F1 tornado, Fountain Dale to Seven Stars, Pennsylvania, August 30, 2005

1. F040 to 72 mph

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

2. F173 to 112 mphthis tornado

   Moderate damage. Roofs badly stripped, mobile homes overturned or badly damaged, exterior doors lost, windows broken.

3. F2113 to 157 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. F3158 to 206 mph

   Severe damage. Whole stories of well-built houses destroyed, large buildings badly damaged, trains overturned, trees debarked, heavy cars lifted and thrown.

5. F4207 to 260 mph

   Devastating damage. Well-built houses leveled, structures with weak foundations moved some distance, cars thrown and large missiles generated.

6. F5261 to 318 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

F1

Date

August 30, 2005

Touchdown

12:40 AM EDT (04:40 UTC)

Path length

3.0 miles (4.8 km)

Path width

50 yards (46 m)

Deaths

0

Injuries

0

County

Adams County

Touchdown point

39.850, -77.300

Lift-off point

39.850, -77.300

Record number

328

A tornado with estimated wind speeds of 85 to 95 mph touched down near the intersection of Route 16 and Tract Road near the Maryland border in far southern Adams County. The tornado moved northeast ending near Middle Creek. Several outbuilding and barn roofs were damaged, and numerous large trees were uprooted and snapped. Superficial damage to several homes (siding, shingles, chimney bricks) also occurred. A 7000 lb horse trailer was overturned and moved several feet near the intersection of Tract and Orchard Roads. There were no injuries or deaths.

A strong F1 tornado with winds up to 100 mph touched down just northeast of Gettysburg and tracked northeastward to near Heidlersburg in Adams County. Specifically, the tornado touched down about 1138 pm EST near the intersection of Hunterstown Road and Shealer Road about one half mile west of the intersection of Routes 15 and 30. The tornado touched down intermittently at locations along a seven mile path just to the east of Route 15, ending near the intersection of Oxford Road and Route 234 near Heidlersburg at 1150 pm EST. The tornado path damage width varied from 100 to 300 yards along its path.The tornado destroyed several barns and sheds and removed some outbuilding roofs. Additionally, there was tree damage and mostly superficial damage to several homes in its path (siding and shingles). Trees were uprooted and snapped along the path as well. There were no injuries or deaths.

An F1 tornado was confirmed in Adams County with top wind speeds estimated at 75 to 85 mph. The tornado began near the intersection of Route 30 and Crooked Creek Road in Franklin Township. It then moved north-northeast across Mummasburg then ended near the Conewago Creek before Zeigler Mill Road. Swirling patterns were noted in corn fields, but the funnel damage path was quite narrow. Damage was mainly in the F0 range, except in Mummasburg where a dozen medium-sized trees were uprooted and snapped and a chain link fence bent out of shape, and winds were estimated as F1. Superficial damage was noted to several homes (siding, shingles, gutters) and a one-story church. There were no injuries or deaths.

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

24 minutes of warning. NWS CTP issued a tornado warning for this county at 04:16 UTC, 24 minutes before the tornado touched down, in force until 05:15 UTC.

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 Slight Risk, with a 0.05 chance of a tornado within 25 miles. The outlook in force was issued at 00:55 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.

Fountain Dale (RYT), 17 km from the path, in the two hours either side.

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

The Sterling radar (KLWX), 98 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the touchdown began at 04:38 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 2005 tornado in PennsylvaniaEvery tornado in Pennsylvania since 1950Warnings in force in Pennsylvania 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.