Tornadoes · United States · Tennessee · 2009
EF1 tornado, (Csv)Crossville Mem to Crossville, Tennessee, May 3, 2009
From (Csv)Crossville Mem to Crossville, this EF1 tornado ran 3.2 miles across Cumberland County on May 3, 2009, touching down at 5:22 PM CDT and reaching 300 yards wide. It killed nobody, and did $125,000 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.
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 3, 2009
- Touchdown
- 5:22 PM CDT (22:22 UTC)
- Lifted
- 5:27 PM CDT (22:27 UTC)
- On the ground
- 5 minutes
- Path length
- 3.2 miles (5.1 km)
- Path width
- 300 yards (274 m)
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- $125,000
- County
- Cumberland County
- Touchdown point
- 35.909, -85.081
- Lift-off point
- 35.942, -85.041
- Record number
- 0905031622-01
What the Weather Service recorded
A strong cold front that had moved into Middle Tennessee on May 1st moved north as a warm front during the afternoon hours to near the Tennessee/Kentucky Border on May 2nd. It then eventually moved south as a cold front on May 3rd in association with a strong low pressure system that had developed across central Arkansas on May 2nd and moved south into Central Louisiana on May 3rd. This weather pattern resulted in an EF1 tornado, large hail, and flash flooding across several counties.
This EF1 Tornado, with maximum estimated wind speed at 100 mph, touched down along Taylors Chapel Road, or about 4.1 miles southwest of Downtown Crossville. Numerous trees were uprooted and snapped along the path along with several|power lines down. Some homes sustained roof damage due to fallen trees. The area that suffered the most damage extended from Locksley Circle Road, northeast across Black Oak Lane and along Oak Drive. Newspaper reported that the Laurelwood subdivision was one of the hardest hit areas also. ||This tornado lifted just east of the intersection of Myrtle Avenue and Fourth Street, just southwest of the Cumberland County High School. This was 9 tenths of a mile southwest of the downtown area. No injuries were reported with this storm.||Newspaper reports also mentioned that several vehicles were also damaged.
From NOAA NCEI's Storm Events Database, the narrative the local forecast office wrote for Storm Data.
What forecasters said that day
The local office's own words before the tornado touched down, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Nashville, TN wrote its last area forecast discussion before the tornado touched down at May 3, 2:30 PM CDT, 2 hours 52 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, May 3, 2:30 PM CDT, 2 hours 52 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NASHVILLE TN 230 PM CDT SUN MAY 3 2009 .DISCUSSION...FLOODING POTENTIAL CONTINUES FOR MAINLY SOUTHERN MIDDLE TENNESSEE THROUGH THIS EVENING. THE THREAT IS NOT AS GREAT AS EARLIER EXPECTED...BUT ANOTHER INCH OR 2 OF RAIN COULD FALL OVER ALREADY SATURATED AREAS IN THE SOUTH. 1-2 INCHES IS ALSO EXPECTED ALONG THE PLATEAU. NORTHERN SECTIONS INCLUDING NASHVILLE SHOULD RECEIVE LESS THAN AN INCH OF RAIN...SO THE FLOODING POTENTIAL APPEARS SMALL IN THE NORTH. A NORTHEAST TO SOUTHWEST SURFACE BOUNDARY CONTINUED TO LIE ACROSS MID TN THIS AFTERNOON. IT HAS BEEN A FOCAL POINT FOR SHOWERS AND STORMS...BUT NOTHING HEAVY TODAY. PART OF THE REASON FOR LESS RAIN THAN EXPECTED IS THE WIDESPREAD CONVECTION OVER AR/LA/MS/AL WIDESPREAD HEAVY RAIN AND SEVERE WX HAS OCCURRED THERE. THE ASSOCIATED LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM WILL MOVE NORTHEAST TONIGHT HELPING LIFT SOME OF THE DEEP MOISTURE AND RAINFALL INTO THE MID STATE...ESPECIALLY INTO THE SOUTHERN AND PLATEAU AREAS. THE LOW WILL MOVE TO OUR NORTHEAST LATE TONIGHT...WITH THE HEAVY RAIN TAPERING OFF. ON MONDAY..CLOUDS WILL LINGER...AND PERHAPS SOME SHOWERS THROUGH MIDDAY. DRY WEATHER IS EXPECTED FOR MONDAY NIGHT THROUGH TUESDAY WITH SOME SUNSHINE BREAKING THROUGH ON TUESDAY. A COUPLE OF SYSTEMS IN WEST NORTHWEST FLOW WILL COME ACROSS THE REGION WITH CHANCES FOR SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS. THE FIRST WILL BE WEDNESDAY...ALTHOUGH MODELS DIFFER ON PRECISE TIMING. THE NEXT WILL ARRIVE AROUND FRIDAY. BOTH OF THESE SYSTEMS WILL BE QUICKER MOVING THAN OUR CURRENT PATTERN...SO ADDITIONAL FLOODING IS NOT EXPECTED. BETWEEN THESE SYSTEMS...A WARM AND HUMID AIR MASS WILL BE OVER THE AREA WITH AT LEAST SOME POTENTIAL FOR ISOLATED SHOWERS OR STORMS. IT APPEARS DRIER WX IS AHEAD FOR NEXT WEEKEND...ALTHOUGH MODELS DIFFER AND CONFIDENCE IS LOW. && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... NASHVILLE 55 70 53 76 / 100 30 10 10 CLARKSVILLE 52 70 50 74 / 80 30 10 10 CROSSVILLE 55 66 50 72 / 100 30 10 10 COLUMBIA 56 70 54 77 / 100 40 10 10 LAWRENCEBURG 57 72 55 78 / 100 40 10 10 WAVERLY 54 70 52 76 / 90 30 10 10 && .OHX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... FLOOD WATCH THROUGH MONDAY MORNING FOR TNZ011-022-024-032>034- 056>066-075-077>080-093>095. && 13
Hazardous weather outlook, May 3, 1:44 PM CDT, 3 hours 38 minutes before
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...UPDATED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NASHVILLE TN 144 PM CDT SUN MAY 3 2009 TNZ011-022-024-032>034-056>066-075-077>080-093>095-041030- PICKETT-BENTON-HUMPHREYS-PUTNAM-OVERTON-FENTRESS-PERRY-HICKMAN- LEWIS-WILLIAMSON-MAURY-MARSHALL-RUTHERFORD-CANNON-DEKALB-WHITE- CUMBERLAND-BEDFORD-COFFEE-WARREN-GRUNDY-VAN BUREN-WAYNE-LAWRENCE- GILES- 144 PM CDT SUN MAY 3 2009 ...FLOOD WATCH IN EFFECT THROUGH MONDAY MORNING... THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR MIDDLE TENNESSEE. .DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT LOW PRESSURE WILL MOVE ALONG A FRONT STALLED ACROSS MIDDLE TENNESSEE. MORE SHOWERS AND STORMS WILL OCCUR TODAY INTO TONIGHT. HEAVY RAINFALL IS THE MAIN CONCERN...AND A FLOOD WATCH REMAINS POSTED FOR AREAS SOUTH OF INTERSTATE 40 AND ACROSS THE PLATEAU. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER AND EMERGENCY MANAGER ACTIVATION MAY BE NEEDED FOR FLOODING PROBLEMS. TNZ005>010-023-025>031-041030- STEWART-MONTGOMERY-ROBERTSON-SUMNER-MACON-CLAY-HOUSTON-DICKSON- CHEATHAM-DAVIDSON-WILSON-TROUSDALE-SMITH-JACKSON- 144 PM CDT SUN MAY 3 2009 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR MIDDLE TENNESSEE. .DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. 17/MAG
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.
Nashville Metro, TN (KBNA), 12:00Z
10.4 hours before the tornado, 140 km from the path. May 3, 2009.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 0 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -66 J/kg
- Surface CAPE
- 0 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 453 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 39 kt
- 0-1 km bulk shear
- 16 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 4 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 18 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.0
- 0-3 km lapse rate
- 4.5 K/km
Nashville Metro, TN (KBNA), 00:00Z
1.6 hours after it, 140 km from the path. May 4, 2009.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 84 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -4 J/kg
- Surface CAPE
- 117 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 464 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 59 kt
- 0-1 km bulk shear
- 10 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 76 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 60 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.0
- 0-3 km lapse rate
- 5.3 K/km
The surface observations
Crossville Memorial (CSV), 4 km from the path, in the two hours either side.
| Time (UTC) | Temp (°F) | Dew point (°F) | Wind | Gust (kt) | Pressure (mb) | Weather |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 00:00 UTC |
From the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of airport observations.
The radar
The Nashville radar (KOHX), 140 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the touchdown began at 22:23 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.
This ground now
The live radar over the trackEvery 2009 tornado in TennesseeEvery tornado in Tennessee since 1950Warnings in force in Tennessee nowThe forecast where you are
The other tornadoes of May 3, 2009
21 more were confirmed in the United States that day.
| Date | Time | Rating | Where | Path (mi) | Width (yd) | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 3 | 6:44 AM CDT | EF1 | Trinity, TX | 2.1 | 50 | $60,000 | ||
| May 3 | 7:00 AM CDT | EF0 | Leake, MS | 4.3 | 100 | $8,000 | ||
| May 3 | 7:38 AM CDT | EF0 | Bienville Parish, LA | 1.8 | 50 | |||
| May 3 | 8:03 AM CDT | EF0 | Bienville Parish, LA | 1.1 | 50 | |||
| May 3 | 8:40 AM CDT | EF2 | Winn Parish, LA | 1.5 | 399 | 2 | $3.0 million | |
| May 3 | 8:51 AM CDT | EF0 | Catahoula Parish, LA | 3.0 | 40 | $1,000 | ||
| May 3 | 9:55 AM CDT | EF1 | Claiborne, MS | 4.6 | 50 | $15,000 | ||
| May 3 | 11:07 AM CDT | EF1 | Jefferson Davis, MS | 8.4 | 400 | $262,000 | ||
| May 3 | 11:12 AM CDT | EF1 | Covington, MS | 20.1 | 400 | $145,000 | ||
| May 3 | 11:30 AM CDT | EF1 | Smith, MS | 4.8 | 350 | $328,000 | ||
| May 3 | 11:41 AM CDT | EF1 | Jasper, MS | 0.6 | 176 | $10,000 | ||
| May 3 | 1:32 PM CDT | EF1 | Hale, AL | 0.1 | 50 | $75,000 | ||
| May 3 | 1:54 PM CDT | EF0 | Shelby, AL | 2.6 | 200 | $120,000 | ||
| May 3 | 2:03 PM CDT | EF1 | Shelby, AL | 1.4 | 300 | $10,000 | ||
| May 3 | 2:15 PM CDT | EF1 | St. Clair, AL | 0.9 | 100 | $60,000 | ||
| May 3 | 2:27 PM CDT | EF1 | St. Clair, AL | 16.6 | 800 | $100,000 | ||
| May 3 | 3:40 PM CDT | EF1 | Marshall, AL | 0.3 | 50 | $20,000 | ||
| May 3 | 6:00 PM CDT | EF1 | Madison, AL | 1.6 | 75 | $30,000 | ||
| May 3 | 7:02 PM EDT | EF0 | Floyd, VA | 0.7 | 60 | $10,000 | ||
| May 3 | 8:38 PM EDT | EF0 | Rockingham, NC | 1.3 | 20 | $100,000 | ||
| May 3 | 8:50 PM MDT | EF0 | Box Elder, UT | 1.0 | 15 | $25,000 |
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.