First 3 months of 2023 generated a record number of tornadoes
Many cities and towns in the United States have been ravaged by frequent outbursts of severe weather so far in 2023. According to the National Weather Service, the incredibly active stormy pattern that has persisted through much of the year so far has produced a historic amount of tornadoes through the first three months.
The NWS recently updated the number of preliminary tornadoes in the country since the year began, putting the number at 466. The preliminary figure is a record-high tornado count through the first three months of the year since record-keeping began in 1950. As storm data is finalized, the count may change.
The tornadic storms began impacting the country almost immediately this year, with more than a dozen tornadoes reported on Jan. 2. The month remained active right up until the end and, with 166 preliminary tornado reports, finished as the second-most active January for tornadoes on record. Only January 1999, which finished with 214 tornadoes, had more.
"We have seen a relatively strong jet stream that has been in place across the U.S.," AccuWeather Meteorologist Isaac Longley explained of the wild start to the year. "This has led to multiple storm systems emerging out of the Plains and into the South and Midwest, and has also brought the necessary wind dynamics to support rotating thunderstorms." Longley also pointed to above average sea surface temperatures in the Gulf of Mexico, which has "led to abundant amounts of moisture to help fuel these rotating thunderstorms and tornadoes."
Tornado reports in the country were mainly concentrated in the Southeast, with states like Mississippi, Louisiana, Arkansas and Alabama hit hard in March. On March 24, a confirmed EF4 tornado decimated the town of Rolling Fork, Mississippi, and 21 people were killed in the state.
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A week later, March ended with a tornado outbreak that pushed 2023's numbers into the record-holding position. A total of 122 preliminary tornadoes were reported by the NWS on March 31, the fourth-most tornadoes in a day since at least 1950. The only days more extreme were April 27, 2011 (173 tornadoes); April 3, 1974 (143 tornadoes) and Dec. 15, 2021 (125 tornadoes). The events in 2011 and 1974 have been referred to as "super outbreaks" by meteorologists.
At least 25 fatalities were reported across seven states during the outbreak. Ten people were killed in Tennessee, along with five in Arkansas and one each in Alabama and Mississippi.
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The count of tornadoes from NWS local storm reports through March 2023 was 519, which is on pace to top 2022's total local storm report count of 1,331.
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Tornado threats are far from over in 2023, as the country has just entered the three months when most tornadic activity occurs. The ingredients for powerful storms and large twisters more frequently come together during April, May and June, with May 25 being the day with the highest number of tornado reports.
April has already spawned several tornadoes, including one on April 5 that hit Glen Allen, Missouri, causing five fatalities and major damage and one in the Louisville area where one person died.
Although the area typically considered "Tornado Alley" is in the Midwest, there have been signs that Tornado Alley has shifted, bringing even more danger to the Southeast.
"When you look at the trends in where tornadoes have occurred in recent years, it's very clear that there have been more tornadoes farther south and farther east away from what people have typically known as the Tornado Alley across the Plains," AccuWeather Chief Meteorologist Jonathan Porter explained.
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