Portal:Tornadoes/Anniversaries/February

February 1

• 1955 – An F3 tornado destroyed a plantation school near Commerce, Mississippi and destroyed 45 homes, killing 20 people and injuring 141. An F2 tornado killed 3 people and injured 25 near Olive Branch, Mississippi. Even though well-defined funnels were sighted, heavy objects (including a car) were carried long distances, and books were carried for miles; these events were never officially recorded as tornadoes.
• 2007 – The Enhanced Fujita scale went into effect in the United States, replacing the older Fujita scale.

February 2

• 2007 – A small tornado outbreak hit Florida. The worst damage came from two EF3 tornadoes that hit The Villages, Lady Lake, and DeLand, killing 21 people and injuring 76. Two other tornadoes were rated EF0 and EF1. Damage totaled $218 million. These were the first tornadoes to be rated on the Enhanced Fujita scale, which had gone into effect the day before.

February 3

• 1990 – A small outbreak of weak tornadoes injured 31 people across western and central Alabama. Three F1 tornadoes struck suburbs west and north of Birmingham, injuring 17 people, mostly from glass. Another F1 tornado destroyed several homes in Margaret, causing 11 minor injuries.

February 4

• 1971 – A small tornado outbreak affected parts of the southern and Midwestern United States. An F2 tornado killed seven people in a single trailer near Gore Springs, Mississippi. An F3 tornado caused damage in Sugar Bend, Dime, and Bear Creek, Alabama, killing one person and injuring 14.

February 5

• 2008 – The first day of the 2008 Super Tuesday tornado outbreak impacted the southeastern United States and Ohio Valley, killing 48 people. A EF3 tornado killed 22 people as it moved through Castalian Springs, Hartsville, and Lafayette, Tennessee. A long-track EF4 tornado traveled 122 miles across multiple communities in Arkansas, killing 13 people and injuring 140. Nine others were killed by tornadoes on February 6.

February 6

• 1942 – A tornado outbreak that started on February 5 continued overnight and into the day. A total of 18 people were killed across the Southeastern United States. An F3 tornado killed six people in Meriwether County, Georgia. A family of two tornadoes killed another six people in Jasper County, Georgia and injured 70.

February 7

• 1971 – A small tornado outbreak affected parts of Florida and Georgia. A waterspout came ashore as an F3 tornado in Gulf Breeze, Florida, where it destroyed an apartment complex and injured 112 people. Damage from this tornado totaled $4.5 million
• 2017 – An outbreak of 15 tornadoes hit the Southeastern United States. An EF3 tornado damaged several hundred homes in New Orleans, injuring 33 people. One person was killed by an EF1 tornado near Donaldsonville, Louisiana.

February 8

• 1937 – Four F2 tornadoes touched down in eastern Texas. One of them killed 12 people and injured 70 as it destroyed poorly-built homes on plantations in Leon and Houston counties. Most of the deaths and about half of the injuries were on a single plantation. Another tornado killed a mother and infant near Livingston.

February 9

• 1965 – Several strong tornadoes touched down in Arkansas, with three F3 tornadoes injuring ten people. Five were injured by a tornado near Holly Grove and four by a tornado the destroyed several homes in Bayou Meto. Another F3 tornado injured one person and damaged or destroyed 60% of Hermitage.

February 10

• 1921 – An F4 tornado hit poorly-built homes in Gardner, Georgia, killing 31 people and injuring 100. A portion of the town "literally vanished."
• 1940 – An F4 tornado damaged or destroyed about 1,000 homes in Albany, Georgia, killing 10 people and injuring 300.
• 2009 – Part of
  a larger outbreak, an EF4 tornado killed eight people in Lone Grove, Oklahoma
  and injured 46 others.

• 1965 – An outbreak of 15 tornadoes hit the Southern United States. An F3 tornado destroyed several homes and damaged a few dozen others in Aliceville, Alabama, injuring 18 people.

February 12

• 1945 – A tornado outbreak in the Deep South killed 45 people. The worst casualties were on the west side of Montgomery, Alabama, where an F3 tornado killed 26 people and injured 293. An F4 tornado killed 11 people in and near York and Livingston, Alabama and an F3 tornado killed 5 people South of Meridian, Mississippi.
• 1950 – The worst day of a
  three-day tornado outbreak resulted in at least 35 deaths in the Southern United States. A long-track F4 tornado (possibly a tornado family) hit portions of Shreveport, Louisiana and Barksdale Air Force Base
  (then known as Slack AFB) and killed 18 people.

• 2000 – A tornado outbreak impacted the Southeastern United States killing 18 people, all in Georgia. An F3 tornado struck Camilla, destroying over 200 homes, killing 11 people, and injuring 175. Tornadoes continued overnight and into the morning of February 14. Another tornado near Ochlocknee killed six people and destroyed several chicken houses, killing half a million chickens. One other person was killed near Meigs.
• 1952 – An F2 tornado destroyed two small homes on "Hurricane Hill" near Ripley, Tennessee, killing nine people.

February 14

• 1956 – A small tornado outbreak affected parts of Texas and Arkansas. An F3 tornado killed one person and injured five in Conway County, Arkansas. Thomas P. Grazulis lists an F3 tornado, which does not appear in official records, as destroying several homes in Sardis, Arkansas and injuring seven people.

February 15

• 2021 – An
  EF3 tornado destroyed two homes in Sunset Beach, North Carolina and damaged dozens of others, killing three people and injuring ten. An EF2 tornado injured five people near Damascus, Georgia
  .

• 1995 – An F3 tornado struck Joppa and Arab, Alabama killing 6 people and injuring 130. Most of the deaths were in mobile homes. A newborn, whose mother was injured, died on delivery. About 160 homes and businesses were destroyed.

February 17

• 1927 – A tornado outbreak resulted in 41 deaths across the Southeastern United States. A strong tornado (at least F3 and probably F4) killed 14 people in Pleasant Hill, Sabine Parish, Louisiana, 7 in one family. An F2 tornado killed 13 people near Lake Bruin.
• 1938 – An F4 tornado destroyed a large portion of Rodessa, Louisiana, killing 21 people. The corrugated metal that made up many of the buildings dismembered many victims.

February 18

• 1975 – An F3 tornado caused extensive damage in Fort Valley, Georgia, killing 2 people and injuring 50. About 40 homes were destroyed and 280 were damaged.
• 1976 – A tornado outbreak produced several strong tornadoes across the Southeastern United States. An F3 tornado moved across parts of Leake and Neshoba counties, resulting in a fatality and 27 injuries. An F2 tornado damaged or destroyed dozens of houses and mobile homes in Clinton and Jackson, Mississippi, injuring 50 people.

February 19

• 1884 – The
  Georgia
  .

February 20

• 1937 – An F3 tornado traveled 32 miles across southwestern Missouri, destroying several homes and two schools near Ozark and Marshfield. Eleven people were injured.

February 21

• 1971 – A
  violent tornado outbreak killed 121 people in the Southeastern United States. A long-track F5 tornado (possibly a tornado family) killed 47 people and injured more than 500 across northeastern Louisiana and western Mississippi. Inverness, Mississippi was completely leveled with 21 deaths and more than 200 injuries. A long-track F4 tornado (identified as a tornado family by Thomas P. Grazulis) killed 57 people and injured nearly 800 as it traveled 160 miles across western and northern Mississippi and into Tennessee. There were 21 deaths in Pugh City, Mississippi and 14 on a plantation near Cary, Mississippi
  .

• 1998 – A small but significant tornado outbreak impacted the Southeastern United States, with the worst impacts in Florida, where 42 people were killed. An F3 tornado killed 25 people in Kissimmee, making it the deadliest tornado in Florida history. Most of the deaths were in mobile homes and RVs.

February 23

• 2016 – The first day of a
  EF3 tornado moved through northeastern Pensacola, Florida
  , causing three injuries.

• 1926 – A few strong tornadoes hit Arkansas and Mississippi. An F2 tornado killed seven people near Lake Village, Arkansas and Greenville, Mississippi. Three others were killed by tornadoes near Cruger and in Teasdale, Mississippi. Nearly every building in Teasdale was destroyed.
• 2001 – A tornado outbreak affected parts of the central and Southeastern United States, resulting in seven deaths and 90 injuries. An F3 tornado killed six people and injured 43 in and near Pontotoc, Mississippi. One other fatality was from an F2 tornado near Salem, Fulton County, Arkansas. Another 30 were injured by an F3 tornado in Baldwyn, Mississippi.

February 25

• 1929 – Several strong tornadoes killed 27 people across the Southern United States. Most of the deaths were from an F4 tornado that killed 19 people and injured 42 in Duncan, Mississippi. An F2 tornado in the Dallas area killed two people and scattered oil from ruptured tanks for several miles.
• 1934 – A tornado outbreak killed 19 people across the Southeastern United States. Two F3 tornadoes on parallel tracks killed 12 people in Lauderdale County, Mississippi. An F4 tornado killed 4 people in and near Shady Grove, Alabama.

February 26

• 1958 – A tornado outbreak killed 13 people and injured 19 in the Southern United States, with the worst impacts in Mississippi. An F3 tornado or tornado family moved through the southeastern part of Jackson and struck Farm Haven, Mississippi, killing 8 people and injuring 28. Another F3 tornado killed 4 people and injured 20 as it moved through Brewer and south of Winchester. A third F3 tornado hit Piney Woods and Walnut Grove, Mississippi, killing 1 person and injuring 34.

February 27

• 1876 – A tornado outbreak killed eight people in the Midwestern United States and Ohio Valley. Three were killed and 30 were injured by an F3 tornado that hit New Douglas, Illinois. An F2 tornado significantly damaged or destroyed 36 homes and businesses in St. Charles, Missouri, killing two people. An F3 stuck Hopkinsville, Kentucky, killing two people and an F4 tornado killed one person near Glezen, Indiana.

February 28

• 1987 – An enormous F4 tornado, at times 1.5 mi (2.4 km) wide devastated Glade, near Laurel, Mississippi, killing 6 people and injuring 350. The community of Powers, east of Laurel also suffered significant damage. In all, 13 businesses, 220 homes, and 149 trailers were destroyed, with 700 people left homeless.

February 29

• 2012 – Continuing overnight, a significant tornado outbreak hit parts of the Mississippi and Ohio valleys, resulting in 13 deaths. The worst damage was from a pre-dawn EF4 tornado that devastated Harrisburg, Illinois, killing 8 people and injuring 108.