Tornado Central

Outbreak of Tornadoes, Damaging Winds Rips Through South, East Coast (RECAP)

At least 61 tornadoes have been confirmed from National Weather Service surveys across 10 states from the Gulf Coast to the Carolinas, Virginia and Pennsylvania from the February 23-24, 2016 outbreak.

Preliminary tornado reports from Feb. 23 through early morning Feb. 24, 2016. (NOAA/NWS/SPC) — Preliminary tornado reports from Feb. 23 and the early morning hours of Feb. 24, 2016. (Note: several reports of the same tornado may be plotted on this map.)
(NOAA/Storm Prediction Center)

Four tornadoes were rated EF3, including the Pensacola, Florida, metro area, Paincourtville, Louisiana, Appomattox County, Virginia, and Tappahannock, Virginia.

The Tappahannock tornado carved a 28-mile path, according to the NWS, with at least 20 injuries.

Deadly tornadoes hit Lamar County, Mississippi, near Convent, Louisiana, Appomattox County, Virginia, and Waverly, Virginia.

Sadly, according to Weather Underground meteorologist Bob Henson, Wednesday was the deadliest day from tornadoes in Virginia since the April 27, 2011 Super Outbreak.

(MORE: Tornado Outbreak News Recap)

Amazingly, a pair of tornadoes were also confirmed as far north as Pennsylvania, including an EF2 in Lancaster County and an EF1 in Bradford County.

Dating to 1950, only one other February tornado had been confirmed in the state of Pennsylvania - Feb. 16, 1990 just east of State College.

There had also only been 12 other Pennsylvania tornadoes in the winter months of December through February on record since 1950.

Preliminary tornado reports from Feb. 23 and the early morning hours of Feb. 24, 2016. (Note: several reports of the same tornado may be plotted on this map.) — Preliminary tornado reports from Feb. 24, 2016. (Note: several reports of the same tornado may be plotted on this map.)
(NOAA/Storm Prediction Center)

You can find additional storm report details with at this link.

In addition, a rash of damaging thunderstorm winds spread into the Northeast as far north as New England Wednesday night, knocking down numerous trees, triggering power outages.

Winds gusted to 69 mph in Boston, 75 mph at South Glastonbury, Connecticut, and 83 mph at the Blue Hill Observatory near Milton, Massachusetts after 1 a.m. Thursday.

The National Weather Service in Caribou, Maine, issued their first February severe thunderstorm warning early Thursday in their 17 years of operation in northern and Downeast Maine.

All in all, over 375 reports of severe weather, primarily high wind gusts or wind damage from thunderstorms, were received by the Storm Prediction Center Wednesday into early Thursday.

This was the most number of severe reports on any 24-hour period over which these records are kept since July 14, 2015.