Tornadoes · United States · Ohio · 2016

EF0 tornado, Pemberville, Ohio, August 24, 2016

This EF0 tornado ran 0.0 miles across Wood County on August 24, 2016, touching down at 9:06 PM EDT and reaching 20 yards wide. It killed nobody, and did $35,000 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 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
August 24, 2016
Touchdown
9:06 PM EDT (01:06 UTC)
Path length
0.0 miles (0.1 km)
Path width
20 yards (18 m)
Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
$35,000
County
Wood County
Touchdown point
41.359, -83.525
Lift-off point
41.359, -83.525
Record number
1608241906-01

What the Weather Service recorded

A brief tornado touched down in Wood County as a diffuse warm front lifted north into the region. This boundary spawned numerous tornadoes upstream across Indiana, extending into northwest Ohio. This tornado only briefly touched down 4 miles southwest of Pemberville and was rated an EF0 with an estimated maximum wind speed of 74 miles per hour. The tornado touched down along Route 6 and immediately lifted. A storage building was damaged with much of the sheet metal roof removed. Sheet metal was found in nearby trees with some projectile debris noted.

National Weather Service storm survey team determined a tornado touched down along Route 6 and immediately lifted. A storage building was damaged with much of the sheet metal roof removed. Sheet metal was found in nearby trees. Some projectile debris was noted.

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

The warnings

24 minutes of warning. NWS CLE issued a tornado warning for this county at 00:42 UTC, 24 minutes before the tornado touched down, in force until 01:30 UTC.

The county was under a tornado watch, issued at 22:51 UTC and running to 02:23 UTC.

Issued (UTC)ExpiredProductOffice
22:51 UTC02:23 UTCTornado WatchCLE
23:09 UTC23:45 UTCTornado WarningCLE
23:43 UTC00:30 UTCTornado WarningCLE
00:07 UTC00:45 UTCTornado WarningCLE
00:42 UTC01:30 UTCTornado WarningCLE
01:35 UTC02:15 UTCSevere Thunderstorm WarningCLE

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 0.05 chance of a tornado within 25 miles. The outlook in force was issued at 00:59 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.

Detroit, MI (KDTX), 00:00Z

1.1 hours before the tornado, 152 km from the path. August 25, 2016.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Detroit, MI at 00:00Z on 2016-08-25Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel lifted from the surface. Mixed-layer CAPE 983 joules per kilogram, CIN -4, lifted condensation level 724 meters above ground. Wind barbs in knots down the right edge.LCLEL10008507005003002001001 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, Detroit, MI at 00:00Z on 2016-08-25The 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 126 square meters per square second, 0 to 6 km bulk shear 29 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
983 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-4 J/kg
Surface CAPE
1642 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
724 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
29 kt
0-1 km bulk shear
29 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
126 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
185 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.6
Supercell composite
4.6
0-3 km lapse rate
5.9 K/km

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

Detroit, MI (KDTX), 12:00Z

10.9 hours after it, 152 km from the path. August 25, 2016.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Detroit, MI at 12:00Z on 2016-08-25Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel lifted from the surface. Mixed-layer CAPE 1210 joules per kilogram, CIN -13, lifted condensation level 576 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, Detroit, MI at 12:00Z on 2016-08-25The 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 36 square meters per square second, 0 to 6 km bulk shear 32 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
1210 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-13 J/kg
Surface CAPE
344 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
576 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
32 kt
0-1 km bulk shear
19 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
36 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
87 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.3
Supercell composite
1.8
0-3 km lapse rate
4.7 K/km

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The radar

The Cleveland radar (KCLE), 139 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the touchdown began at 01:06 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
22:53 UTCTORNADO3 Wnw NapoleonHenry, OHSTRUCTURE DAMAGE. BIG HEALTHY TREES, BARNS, HOMES, CROPS ALSO DAMAGED.
22:53 UTCTORNADO3 Wnw NapoleonHenry, OHSEVERAL GRAIN BINS BLOWN DOWN AT TV TIME POPCORN FACILITY.
22:56 UTCTORNADO3 Ne OkolonaHenry, OHPROPANE TANK TIPPED OVER AND LEAKING. POWER POLES DOWN AMONGST OTHER DAMAGE.
22:56 UTCTORNADO3 Ne OkolonaHenry, OHPROPANE TANK TIPPED OVER AND LEAKING. POWER POLLS DOWN AMONGST OTHER DAMAGE.
22:57 UTCTORNADO2 Wnw NapoleonHenry, OHUTILITY POLES SNAPPED.
23:36 UTCFUNNEL CLOUD5 Nw WatervilleLucas, OHFUNNEL CLOUD WAS SIGHTED BETWEEN WHITEHOUSE AND WATERVILLE.
23:48 UTCTORNADO1 N WhitehouseLucas, OHTORNADO ON THE GROUND BRIEFLY MOVING NORTH.
23:48 UTCTORNADO1 N WhitehouseLucas, OHTWO TORNADOS ON THE GROUND MOVING NORTH.
00:06 UTCTORNADO3 W GallupHenry, OHCONFIRMED TORNADO.

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

This ground now

The live radar over the trackEvery 2016 tornado in OhioEvery tornado in Ohio since 1950Warnings in force in Ohio nowThe forecast where you are

The other tornadoes of August 24, 2016

21 more were confirmed in the United States that day.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
August 242:38 PM EDTEF2Montgomery, IN5.4125$75,000
August 243:20 PM EDTEF3Howard, IN8.630020$10 million
August 244:18 PM EDTEF0Marion, IN0.4100$15,000
August 244:59 PM EDTEF0Wells, IN0.020
August 245:27 PM EDTEF3Allen, IN5.2500
August 245:40 PM EDTEF1Carroll, IN17.1100$57,000
August 245:49 PM EDTEF1Adams, IN7.650
August 245:53 PM EDTEF2Paulding, OH4.4250
August 246:13 PM EDTEF0Miami, IN0.120
August 246:28 PM EDTEF2Defiance, OH2.6400
August 246:30 PM EDTEF1Van Wert, OH5.575
August 246:41 PM EDTEF0Van Wert, OH1.525
August 246:48 PM EDTEF1Henry, OH2.8150
August 246:51 PM EDTEF0Van Wert, OH4.740
August 246:58 PM EDTEF0Howard, IN0.775$10,000
August 247:00 PM EDTEF1Howard, IN1.550$20,000
August 247:04 PM EDTEF0Van Wert, OH2.520
August 247:16 PM EDTEF0Howard, IN3.075$16,000
August 247:19 PM EDTEF0Henry, OH0.020
August 247:26 PM EDTEF0Putnam, OH1.225
August 247:48 PM EDTEF0Putnam, OH0.615

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.