Tornado Outbreak Sequence Of June 14–19, 2023

A multi-day period of significant tornado and severe weather activity occurred across the Southern United States, Ohio Valley, and southern High Plains in mid-June 2023. Starting on June 14, tornadoes occurred in Texas, Alabama, and Georgia, where they caused large-scale damage to trees and structures. The tornado outbreak continued on June 15, where tornadoes occurred in five states, including one EF3 tornado which moved directly through the center of Perryton, Texas, causing major damage and three fatalities. More tornadoes touched down on June 16 in the southern and northeastern United States, including an unusual anticyclonic tornado in Mobile and Baldwin counties in Alabama, where the tornado itself was associated with the anticyclonic bookend vortex of a powerful mesoscale convective system. More tornadoes occurred on June 17 and 18, including another EF3 tornado near Louin, Mississippi that destroyed numerous homes and other buildings, killed one person, and injured twenty-five others. This outbreak sequence was unusual in the sense that it produced strong tornadoes in the Deep South in June, despite the region's peak tornado season being March through mid-May, along with the autumn months.

Meteorological synopsis

On June 12, the Storm Prediction Center (SPC) issued a level 3/enhanced risk of severe weather for June 14 across the Mid-South and eastern Gulf Coast states, and also highlighted the threat for significant severe weather across the risk area. Mid-level atmospheric flow was beginning to become broadly confluent, while a low pressure system situated north of the Great Lakes began to weaken and move east. Higher moisture content was confined to the south of a remnant surface front, and convective instability increased in the risk area due to the eastward advection of warm elevated mixed-layer air across the Mississippi River Valley. A 5 percent tornado risk was introduced in the SPC's Day 2 outlook for June 14 across Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia, and also included a 30 percent risk for wind and hail, which the latter included a significant threat. In the morning hours of June 14, the SPC upgraded the enhanced risk to a moderate risk, and included a significant 10 percent risk for tornadoes across southeastern Alabama and southwestern Georgia, as well as a significant 45 percent risk for wind and a significant 30 percent risk for hail across the southern United States. A few hours later, tornado watches were issued for Alabama and Georgia, and a Particularly dangerous situation severe thunderstorm watch was issued for northeastern Louisiana, southeastern Arkansas, and Mississippi.

On June 15, the SPC released an outlook with a moderate risk of severe weather for portions of the High Plains. This outlook included a 10 percent risk for tornadoes along the panhandles of both Texas and Oklahoma. A shortwave trough began to move into the central U.S. Concurrently, an associated 80 kt upper-level jet moved into the southern plains. At the surface, a low area also deepened across the southern High Plains, the same area a prominent cold front was headed. Ahead of the front, surface heating and increasing low-level convergence promoted significant convection.

From June 16–19, the same mid-level trough associated with previous storms continued to rotate around the Mid-Atlantic. Short-wave perturbations related to convergent air movement between a 50kt jet and the strong trough displayed signs of strong storms across the deep south, from Arkansas to Alabama. 3000 J/kg of CAPE was also present, promoting rapid intensification of storms in evening hours. Extreme instability led to unexpected and explosive storm development on almost all dates of the outbreak sequence, sometimes resulting in tornadoes, hail, and wind damage well outside of areas outlined by the Storm Prediction Center. This included 12 tornadoes that occurred in a 0% risk area in Ohio on June 15, three of which were strong.

Confirmed tornadoes

June 14 event

June 15 event

June 16 event

June 17 event

June 18 event

June 19 event

Non-tornadic effects

Flash flooding in Pensacola, Florida, after a tornado in the area, resulted from of rain in five hours, and strong winds blew a tree into a house, killing one person. The flooding in Pensacola prompted a rare flash flood emergency. Rainfall totals in Gulf Breeze, Florida reached as high as of rain, and over 20,000 customers lost power in the county. Wind gusts reached up to . Late on June 15, severe storms resulted in power lines falling on the Ohio Turnpike by Exit 94, shutting the highway down for much of June 16. On June 16, severe thunderstorms in the Northeastern United States led to ground stops at LaGuardia Airport, Newark Liberty International Airport and Philadelphia International Airport. Portions of the Philadelphia metropolitan area received up to of rain, prompting a flash flood warning. The storms in Philadelphia also caused a brief delay in repairing a stretch of I-95 following a highway collapse earlier in the week. Further south, a Dierks Bentley concert in Raleigh was delayed due to the storms.

The storm system that caused significant damage in Pensacola also affected western Alabama. On the evening of June 16, a storm cluster affected parts of Pickens, Greene, and Tuscaloosa counties, leaving a sizable damage swath. Winds were estimated at , with peak gusts of . This resulted in thousands of trees being downed from the town of Gordo to the Ralph community, where hundreds of trees were snapped or uprooted along a six-mile-wide path. Several homes in Ralph sustained roof damage, and several garages and outbuildings sustained heavy damage. Debris near Ralph led to the closure of all lanes, eastbound and westbound, on I-20/ 59. Power outages affected thousands of residents in Tuscaloosa County, which lasted for a few days, and disrupted cell service in many areas.

On June 18, flash flooding in the Saint Louis metropolitan area resulted in I-55 shutting down. In addition, flooding in Pensacola resulting in Fort Pickens shutting down until June 22. A powerful mesoscale convective system also affected a large swath of northern Oklahoma. Central Oklahoma saw scattered damaging winds and a large amount of power outages, while winds of up to caused widespread damage across Northeastern Oklahoma, including the Tulsa metropolitan area, and 341,000 power outages occurred.

See also

* List of North American tornadoes and tornado outbreaks
* Weather of 2023
* Tornado outbreak of June 18–22, 2011

Notes

References

External links

Ever seen a storm with red lightning and 100+ MPH straight-line winds?

{{DEFAULTSORT:2023-06-14 Tornado Outbreak
Tornado outbreaks in the United States
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Tornadoes in Alabama
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Tornado Outbreak, 14