User:CapeVerdeWave/May 26–29, 1973 tornado outbreak sequence
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From May 22–31, 1973, a destructive tornado outbreak sequence affected the Southern, Midwestern, and Eastern United States.[nb 2][nb 3][nb 4] The severe weather event was the largest and the deadliest outbreak sequence in 1973 with at least 145 confirmed tornadoes causing 24 deaths, 820 injuries, and approximately $280.6 million (1973 USD) in damages. The deadliest tornado of the entire event was a large, violent, long-tracked tornado that crossed the state of Alabama on May 27, killing seven and injuring about 200 people. The tornado, which tracked for almost 140 miles (230 km), was rated F4 on the Fujita scale and largely destroyed the small town of Brent. A day earlier, on May 26, another long-lived F4 tornado in Arkansas caused the highest single-tornado injury total in the outbreak sequence, with 289 people injured. The tornado caused severe damage to the city of Jonesboro and killed three people. Two days before that, a well-documented F4 tornado obliterated Union City, Oklahoma, killing two and injuring four. Other notable, deadly tornadoes struck Kansas and Oklahoma on May 26, including an F1 in Kansas that killed three and a violent F4 that killed five in Muskogee County, Oklahoma. The outbreak on May 27 was reportedly the most severe to affect the U.S. state of Alabama since March 21, 1932.[13]
Type | Tornado outbreak sequence |
---|---|
Duration | May 22–31, 1973 |
Tornadoes confirmed | 145 confirmed |
Max. rating1 | F4 tornado |
Duration of tornado outbreak2 | 9 days, 5 hours, 40 minutes |
Fatalities | 24 fatalities, 820 injuries |
Damage | $280.6 million (1973 USD)[nb 1] $1.93 billion (2024 USD) |
Areas affected | Southern, Midwestern, and Mid-Atlantic United States |
Part of the tornadoes and tornado outbreaks of 1973 1Most severe tornado damage; see Fujita scale 2Time from first tornado to last tornado |