1974 Super Outbreak
Meteorological history | |
---|---|
Duration | April 3–4, 1974 |
Tornado outbreak | |
Tornadoes | 148 confirmed |
Maximum rating | F5 tornado |
Overall effects | |
Fatalities | 335 fatalities Ontario, Canada |
Part of the tornado outbreaks of 1974 |
The 1974 Super Outbreak was the second-largest
The 1974 Super Outbreak was the first tornado outbreak in recorded history to produce more than 100 tornadoes in under a 24-hour period, a feat that was not repeated globally until the
Meteorological synopsis
State/province | Fatalities |
---|---|
Alabama | 77 |
Georgia | 16 |
Illinois | 5 |
Indiana | 47 |
Kentucky | 71 |
Michigan | 2 |
North Carolina | 6 |
Ohio | 38 |
Ontario | 9 |
Tennessee | 45 |
Virginia | 1 |
West Virginia | 1 |
Total | 319 |
A powerful springtime low pressure system developed across the
By 12:00
By 16:30 UTC, the large MCS began to splinter into two sections: the southern part slowed, lagging into southeast Tennessee, while the northern part accelerated, reaching Pennsylvania by 19:30 UTC. The split was related to several factors, including a band of
While violent tornado activity increased over the warm sector, a third band of convection developed at about 16:00 UTC and extended from near St. Louis into west-central Illinois. Based upon real-time satellite imagery and model data, differential
Meanwhile, by 00:00 UTC the southern half of the first convective band became indistinguishable from new convection that had formed farther south over Alabama and Tennessee in connection with convective band two. In this area, increasing west-southwesterly
Michigan was not hit as hard as neighboring states or Windsor, with only one deadly tornado that hit near
Confirmed tornadoes
FU | F0 | F1 | F2 | F3 | F4 | F5 | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
0 | 12 | 38 | 34 | 34* | 23 | 7 | 148 |
- Note: An F3 tornado was confirmed in Ontario.
This tornado outbreak produced the most violent (
Seven F5 tornadoes were observed—one each in Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky, three in Alabama and the final one which crossed through parts of Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky. Thirty-one people were killed in Brandenburg, Kentucky, and 28 died in Guin, Alabama. An F3 tornado also occurred in Windsor, Ontario, Canada, killing nine and injuring 30 others there, all of them at the former Windsor Curling Club.[14]
There were 18 hours of nearly continuous tornado activity that ended in Caldwell County, North Carolina, at about 7:00 am on April 4. A total of 319 were killed in 148 tornadoes from April 3 through April 4 and 5,484 were injured.
The 1974 Super Outbreak occurred at the end of a very strong, nearly record-setting
Depauw–Daisy Hill, Indiana
UTC-5:00 ) | |
Duration | 69 minutes |
---|---|
F5 tornado | |
on the Fujita scale | |
Overall effects | |
Casualties | 6 fatalities, 86 injuries |
Of the F5 tornadoes produced by the outbreak, the Depauw-Daisy Hill tornado was the first to form, touching down at 3:20 pm local time. It is probably the least-known of the F5 tornadoes in the outbreak as it traveled through rural areas in southern Indiana northwest of
Xenia, Ohio
EDT (UTC−04:00 ) | |
Duration | 39 minutes |
---|---|
F5 tornado | |
on the Fujita scale | |
Highest winds | 250 to 305 mph (402 to 491 km/h) |
Overall effects | |
Casualties | 36 fatalities, 1,150 injuries |
Damage | $100 million (1974 USD ) |
The tornado that struck the city of
When the storm reached central Xenia at 4:40 pm, apartment buildings, homes, businesses, churches, and schools including
A total of 32 people lost their lives in the tornado, and about 1,150 were injured in Xenia, several of whom took proper shelter. In addition to the direct fatalities, two Ohio Air National Guardsmen deployed for disaster assistance were killed on April 17 when a fire swept through their temporary barracks in a furniture store. The memorial in downtown Xenia lists 34 deaths, in honor of the two Guardsmen.[24][25] About 1,400 buildings (roughly half of the town) were heavily damaged or destroyed. Damage was estimated at US$100 million ($471.7 million in 2013 dollars).[26]
Dr. Ted Fujita and a team of colleagues undertook a 10-month study of the 1974 Super Outbreak. Fujita initially assigned the Xenia tornado a preliminary rating of F6 intensity ± 1 scale,[27] before deeming F6 ratings "inconceivable".
Monticello tornado family
Meteorological history | |
---|---|
Duration | 2:47 p.m. – 6:59 p.m. April 3 (UTC−05:00) 4 hours, 12 minutes |
Tornado family | |
Tornadoes | 8 confirmed, 2 suspected |
Maximum rating | F4 tornado |
Overall effects | |
Casualties | 20 fatalities, 379 injuries |
Areas affected | Illinois, Indiana |
FU | F0 | F1 | F2 | F3 | F4 | F5 | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 8 |
The most prolific and longest-lasting tornado family of the outbreak tracked from central Illinois and the entirety of northern Indiana from 2:47 p.m. – 6:59 p.m. (UTC−05:00), a span of 4 hours and 12 minutes. Eight tornadoes touched down, including the longest-tracked single tornado of the outbreak: the 121 mi (195 km) F4 Monticello tornado.[2] However, that tornado may itself have been composed of three individual F4 tornadoes.[8]
Otterbein–Monticello–Wolcottville, Indiana
CDT (UTC−05:00 ) | |
Duration | 2 hours |
---|---|
F4 tornado | |
on the Fujita scale | |
Overall effects | |
Casualties | 18 fatalities, 362 injuries |
Damage | $250 million |
This half-mile (0.8 km) wide F4 tornado developed (as part of a tornado family that moved from Illinois to Michigan for 260 miles) during the late afternoon hours. This tornado produced the longest damage path recorded during the 1974 Super Outbreak, on a southwest to northeast path that nearly crossed the entire state of Indiana. According to most records (including the presented map of north Indiana), this tornado formed just southwest of
After the tornado struck Monticello, the tornado reached peak strength and completely leveled several farms northwest of town. The tornado then went on to tear through the west side of Rochester, where businesses were destroyed and homes were completely leveled and swept away. Riddle Elementary School was badly damaged as well. The tornado then struck Talma, destroying most of the town, including a fastening plant and the schoolhouse. The tornado continued northeast and struck the south sides of Atwood and Leesburg, with additional severe damage occurring at both locations. The tornado then crossed Dewart Lake and Lake Wawasee, destroying multiple lakeside homes and trailers. The Wawasee Airport was hard hit, where hangars were destroyed and planes were thrown and demolished. The tornado destroyed several buildings as it passed between Ligonier and Topeka, including Perry School and a Monsanto plant. Train cars near the plant were blown off the tracks and thrown into the building. The tornado then finally dissipated near Oliver Lake airfield.[29]
A total of 18 people were killed during the storm including five people from
Hanover/Madison, Indiana
UTC-5:00 ) | |
Duration | 41 minutes |
---|---|
F4 tornado | |
on the Fujita scale | |
Overall effects | |
Casualties | 11 fatalities, 300 injuries |
Soon after the Depauw tornado lifted, the Hanover/Madison F4 tornado formed near
The same storm would later strike the Cincinnati area, producing multiple tornadoes, including another F5 tornado.
Brandenburg, Kentucky
UTC-5:00 ) | |
Duration | 52 minutes |
---|---|
F5 tornado | |
on the Fujita scale | |
Overall effects | |
Casualties | 31 fatalities, 257 injuries |
Damage | $2.5 million[33] |
The Brandenburg tornado, which produced F5 damage and took 31 lives, touched down in
When the tornado struck on April 3, 1974, many of the Brandenburg residents at that time had also experienced a major
Cincinnati/Sayler Park, Ohio
UTC-5:00 ) | |
Duration | 23 minutes |
---|---|
F5 tornado | |
on the Fujita scale | |
Overall effects | |
Casualties | 3 fatalities, 219 injuries |
The Sayler Park tornado was among a series of tornadoes that earlier struck portions of southern Indiana from north of
This tornado dissipated west of
Louisville, Kentucky
UTC-5:00 ) | |
Duration | 20 minutes |
---|---|
F4 tornado | |
on the Fujita scale | |
Overall effects | |
Casualties | 3 fatalities, 207 injuries |
About an hour after the Brandenburg tornado, the same supercell spawned an F4 tornado that formed in the southwest part of
Dick Gilbert, a helicopter traffic reporter for radio station
WHAS-AM broke away from its regular programming shortly before the tornado struck Louisville and was on-air live with John Burke, the chief meteorologist at the National Weather Service's Louisville office at Standiford Field when the tornado first descended. The station remained on the air delivering weather bulletins and storm-related information until well into the early morning hours of April 4.[45] As electrical power had been knocked out to a substantial portion of the city, the radio station became a clearinghouse for vital information and contact with emergency workers, not only in Louisville but across the state of Kentucky due to its 50,000-watt clear-channel signal and the fact that storms had knocked numerous broadcasting stations in smaller communities, such as Frankfort, off the air. Then-Governor Wendell Ford commended the station's personnel for their service to the community in the time of crisis, and Dick Gilbert later received a special commendation from then-President Richard Nixon for his tracking of the tornado from his helicopter.[46]
Tanner, Alabama (1st tornado)
UTC-5:00 ) | |
Duration | 90 minutes |
---|---|
F5 tornado | |
on the Fujita scale | |
Overall effects | |
Casualties | 28 fatalities, 267 injuries |
As the cluster of thunderstorms was crossing much of the Ohio Valley and northern Indiana, additional strong storms developed much further south just east of the Mississippi River into the Tennessee Valley and Mississippi. It produced the first deadly tornadoes in Alabama during the early evening hours. Most of the small town of
The first tornado formed at 6:30 pm CDT in Lawrence County, Alabama and ended just over 90 minutes later in Madison County, Alabama, killing 28 people. The tornado first touched down near the small community of Mt. Hope,[47] and then tracked into Mt. Moriah, where the tornado rapidly intensified and swept away homes and hurled fleeing vehicles, and where a family of six were killed. Further along the track, many homes were swept away near Moulton. A water pump was completely lifted out of a wellhouse along SR 157 in this area.[48] In one case, the destruction was so complete that a witness reported that the largest recognizable objects among scattered debris from an obliterated house were some bed-springs.[49] The tornado crossed into Morgan County, causing additional destruction in rural areas near Hillsboro and Trinity.[50] Crossing the Tennessee River into Limestone County as a large waterspout, the tornado flattened a ¾-mile–wide swath of trees on the opposite bank. Ground scouring occurred in this area, as reddish soil was dug up and plastered against trees.[47] The storm then slammed into Tanner, where many homes were swept away, vehicles were tossed, shrubbery was debarked, and Lawson's Trailer Park sustained major damage.[51] The tornado then continued into Madison County and struck the Capshaw and Harvest areas.[8] Numerous homes in Harvest and surrounding rural areas of the county were swept completely away and scattered, and extensive wind-rowing of debris was noted. A bathtub from one residence was found deeply embedded into the ground. Past Harvest, the tornado abruptly dissipated northeast of town, having a peak width of 500 yards.[52][53]
Jasper/Cullman, Alabama
UTC-5:00 ) | |
Duration | 105 minutes |
---|---|
F4 tornado | |
on the Fujita scale | |
Overall effects | |
Casualties | 3 fatalities, 178 injuries |
While tornadoes were causing devastation in the northwesternmost corner of the state, another supercell crossing the Mississippi-Alabama state line produced another violent tornado that touched down in Pickens County before heading northeast for nearly 2 hours towards the Jasper area causing major damage to its downtown as the F4 storm struck. Damage was reported in Cullman from the storm before it lifted.[54]
The Jasper tornado first touched near
In total, the storm took three lives, but injured one hundred and fifty residents of Jasper or Cullman. Five hundred buildings were destroyed, with nearly four hundred other buildings severely damaged. At the same time, a third supercell was crossing the state line near the track of the previous two.[56]
Tanner, Alabama (2nd tornado)
UTC-5:00 ) | |
Duration | 90 minutes |
---|---|
F5 tornado | |
on the Fujita scale | |
Overall effects | |
Casualties | 16 fatalities, 190 injuries |
While rescue efforts were underway to look for people under the destroyed structures, few were aware that another violent tornado would strike the area. The path of the second tornado, which formed at 7:35 pm CDT was 83 miles in length, also had a peak width of 500 yards, and the storm formed along the north bank Tennessee River less than a mile from the path of the earlier storm; with much of its path very closely paralleling its predecessor as it tore through Limestone and Madison Counties. 16 people were killed by this second tornado. Tanner was the first community to be hit, and many structures that were left standing after the first tornado were destroyed in the second one. A man injured at Lawson's Trailer Park in the first tornado was taken to a church in the area, which collapsed in the second tornado, killing him.[8]
After devastating what was left of Tanner, the tornado continued across rural Limestone County and into Madison County, where the communities of Capshaw and Harvest were devastated once again.[47][57] Numerous homes throughout Madison County were swept completely away, with extensive wind-rowing of debris noted once again. Past Harvest, the tornado swept away multiple additional homes in the Hazel Green area.[53] The tornado continued northeastward through rural portions of Madison County before crossing into Tennessee, where major damage and 6 deaths occurred in Franklin and Lincoln Counties before the tornado dissipated in Coffee County. Two of the fatalities in Tennessee occurred when a church was destroyed during service.[58] The death toll from the two tornadoes was over 45 and over 400 were injured. Most of the fatalities occurred in and around the Tanner area. Over 1,000 houses, 200 mobile homes and numerous other outbuildings, automobiles, power lines and trees were completely demolished or heavily damaged. The most recent official National Weather Service records show that both[59][60] of the Tanner tornadoes were rated F5.[31][61] However, the rating of the second Tanner tornado is still disputed by some scientists; analysis in one publication estimates F3-F4 damage along the entirety of the second storm's path.[8] This was the second state to have been hit by more than two F5 tornadoes during the 1974 Super Outbreak.
Guin, Alabama
UTC-5:00 ) | |
Duration | 100 minutes |
---|---|
F5 tornado | |
on the Fujita scale | |
Overall effects | |
Casualties | 28 fatalities, 272 injuries |
The fast-moving nighttime tornado that devastated the town of
The tornado continued past Guin and struck the small community of
Huntsville, Alabama
UTC-5:00 ) | |
Duration | 51 minutes |
---|---|
F3 tornado | |
on the Fujita scale | |
Overall effects | |
Casualties | 2 fatalities, 7 injuries |
Huntsville was affected shortly before 11:00 pm EDT by a strong F3 tornado produced by the same thunderstorm that produced the Guin tornado. This tornado produced heavy damage in the south end of the city, eventually damaging or destroying nearly 1,000 structures.[65]
The tornado touched down north of
Non-tornadic effects
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Severe thunderstorms on April 4 brought 1 to 3 in (2.5 to 7.6 cm) of rain to tornado-stricken areas of northwest Georgia. Flash floods were considered a major risk in the region's mountainous terrain.[68]
In Alderson, West Virginia, "tornado-like winds" caused extensive damage to homes and businesses primarily along WV 3, some of which had their roof torn off. Many trees and power lines were downed leaving more than 7,000 people without electricity.[69]
Aftermath
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On April 5, Georgia Governor Jimmy Carter declared 13 counties as disaster areas and put in a request to President Nixon for federal aid, citing damage in excess of $15.5 million. Service centers were opened at two National Guard Armories, one in Dalton and the other in Calhoun, as well as a church in Dawsonville.[70] The National Guard provided four-wheel drive vehicles for search and rescue efforts.[68]
West Virginia Governor Moore declared 14 counties as disaster areas by April 5 and requested the assistance of the National Guard.[71] President Nixon approved federal aid for Fayette, Greenbriar, Raleigh, and Wyoming Counties on April 11. Total damage from the tornadoes and thunderstorms in the state reached $3,655,000, more than half of which was incurred by Raleigh County.[72] The West Virginia State Department of Highways provided two water trucks.[71] The local Red Cross provided $3,000 to victims in Fayette County and assisted residents with acquiring supplies and dealing with medical bills.[73] Sightseers traveling to look at the damage clogged up roadways.[71] The Federal Disaster Assistance Administration (later FEMA) indicated that trailers refurbished after the 1972 Buffalo Creek flood would be used to house displaced persons.[74]
On April 10, voting on the Disaster Relief Act of 1974 was expedited and passed unanimously in the United States Senate in direct response to the scale of damage from the tornado outbreak.[75][76] The primary purpose of the act was to overhaul how disasters are handled on a federal level and to make acquiring federal aid easier. Notably, it would prompt the creation of a disaster-coordinating agency.[77] President Nixon signed it into federal law on May 22.[78]
See also
- List of tornadoes and tornado outbreaks
- List of North American tornadoes and tornado outbreaks
- List of Canadian tornadoes and tornado outbreaks
- List of tornadoes striking downtown areas of large cities
- List of F5 and EF5 tornadoes
- Tornado outbreak of December 10–11, 2021 – One of the deadliest tornado outbreaks in Kentucky's history.
- 2011 Super Outbreak – A very similar, but larger and deadlier outbreak that occurred in April 2011.
- Tornado outbreak and derecho of April 1–3, 2024 – A tornado outbreak that affected similar areas almost exactly 50 years later.
Notes
- microburst.[2] Only 147 of the original 148 tornadoes appear on the Storm Prediction Center's official database today.
References
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{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - ^ a b c d e Fujita, T. Theodore; Abbey, Robert F. Jr. (1983) [1981]. "Chapter 3: Tornadoes: The Tornado Outbreak of 3–4 April 1974". In Kessler, Edwin (ed.). The Thunderstorm in Human Affairs (2nd ed.). Norman, Oklahoma: University of Oklahoma Press. pp. 37–66.
- ^ a b Analysis and reconstruction of the 1974 tornado Super Outbreak (PDF) (Report). Risk Management Solutions. April 2, 2004. p. 9. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 23, 2013. Retrieved April 6, 2014.
In total, 148 tornadoes spanned 13 states producing about 900 square miles (2,300 square kilometres) of tornado damage in less than 18 hours. ... Most of the tornadoes were produced by individual thunderstorm cells within these lines. The individual tornadoes moved northeastward at 40–60 mph (64–97 km/h), while the larger scale squall-line systems advanced toward the southeast. ... Many of these tornadoes were part of 'families' or a sequence of tornadoes spawned in succession by a single thunderstorm cell. Dr. Ted Fujita identified 30 such tornado families that accounted for 74% of the Outbreak's tornadoes and resulted in 98% of the 315 deaths. The longest-lasting tornado family existed for nearly five hours, while the average life was approximately two hours.
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- 1A Archived January 26, 2024, at the Wayback Machine
- 2A Archived January 26, 2024, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "2 Tornadoes Reported In County". Beckley Post-Herald. April 5, 1974. p. 17. Archived from the original on January 26, 2024. Retrieved April 24, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "State Damage Near $16 Million; Carter Asks U.S. Disaster Aid". The Macon Telegraph. United Press International. April 5, 1974 – via Newspapers.com.
- 1A Archived January 26, 2024, at the Wayback Machine
- 2A Archived January 26, 2024, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ a b c "Area Residents Begin Clearing Up Tornado Wreckage". The Raleigh Register. April 5, 1974. p. 6. Retrieved April 24, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
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- ^ "Red Cross Completes Tornado Damage List". Beckley Post-Herald. April 11, 1974. p. 15. Archived from the original on January 26, 2024. Retrieved April 24, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Local Tornado Victims To Get Aid". The Raleigh Register. April 11, 1974. p. 1. Archived from the original on November 6, 2023. Retrieved April 24, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Senate Panel Votes Easier Tornado Aid". Beckley Post-Herald. Associated Press. April 10, 1974. p. 28. Archived from the original on November 6, 2023. Retrieved April 24, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "To Pass S.3062, The Disaster Relief Bill". GovTrack. Archived from the original on April 25, 2023. Retrieved April 24, 2023.
- ^ West, Daniel F. (April 13, 1974). "Relief Bill Refined". The Charleston Daily Mail. p. 5A. Archived from the original on November 6, 2023. Retrieved April 24, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Public Law 93-288 – May 22, 1974" (PDF). Government of the United States. May 22, 1974. Archived (PDF) from the original on April 25, 2023. Retrieved April 24, 2023.
Further reading
- Tornado! the 1974 super outbreak, by Jacqueline A. Ball; consultant, Daniel H. Franck. New York: Bearport Pub., 2005. 32 pages. ISBN 1597160326(paperback).
- Tornado at Xenia, April 3, 1974, by Barbara Lynn Riedel; photography by Peter Wayne Kyryl. Cleveland, OH, 1974. 95 pages. No ISBN is available. Library of Congress Control Number: 75314665.
- Tornado, by Polk Laffoon IV. New York: Harper & Row, 1975. 244 pages. ISBN 0-06-012489-X.
- Tornado alley: monster storms of the Great Plains, by Howard B. Bluestein. New York: Oxford University Press, 1999. 180 pages. ISBN 0-19-510552-4(acid-free paper).
- Delivery of mental health services in disasters: the Xenia tornado and some implications, by Verta A. Taylor, with G. Alexander Ross and E. L. Quarantelli. Columbus, OH: Disaster Research Center, Ohio State University, 1976. 328 pages. There is no ISBN available. Library of Congress Control Number: 76380740.
- The widespread tornado outbreak of April 3–4, 1974: a report to the Administrator. Rockville, Md: U.S. Dept. of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 1974. 42 pages. There is no ISBN available. Library of Congress Control Number: 75601597.
- The tornado, by John Edward Weems. Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1977. 180 pages. ISBN 0-385-07178-7.
- Butler, William S., ed. (2004). Tornado: A look back at Louisville's dark day, April 3, 1974. A 30th Anniversary Publication. Butler Books. ISBN 978-1-884532-58-0. 176 pages.
- Deitz, Robert E.; et al., eds. (1974). April 3, 1974: Tornado!. introduction by John Ed Pearce. The Courier-Journal and The Louisville Times. 128 pages. Library of Congress Catalog Number 74-80806.
- Hartsfield, Ray J; Garr, Robin; Morrisette, Phyllis; Harris, Jay; Knapp, Dave; Scott, Tom; Cowan, Terry; Woosley, Mary Ann; Hammer, Allen (1974). April 3, 1974: The Kentucky Tornadoes. C. F. Boone. 96 pages.
- Levine, Mark (2007). F5: Devastation, Survival and the Most Violent Tornado Outbreak of the Twentieth Century. Hyperion, New York. ISBN 978-1-4013-5220-2. 307 pages.
External links
This article's use of external links may not follow Wikipedia's policies or guidelines. (October 2015) |
- Natural Disaster Survey Report: The Widespread Tornado Outbreak of April 3–4, 1974 (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, NOAA)
- Full map of The Super Outbreak (Tornado History Project)
- US National Weather Service (NWS) weather forecast office webpages
- April 3, 1974 Superoutbreak (NWS Indianapolis, IN)
- The Monticello Tornado (NWS Northern Indiana)
- The Super Outbreak of April 3–4, 1974 (NWS Wilmington, OH)
- April 3, 1974 Super Outbreak (NWS Nashville, TN)
- April 3, 1974 (NWS Louisville, KY)
- The April 3rd and 4th 1974 Tornado Outbreak in Alabama and 1974 Alabama tornado table (NWS Birmingham, AL)
- NOAA-NWS-NCEP Storm Prediction Center slideshows: The Super Outbreak: Outbreak of the Century and The 3–4 April 1974 Super Outbreak: Outbreak of the Century
- Tornado Super Outbreak April 3, 1974 website
- The Weather Channel's Storm of the Century list – #2 The Super Outbreak
- American Meteorological Society
- The Super Outbreak: Outbreak of the Century (22nd Conference on Severe Local Storms)
- Potential insurance losses from a major tornado outbreak: the 1974 Super Outbreak example (22nd Conference on Severe Local Storms)
- Revisiting the 3–4 April 1974 Super Outbreak of Tornadoes (Weather and Forecasting)
- Coverage from WHAS-AM, Louisville, Kentucky
- "WHAS Radio Covers the April 3, 1974 Tornado Disaster," excellent-quality recorded coverage of the tornado at LKYRadio.com
- Super Outbreak 30th Anniversary Special
- April 3, 1974 Live Breaking News Coverage: Part 1, Part 2[dead link]
- The short film Day of the Killer Tornadoes (1978) is available for free viewing and download at the Internet Archive.
- Footage is included in Encounters with Disaster (1979), directed by Charles E. Sellier Jr.