Tornadoes of 1954

This page documents the tornadoes and tornado outbreaks of 1954, primarily in the United States. Most tornadoes form in the U.S., although some events may take place internationally. Tornado statistics for older years like this often appear significantly lower than modern years due to fewer reports or confirmed tornadoes.

Events

1954 broke the record for the most active tornado season just one year after 1953 set the mark. Unlike the previous year, however, many tornadoes were weak and the death toll for the year was much lower. April, May, and June all saw more than 100 tornadoes, the first time any month had officially seen more than 100. April was the most active of three with 113 tornadoes. Meanwhile, the deadliest month was May, which had 13 fatalities.

United States yearly total

January

There were two tornadoes confirmed in the US in January.

January 20

Two tornadoes developed within a squall line to the southeast of Starkville, Mississippi. First, a narrow, but strong F2 tornado, which was described as "two ribbons in the sky" with one of them touching down in a skipping fashion and absorbing the other, started near Oktoc. It destroyed two small homes and a barn, damaged other structures, and downed power lines and trees. The tornado remained aloft between Artesia and Mayhew before dissipating near the latter town. Two people were injured. While the first tornado was in progress, an F1 tornado formed near the Tombigbee River south of Columbus and moved northeastward. Damage was limited to destroyed or damaged outbuildings.

January 30 (Nova Scotia)

A tornado accompanied by hail and lightning struck White Point Beach, Nova Scotia near Liverpool, although the damage done is unknown.

February

There were 17 tornadoes confirmed in the US in February.

February 15–16

Three strong tornadoes struck Arkansas. On February 15, an F3 tornado hit Clarksville, destroying the gymnasium at the College of the Ozarks. It also destroyed eight homes and 60 other buildings, while damaging 160 other homes and 172 other buildings. There were 24 injuries. An F2 tornado than hit near Kellum in rural Sevier County, destroying a barn and damaging a home and trees, but causing no casualties. Early on February 16, a F3 tornado struck Chelford in Mississippi County, destroying a school, a church, four homes, and 20 other buildings. A man was killed in a small home that was completely swept away while injuring four other people were injured. An additional F1 tornado was observed "dipping" down and causing damage in Gaffney, South Carolina that afternoon, but there were no casualties. Overall, the four tornadoes killed one and injured 28.

February 19–21

An outbreak of mostly strong F2 tornadoes struck the Southern United States. On February 19, an F2 tornado struck Gorman, Texas, destroying 13 buildings and damaging 18 homes and 20 other buildings, injuring two people. Another F2 tornado touched down three times, striking Conroe during one of its touchdowns. Four homes and 10 other buildings were destroyed, nine other homes and four other buildings were damaged, and trees were snapped, injuring seven people. Yet another F2 tornado was spotted striking Sulphur Springs, Arkansas. Six homes and two other buildings were destroyed, three other homes were damaged, and one person was injured. A deadly F2 tornado struck a first offender camp at Angola in Tunica, Louisiana, ripping the roof off a dormitory and damaging guard towers and power lines. One person was killed and four others were injured. (the CDNS report lists only two injuries, which may have been caused by lightning and not the tornado, and Grazulis rated the tornado F1) Early on February 20, a long-tracked F2 tornado moved through Sumrall and Sanford, Mississippi along with an additional community west of Laurel, damaging or destroying over 90 homes and over 60 other buildings and damaged trees and agriculture supplies in storages. There were 10 injures. Another long-tracked F2 tornado passed through mostly rural areas and communities in Newton County and Neshoba County, passing near Decatur and through the House community. It damaged or destroyed 65 homes along with numerous other buildings and outbuildings, also injuring 10 people, all of which occurred in House. Overall, the 10 tornadoes killed one and injured 34.

March

There were 62 tornadoes confirmed in the US in March.

March 13

An outbreak of four tornadoes struck Alabama and Georgia. A large F3 tornado struck Fort Mitchell, Alabama and Fort Benning, Georgia, damaging or destroying homes, buildings, and military equipment, killing two people and injuring 20 others. (Grazulis rated the tornado F2 and said the tornado was embedded within a much larger area of damaging microburst winds) Another long-tracked F3 tornado began near Howard, Georgia, striking the communities Roberta, Knoxville, Lizella, Vineville and Macon, damaging or destroying over 750 homes, killing five, and injuring 75. An F1 satellite tornado was also observed northeast of Butler, damaging or destroying homes, but causing no casualties. Another weak, but fatal, long-tracked F1 tornado developed near Reynolds, moving through rural areas before striking Byron, Centerville and Elberta on the north side of Warner Robins and Robins Air Force Base. It then impacted Bullard east of there before dissipating. The tornado produced moderate to heavy damage along its path, especially in Elberta, where small homes it unroofed or destroyed 12 small homes and killed a tenant farmed. Five other people were injured. (Grazulis rated the tornado F2) This came just 10 months after F4 and F2 tornadoes caused considerable damage and casualties to these same area. Overall, the four tornadoes killed eight and injured 100.

March 24–25

An outbreak of 28 tornadoes struck the Great Plains and Arkansas. On March 24, an F1 tornado struck Frisco, Texas, destroying a grain elevator, blowing out windows, unroofing houses, and damaging barns, TV antennas, and sheds. Four injuries were officially counted, although the CDNS report does not list any injuries. Later, an F3 tornado moved through Centerton, Bentonville, and Twelve Corners, Arkansas, damaging or destroying several small homes, barns, and outbuildings, and killing a considerable amount of chickens. Four people were injured. (Grazulis rated the tornado F2) An F2 tornado struck Lanagan and Longview, Missouri, damaging or destroying several small frame farmhouses, leveling small barns and outbuildings, and injuring or killing livestock. One person was injured. (Grazulis did not rate this as a significant (F2+) tornado) Another F3 tornado injured two near Cato, Missouri while destroying a two-story seven-room home and damaging trees, small frame homes, barns, and loose equipment. Overnight on March 25, a violent F4 tornado touched down near Bendavis in rural Texas County and moved northeastward to the northwest of Hoston. It passed near Huggins, Upton, Bucyrus, and Success, damaging or destroying buildings on 20 farms. A frame house was obliterated with debris scattered up to away. The two occupants, an elderly woman and her son, were thrown and killed. Barns, outbuildings, and a truck were also destroyed and trees were downed as well. Overall, the outbreak killed two and injured 11.

April

There were 113 tornadoes confirmed in the US in April. This was the first month in recorded history to have over 100 tornadoes.

April 5–9

An outbreak of 21 tornadoes occurred across mostly the Midwest. On April 5, a large F4 tornado tracked northeastward from west of Westboro, Missouri, destroying four homes and 25 outbuildings and damaging four other homes and 40 more outbuildings. It also threw a pickup truck , removed of topsoil, and uprooted trees and crops. Two people were injured. The tornado then crossed into Iowa and passed near Northboro, where it destroyed three more homes before dissipating. (Grazulis rated the tornado F3, but said near-F4 damage occurred) Later, a half-mile wide F2 tornado moved northeastward from near Scranton to near Farlin, damaging 18 farms, including five that suffered severe damage, destroyed one home, and threw timber through the walls of other homes. One person was injured. (Grazulis rated the tornado F3) Later, another F3 tornado east of Northboro unroofed a house. (Grazulis mentions this as only a possible tornado) Nearby, an F2 tornado began near Elmo, Missouri and moved northeastward, passing south of Braddyville, Iowa and northwest of Siam, Iowa before dissipating north of Bedford. The most severe damage occurred northwest of Siam, where at least two homes were leveled and swept away. (the NCEI incorrectly labels this tornado as only being in Taylor County, Iowa; Grazulis rated the tornado F4) On April 6, an F2 tornado struck Ferdinand, Indiana, damaging several homes, two garages, two barns, and the roof of a church. (Grazulis did not rate this as a significant (F2+) tornado)

On April 7, four people were injured by an F2 tornado south of Avoca, Wisconsin that destroyed a farmhouse and 13 farm buildings, including several barns that were leveled, damaged seven other farm houses and 37 other farm buildings, and killed a cow. (Grazulis rated the tornado F3) Later, further to the south in Illinois, a deadly, long-tracked F3 tornado touched down near Saunemin and moved northeastward, lifting briefly before touching down again in Limestone Township. Continuing northeastward, the tornado tore through Indian Oaks north of Kankakee as a bell-shaped funnel cloud, destroying most of the town before ending west of Grant Park. Eight homes and 30 other buildings were destroyed, 30 other homes and 46 other buildings were damaged, about 30 farms lost buildings, and empty storage tanks were rolled for over . A woman was killed in a destroyed farmhouse and 13 other people were injured. (Grazulis lists the tornado as only occurring in Kankakee County due to the path break listed by the CDNS report, which did not include Ford County) The final strong tornado of outbreak was a brief F2 tornado in Swartz Creek, Michigan that was described as "seven fingers dangling beneath a dark cloud" with one of them touching down. A fire station and a garage was leveled with the garage roof thrown , two barns were destroyed, and two cars, two fire engines, and store windows were damaged. Two people were injured. (the CDNS report and Grazulis list the tornado as having occurred on April 8) Three weak tornadoes touched down in Georgia and Louisiana during April 8–9 before the outbreak ended. In all, the tornadoes killed one and injured 22.

April 25 – May 3

A massive tornado outbreak sequence struck a large portion of the US, with April 30 and May 1 being the most prolific days with 29 and 19 tornadoes touching down respectively. On April 30, a long-tracked, half-mile wide F2 tornado traveled 68.8 miles through Diboll, Burke, and San Augustine, Texas, injuring 25. Later, a narrow, but long-tracked F3 tornado moved through Atlanta, Texas, Queen City, Texas, and Fouke, Arkansas, injuring one. A second long-tracked F3 tornado grew to a mile-wide as it tracked northeast through Malta, Texas and Mineral Springs, Arkansas into Nashville, Arkansas before turning southeast and striking Rosston, injuring two along its 111.6-mile path. The first fatal tornado then occurred in rural Sabine Parish, Louisiana, where an F2 tornado killed one and injured six. Later a long-tracked F4 tornado, the first violent tornado of the outbreak, touched down north of Cedar Rapids, Iowa and proceeded through four mostly rural counties in Iowa with no casualties.

May 1 was the most violent and the deadliest day as a tornado outbreak struck Texas, Oklahoma, and Kansas. The tornado activity began with a violent, long-tracked .25-mile wide F4 tornado that traveled 68.6 miles through Vernon, Texas and Manitou, Oklahoma, injuring two. This tornado may have reached F5 intensity as vehicles were thrown more than 100 yds (300  ft), and three farms were entirely swept away. A fatal F3 tornado then struck rural areas in Tillman and Cotton Counties in Oklahoma, killing three and injuring three. A narrow, but violent, long-tracked F4 tornado touched down in Southeastern Oklahoma City north of Lake Thunderbird and proceeded mainly northeast for 59.2 miles through the towns of McLoud, Sparks, Davenport, Stroud, and Milfay, injuring 65.The tornado also destroyed the town of Meeker, where no fatalities took place thanks to a timely warning of the storm by TV meteorologist Harry Volkman. One resident told a reporter "God bless Harry Volkman." This eventually resulted in the government lifting its ban on tornado warnings.

In the end, 100 tornadoes were confirmed, making it one of the largest outbreaks on record at the time. Four people were killed, and 167 others were injured.

May

There were 101 tornadoes confirmed in the US in May.

May 10

Two brief, but strong tornadoes struck Connecticut. The first one struck Ellington at F3 strength, injuring two. An F2 tornado than hit rural areas east of Hartland. An additional brief, weak F1 tornado also touched down north-northwest of Normangee, Texas.

May 30 – June 3

Another large and deadly tornado outbreak sequence struck the US. May 30 produced only two tornadoes, but one of them was the only violent tornado of the outbreak. The F4 tornado hit Kalamazoo, Warnerville, Nebraska, and Eastern Norfolk, killing six and injuring 23. Weaker, but more prolific tornado activity occurred on May 31 with an F2 tornado striking Onarga, Illinois, injuring two people. More tornado activity occurred on June 1, with Western North Texas receiving the brunt of the storms. An F3 tornado moved through Paducah and areas east of Chalk, killing one and injuring 14. Another F3 tornado struck Iowa Park and Northern Pleasant Valley northwest of Wichita Falls, killing one and injuring four. The third, and final, F3 tornado then briefly touched down right over Downtown Burkburnett, injuring three. June 2 featured one more fatal tornado when a large, 1000 yard wide F2 twister killed one and injured eight in Enloe, Texas, although tornado activity lasted until June 3. Overall, 39 tornadoes were confirmed along with nine fatalities and 65 injuries.

June

There were 107 tornadoes confirmed in the US in June.

June 9

Two brief F0 tornadoes touched down in Idaho before an F4 tornado tore through areas northeast of Lake City, Iowa, killing one.

June 17

A brief but strong F2 tornado struck Southeastern Muncie, Indiana. Later, a strong F3 tornado moved through Altona, Pender, and Thurston, Nebraska, killing one. An additional weak, but large half-mile wide F1 tornado struck the east side of Lake City, Minnesota. In the end, the three tornadoes killed one person.

July

There were 45 tornadoes confirmed in the US in July.

August

There were 49 tornadoes confirmed in the US in August.

August 11

An F0 tornado caused considerable damage on the southwest side of Fort Pierce South, Florida. Later, an unusually fatal F2 tornado killed one and injured one north of Acadia, Maine.

September

There were 21 tornadoes confirmed in the US in September.

September 14 (Philippines)

A tornado touched down over Mindanao's Cagayan de Oro in the Philippines, which injured eight individuals. Eight households, many walls and trees also sustained damages.

September 18

Just over a month after the previous tornado, an isolated, brief, but stronger F3 tornado touched down on the northeast side of Fort Pierce South, Florida, killing two and injuring two.

September 30

A brief, but fatal F2 tornado struck the southeastern side of Robertsville, Ohio, killing one and injuring three. Another brief F2 tornado struck Southern Sharpsville, Pennsylvania.

October

There were 14 tornadoes confirmed in the US in October.

October 10–11

Five damaging tornadoes touched down across five states over a two-day span in October. On October 10, an F1 tornado struck Eash Hazel Crest, Illinois in the southern suburbs of Chicago. Early on October 11, an F3 tornado struck Catherine, Kansas. That afternoon, another F3 tornado hit Mt. Pleasant and the northwest side of Franklin, Indiana, killing two. Another F1 tornado struck east-southeast of Galloway in the southwestern suburbs of Columbus, Ohio. The final tornado was a large, .25 mile wide F1 tornado near Salesville, Texas. Overall, the five tornadoes killed two.

November

There were 2 tornadoes confirmed in the US in November.

December

There were 17 tornadoes confirmed in the US in December.

December 5

An outbreak of 14 tornadoes struck Alabama and Georgia. The first tornado was a long-tracked F3 tornado hit the northern side of Opelika, Alabama before striking Hamilton, Blue Mountain Valley, and Manchester, Georgia, injuring seven on a 51-mile path. After that, another F3 tornado hit Ohatchee, Wellington, Angel, Prices, and Piedmont, Alabama, injuring 26. Next, an F2 tornado struck Blakely, Georgia, injuring two. After that, another long-tracked F2 tornado hit areas north of Eufaula, Alabama before striking Lumpkin and Ellaville, Georgia, killing one and injuring 35 along its 71.5 mile path. Later, an F2 tornado moved directly through Buena Vista, Georgia, injuring seven. An F1 tornado east of Talbotton, Georgia injured six while another F1 tornado north of Youngblood, Alabama injured two. The final tornado of the outbreak was a short-lived, but strong F2 tornado that struck areas northeast of East Point, Georgia in the southwestern suburbs of Atlanta, killing one and injuring 40. In the end, two people were killed and 125 others were injured.

December 28–29

Three tornadoes caused injuries in Mississippi. On December 28, an F3 tornado moved directly through Laurel, injuring 25. At the same time, a brief, but damaging F1 tornado injured two southeast of Burns. Early the next day, an F2 tornado struck areas west of Shuqualak, injuring nine. In all, the three tornadoes injured 36 people.

See also

* Tornado
** Tornadoes by year
** Tornado records
** Tornado climatology
** Tornado myths
* List of tornado outbreaks
** List of F5 and EF5 tornadoes
** List of North American tornadoes and tornado outbreaks
** List of 21st-century Canadian tornadoes and tornado outbreaks
** List of European tornadoes and tornado outbreaks
** List of tornadoes and tornado outbreaks in Asia
** List of Southern Hemisphere tornadoes and tornado outbreaks
** List of tornadoes striking downtown areas
** List of tornadoes with confirmed satellite tornadoes
* Tornado intensity
** Fujita scale
** Enhanced Fujita scale

References

{{Tornadoes by year

1954 meteorology
Tornado-related lists by year
Torn