ohio nowThe forecast where you are

The other tornadoes of April 20, 2011

11 more were confirmed in the United States that day.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
April 202:22 AM EDTEF1Franklin, OH2.5100$35,000
April 202:26 AM EDTEF0Franklin, OH0.150$30,000
April 201:30 AM CDTEF1Simpson, KY3.7100
April 202:39 AM EDTEF1Fairfield, OH2.6300$45,000
April 202:42 AM EDTEF2Licking, OH3.9100$45,000
April 202:51 AM EDTEF0Pike, OH0.250$10,000
April 202:51 AM EDTEF1Licking, OH0.275$40,000
April 202:53 AM EDTEF0Pike, OH0.150$70,000
April 204:58 AM CDTEF1Lawrence, AL2.6100
April 206:37 PM CDTEF0Kimble, TX0.150
April 208:09 PM CDTEF1Webster, MS3.3150$100,000

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.