A deadly tornado outbreak severely impacted the

Southern United States The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, Dixieland, or simply the South) is List of regions of the United States, census regions defined by the United States Cens ...

, and also affected

Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...

and

Nebraska Nebraska ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Ka ...

to a lesser extent, between November 27–30, 2016. The strongest tornadoes of the event affected

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

and

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

during the late evening of November 29 and into the early morning hours of November 30. Overall, this outbreak produced 48 tornadoes, killed six people, and injured many others.

Meteorological synopsis

On November 27, a storm system produced two EF0 tornadoes and an EF1 tornado in South Central Nebraska, causing minor damage. On November 28, the

Storm Prediction Center The Storm Prediction Center (SPC) is a US government agency that is part of the National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP), operating under the control of the National Weather Service (NWS), which in turn is part of the National Oceani ...

(SPC) issued an Enhanced risk of severe weather for Louisiana and Mississippi. Only one tornado touched down in the threat area, a brief EF0 tornado that remained over a rice field near

Marksville, Louisiana Marksville is a small city in and the parish seat of Avoyelles Parish, Louisiana, Avoyelles Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 5,702 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census, an increase of 165 over the 2000 tabulation of ...

. However, the surface low associated with system produced a few EF0 tornadoes in

. Minor damage occurred in the towns of Radcliffe and Parkersburg, the latter of which was devastated by an EF5 tornado in May 2008. The next day, the SPC issued a Moderate risk for central Mississippi and portions of Louisiana, Alabama, and Tennessee. This included a large 10% hatched risk area for tornadoes, and a smaller 15% hatched risk area for tornadoes across northern Mississippi. Throughout the late afternoon and evening, multiple supercell thunderstorms developed. Hail and winds battered Mississippi, and several EF1 tornadoes caused minor to moderate damage in rural areas of the state. After sunset, the event rapidly escalated into a significant outbreak as the intensifying supercell thunderstorms pushed into Alabama, and significant tornadoes began touching down. An EF2 tornado near Belgreen snapped many trees and injured one person when a house was damaged and shifted on its foundation. Two EF2 tornadoes moved through Winston County and heavily damaged or destroyed multiple homes, mobile homes, and outbuildings, and also snapped numerous trees and power poles near Arley and Double Springs. An EF2 tornado touched down over

Monte Sano Mountain Monte Sano Mountain is a mountain located in Huntsville, Alabama. The name ''Monte Sano'' is Spanish for "Mountain of health". The mountain was given its name by Dr. Thomas Fern, who along with his two brothers, founded a small colony on the mo ...

in eastern

Huntsville Huntsville is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Alabama. The population of the city is estimated to be 241,114 in 2024, making it the 100th-most populous city in the U.S. The Huntsville metropolitan area had an estimated 525,465 ...

, snapping and uprooting many trees, and damaging numerous homes as it passed through several subdivisions, a few of which had roofs torn off. A horse-riding arena was also destroyed by the Huntsville area tornado. An EF3 tornado passed near the towns of Danville and Neel, causing major structural damage to industrial buildings, homes and a fire station. A motorcycle shop was leveled, vehicles were tossed, and several mobile homes were completely destroyed as well. At around midnight and into the very early morning hours of November 30, the storms moved into northeastern Alabama and southern Tennessee. A powerful EF3 tornado ripped directly through the town of Rosalie and to the north of Ider, killing four people and injuring nine others. The Rosalie/Ider tornado destroyed homes and mobile homes, churches, and businesses along its path. A shopping plaza in Rosalie was leveled by the tornado, and a daycare center near Ider was reduced to a bare slab. Further to the north, strong tornadoes were impacting communities in Tennessee, including another EF3 tornado that severely damaged the town of Ocoee. The Ocoee post office and fire station were destroyed, two people were killed in town, a cell phone tower and a metal truss tower were knocked down, and 20 people were injured. A high-end EF2 tornado struck

Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

, destroying several businesses and manufactured homes, heavily damaging a large church complex, and injuring 20 people. A few homes sustained major structural damage and a double-wide mobile home was completely destroyed by another high-end EF2 tornado that passed near

Whitwell Whitwell may refer to: Places UK * Whitwell, Derbyshire, Whitwell, Derbyshire ** Whitwell Common, Derbyshire * Whitwell, Hertfordshire, Whitwell, Hertfordshire * Whitwell, Isle of Wight, Whitwell, Isle of Wight * Whitwell and Reepham railway statio ...

and Dunlap. After sunrise, additional weaker tornadoes touched down in Louisiana, Alabama, Georgia, Florida, and South Carolina. This included several brief tornadoes that caused minor to moderate damage in and around

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

. A high-end EF1 tornado downed many trees and damaged numerous homes in

Simpsonville, South Carolina Simpsonville is a city in Greenville County, South Carolina, United States. It is part of the Greenville-Mauldin-Easley Metropolitan Statistical Area, Greenville, SC Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 23,354 at the 2020 United Stat ...

as well before the outbreak came to an end.

Confirmed tornadoes

November 27 event

November 28 event

November 29 event

November 30 event

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:2016-11-27 Tornado Outbreak 11-27 Tornado Outbreak, 11-27 F3, EF3 and IF3 tornadoes Tornadoes in Alabama Tornadoes in Florida Tornadoes in Georgia (U.S. state) Tornadoes in Iowa Tornadoes in Louisiana Tornadoes in Mississippi Tornadoes in Nebraska Tornadoes in South Carolina Tornadoes in Tennessee Tornado Outbreak, 11