The Weather Channel Coverage of the Birmingham, AL Tornado

[@BFDdriver]

I'm a Birmingham fireman. I was on duty that day. Always wanted to see a tornado but now I'll be just fine if I never see another one. I was on duty the day of the April 8th 1998 tornado too which passed a couple miles farther north than this one.

[@itsnotthesamething]

+BFDdriver The best place for a tornado to be is in the wide open of the Great Plains! Not in downtown Anywhere! That was a scary day, for our entire state! I live in Mobile, so I wasn't in the path, but my niece and her friends were hunkered down in a bathtub in Tuscaloosa! Their apartment was damaged, but they were all unharmed.

[@thomasbenson4867]

There's a saying that be very careful with what you wish for

[@mikexxxmilly]

Which do you feel like was worse?

[@mattb6646]

Everyone wants to see a tornado... until it hits your hometown. I'd like to do storm chasing one summer, the ideal tornado would be a photogenic one in an open field.

[@EdwardCooke-p2e]

I remember the 1998 tornadoes too that was sad too

[@finisher3x]

4 miles is what kept this particular part of the storm from being the absolute worst case scenario. As much damage that the storm did in Tuscaloosa, it may have been twice as worse in Birmingham, had it gone straight up Bessemer Hwy into downtown. God bless all of those who lost their lives from these 2011 storms. And may God be with everyone who loved those that were lost.

[@richardtaylor6341]

I think alot of people dont get that....it was rolling right down that very highway in Tuscaloosa county. There is geography that causes storms to usually take this more northerly path. But geography doesnt win this game always...

[@evirs]

Day could've been much worse in general. The storms and tornadoes don't get much worse than they did that day, but the locations the storms moved through could've really done more damage than they did. Still a terrible day.

[@trollerjakthetrollinggod-e7761]

It would have been deadlier than the Hackleburg-Phil Campbell tornado, probably even Joplin if it hit any of the hospitals.

[@Cloud39.]

My hearts and prayers go out to everyone affected in Alabama and in Joplin.

[@boro-lt2rk]

Now AL,MO,OK

[@royaleevangeline2038]

It’s an extraordinarily bad situation when a tornado is so big that it doesn’t even look like a tornado! From a distance that tornado looks like a curtain of heavy rain or a bank of fog. It doesn’t even look like a tornado.

[@terun1978]

My heart went out to you guys in Alabama this painful day. It really bothered me

[@meqqie269]

Thank you I really needed it my family and I almost died.

[@applessr2590]

Rodney Fowler my stepdad was in that

[@sylviaross5486]

Rodney Fowler Thanks, man. 2011 was bad, but paled in comparison to the April 3-4 1974 outbreak, when close to 200 tornadoes blew through. Guin, AL was wiped off the map. Our Huntsville TV stations were cut off from their national affiliates for several weeks & all they could do was show videos of the unbelievable aftermath. My family & I were lucky: the tornadoes went over our house in Albertville AL, but didn't touch down.

[@vic-20personalcomputer80]

I was 14 at the time, not young, but not old. I was scared this day, because the year before my house in Albertville was destroyed. My school, destroyed. I was scared it was going to happen again.

[@trinityhunwardseniloveyou1830]

No

[@KasperAura]

We give thoughts and prayers from New Jersey to everyone in desperate need of comfort. God bless the people who were in this storm.

[@fakerealJoker]

Bruh you can't bless or pray from a screen your supposed to do it in real life

[@jimmyinglish2669]

What a crazy day! Thank you Weather Channel for your amazing coverage! There is no way to know how many lives that you guys save! Thank you snd God bless you all!!!

[@kenperk9854]

At the time this event was unfolding, a vicious EF5 tornado was blazing a trail of death through DeKalb County Alabama killing 35 people along it's 34 mile path. Some of the victims were dismembered, after forensic teams examined the remains, the total was reduced to 25. This tornado was practically invisible to the world because of all the other tornadoes of that day and should be dubbed the Unknown EF5.

[@kenperk9854]

+Ken Perk From Extreme Planet: Some of the most powerful tornado damage ever surveyed occurred at the Robinson family property at 1608 Lingerfelt Road. A large, two-story brick home was swept completely away and sections of pavement were ripped from the driveway (visible as light spots at top center). Even more impressively, the tornado ripped an 800lb safe that had been anchored to the home’s foundation and threw it 200 yards to the north. The door to the safe, which had been closed, was torn completely off. Additionally, a heavy concrete porch weighing thousands of pounds was shattered and blown away, and heavy supporting anchors were torn from the ground. The Robinson family fled the tornado in a vehicle, but several neighbors survived inside an adjacent underground storm shelter. The tornado scoured dirt and ripped open a section of the shelter’s roof, partially exposing the people huddled inside. The strangely selective nature of the damage is apparent. Grass near the empty foundation was partially scoured away, yet trees 80ft to the east stand seemingly untouched. A truck that had been parked at the Robinson home was mangled beyond recognition and found 250 yards to the north A stone home on Skaggs Road (top center) was swept completely away, resulting in one fatality and two serious injuries. The NWS survey team documented a section of the home’s foundation that was pulled from the ground. This likely occurred when a stone column anchored to the underlying concrete was torn away. A cul-de-sac of large homes was swept away along Marshall Road. Extreme winds and high velocity debris left unusual gouge marks in a field downwind. Extreme tree damage to a tall, thick grove of pine trees on Crow Lane. The few remaining tree trunks have been stripped of bark and branches and snapped at ground level. Vegetation damage of this severity is likely an indication of EF5 winds.

[@supertornadogun1690]

dayum

[@asaxplayer0670]

There was an sort of unknown EF4 that had a long path and maily impacted Walker County ,AL.

[@jenc4919]

Ken Perk wow that is extremely sad yet fascinating

[@theweakestlink2278]

There were several large F4-F5 storms that didn't get much coverage that day. There was one in northeast St Clair that killed around 15 people with very little coverage in Shoal Creek Valley. It was in a very remote part of the county though. Unfortunately that's one of the risks of living out in the country during tornado season.

[@waynebrasler]

This tornado looked amazingly different in different parts of its path. In Birmingham it looks nothing like it looked in Tuscaloosa.

[@blueaeagle11]

will never forget this day...

[@winfordt.mcguillacutty2553]

Me neither. I was over 50 miles away(as the crow flies) from Phil Campbell and I heard that EF5 that tore that town to pieces

[@marianserra8371]

It was horrible as it was happening and afterwards.. It was power company from the Carolinas that got our power back on. Four huge trucks . It took over a week for power to be restored and we had minimal damage where I live .

[@peyton7]

I will I was only 2

[@KP-do2ss]

@@marianserra8371 You said a power company from Carolina got your power back on. Well I can remember September 1989 when Hurricane Hugo came through our state and a power crew from Alabama restored our power after a week without power. We owed you. We were so thankful for them that day. Glad you are okay. God bless you all.

[@BrentonWx]

@@peyton7 Wow that would be scary

[@abbie51304vlogs]

I remember this day. I was in 1st grade, and had just moved to a new house with a tornado shelter (not in Birmingham, in Hartselle between Culman and Decatur) and we were practically in 'tornado position' all day at school, then my mom picked me up, and we hadn't even gotten home and there was a tornado in Decatur, where I was going to school. We went home and prepared for the worst. I was freaked out, and we lost power a little later in the day. We didn't have power for 4 days, but we also had family in Athens, so we went and checked on them the next day. Fortunately they were ok, as they were in a mobile home, but they had power, so we saw the full extent of the damage everywhere, and really realized how fortunate we were. That day is a huge part of what made me want to pursue meteorology. Here I am now, in 11th grade, looking into starting collage to major in meteorology

[@isa5104]

Tornado outbreaks are so disorienting because it feels like tornadoes are touching down everywhere, and reading the city names and recognizing every one of them is really such a different feeling. That’s probably the clearest memory I have of the 2015 Christmas outbreak, and I haven’t fortunately experienced something like it again. I hope you do well in your studies

[@abbie51304vlogs]

@@isa5104 nice pfp 👌. and thank you for the well wishes

[@amtrakisveryepic]

Noice pfp >:3👌

[@brandonthegoat121]

Lol 1st grade?

[@abbie51304vlogs]

@@brandonthegoat121 I was in the second semester of 1st grade in 2011. I'm graduated from high school in 2022

[@pep861]

i visited tuscaloosa on a road trip this summer only a few weeks ago and just to see the damage is unbelievable... my thoughts and prayers are still with everyone effected by this tornado.

[@OuterRimEmperor]

I remember watching this live and I couldn't believe how big it was, and that it was the SAME tornado that just hit Tuscaloosa! Just an incredible storm!

[@john90mpw]

I live in Bessemer, it was close enough to see it from the high school. At first it was supposed to hit us dead on. Even now its hard to believe how we've managed to avoid tornadoes. Every single tornado that ive heard of that follow a similar path to this one somehow avoids us. God is good because we could not take a hit like that...

[@FrostmourneFK]

There's probably a terrain/local weather reasoning behind that series of circumstances. Do they all go the same way or do you know?

[@stephaniecallens2525]

I live in Birmingham and, yes, the tornadoes typically hit the same areas over and over.

[@TheWaynelds]

@@FrostmourneFK I have a similar situation in Northeast Ohio where the terrain influences the severe storms. My city is situated on the summit of a deep river valley and the more intense storms will actually change its direction to avoid the valley as if it were an object in its way. It’s only the intense/severe storms that do this though.

[@davidatkinson8515]

I hope you have a safe room in your house or an underground shelter.

[@carlmclemore6104]

@@TheWaynelds this is one of the biggest urban legends that gets destroyed over and over again in unsuspecting towns. Terrain always protect towns until they don't, then everyone acts shocked.

[@beirutvet1983]

I was traveling from Georgia to Nevada 2 days after this and we went up 78 North from Birmingham, I've lived in Georgia all my life and seen a lot of tornado damage in my life, the damage from this monster was off the scale.

[@kevindavis296]

I so remember this seeing it LIVE on The Weather Channel. It was unbelievable. It was just north behind Downtown Birmingham. It looked like an F5. How can the south take tornado seasons so early as January?

[@doppler4950]

there is more instability and updraft in the south during the late winter and spring months,,, they get chances to form due to warm gulf air and it collides with a cold front and that's how tornadoes can form during January.

[@kevindavis296]

@@doppler4950 I know. Most southern states are near the edge of warm gulf air and fronts.

[@mikexxxmilly]

I watched this all day from the cullman ef4 on. I was sitting in my bathroom just praying that it would miss me. I walked outside when it missed me and went through ohatchee/shoal creek. Crazy debris just falling from the sky. So eerie

[@titanytofficial_]

In the south, they get more heat and humidity than the north, making the air unstable as moist dry air and warn dry air combining, and thus making the air unstable and creating the huge tornadoes.

[@CrazyWeatherDude]

I was in Birmingham when that tornado appeared on the sky cam. I was only 9 years old, but I knew that thing was a killer storm. Seeing the sky cam in full view, but the tornado still bigger than the frame sent a cold chill through my spine. The continuous rumble was so deep that I could feel the intensity in my chest. I remember James Spann being speechless about the sheer size of the tornado on the BHAM skyline. His reporting was immaculate. James Spann seriously needs an official award.

[@VernoGames]

I remember watching this live from Upstate NY when I was like 14 I was instantly fascinated

[@altfactor]

I suspect the camera shooting this footage was atop Red Mountain, the highest point in greater Birmingham, which is home to the city's TV and FM transmitters as well as numerous cellphone relay towers.

[@tracyfrederick5606]

altfactor Is that were the Vulcan is in Vestavia ? I thought maybe there.

[@cynthiacollins2832]

Red Mountain footage, a bird's eye view of Birmingham.Amazing footage!

[@taratkd]

My friend we take it one day at a time. And we still flinch every time the sirens go off.

[@anAmishGuy]

They really do follow just about the same track, don't they? Smaller tornadoes sometimes hit other parts of Birmingham (a couple of EF1s knocked a bunch of trees onto houses near The Summit earlier that same day), but the big ones always seem to roll through the Pleasant Grove area.

[@realvesselgem6527]

anAmishGuy exactly

[@patricklaurojr7427]

yea I've noticed that to but mostly the big ones do there's been several f5s that's took same path if not same very close. prob has do with the geography like where cold n warm air meet with open land etc

[@roxastherogue]

This was nuts i remember going to the fancy new school down the road because ours was destroyed. Still can see the path it took outside my house.

[@msmsmsmsmsmsmsmsmsmsm]

You STILL can see the path?? I'm so sorry

[@TheOfficialOffical]

Thompson's new campus?

[@Sarahlynn1304]

Wow!

[@EclecticMuse4]

Oak Grove?

[@mrgrahamteacher]

I live 2 miles south of where this footage was taken, the inflow winds on the south side of Red Mt were amazing to feel and scary. I am also a ham radio operator and I am so very proud of the work done all the local hams in the weeks after this storm. Alabama is recovering and making its way back. Thanks for all you prayers and support keep them coming!

[@1234lavallee1]

Same tornado that went through Tuscaloosa,Alabama.

[@itzkgt2919]

1234lavallee1 yea this was the strongest in history

[@derekakaxevater2409]

GTA god TV actually it wasn’t the strongest. This tornado was a high end EF4, and the strongest on wind speed is believed to be the 1999 Bridge Creek-Moore Tornado.

[@itzkgt2919]

Kuglio Aka Fruio I have a degree in meteorology, I also storm chased this tornado 30 miles from Tuscaloosa to Birmingham. This tornado was already doing EF5 damage in Tuscaloosa. Yet it grew far bigger and it managed to travel for 2 hours as a EF5 tornado. It flattened two and three story houses. Tbh it was worse then a EF5 it was a mesocyclone (the original definition) meaning when the rotating wall cloud and the tornado merge into one that’s a TRUE MESOCYCLONE..... just listen to the fucking video they explained how powerful this tornado truly was and brought the storm all the way to the ground and it was several miles wide as the guy said. The entire storm was then a tornado.

[@kjburns3226]

GTA god TV bud if you had a degree in meteorology you wouldn’t be saying stupid things like “it was worse than EF5 it was a mesocyclone” and also saying “I storm chased this tornado 30 miles to Birmingham” when 28 of those miles were through thick wilderness and hardly any road ways were the tornado tracked.

[@thunderturtle347]

@@itzkgt2919 what about the el reno tornado

[@sherrihurst3142]

It was such a scary day! I'll never forget it..

[@katherinehaney5329]

me too and my dad was in Tuscaloosa!!!!!! I prayed and prayed that was the saddest and scarest thing ever!!!!!

[@endiacrowder3738]

I was 11 years old when this happened. I live in Michigan, but I was following this severe weather outbreak. I was fascinated with the weather, but I was also concerned for the people who where affected by this dangerous storm.

[@twyz0ne]

Its crazy how it went from a very visible nasty multi vortex Tuscaloosa tornado and drastically turned into a hellish looking 1.5 mile Birmingham wedge. That 2011 outbreak was a force to be reckoned with.

[@dannyllerenatv8635]

It grew absolutely huge. It went from a tentacle monster-looking multi-vortex to a 1.5-mile wedge. That thing was even larger than the Hackleburg tornado.

[@Hurricane0721]

Seeing a tornado that huge in the middle of nowhere out on the High Plains is one thing. However, there’s nothing more terrifying than seeing a monster tornado like that one moving straight through a highly populated area. That’s about as scary as tornadoes get right there!

[@BamaRailfan]

The damage path from this tornado is still clearly visible on Google earth 8 years later. It is a continuous line from Tuscaloosa to Birmingham just north of and parallel to I20/59.

[@kjburns3226]

Bamarailfan yeah especially in pleasant grove where you can see a big gash about a 1/2 mile wide also it’s visible in concord, McDonald chapel, Pratt city, and the Smithfield neighborhood near Interstate 65

[@michaelistheman1533]

Kane Burns I was always curious on if there is still visible damage from this outbreak today?

[@kjburns3226]

Michael Is the man yeah there is a lot of visible damage like empty lots, empty foundations where houses once stood, and since the storm went through nothing but dense forest as it exited Tuscaloosa, a large swath of leveled forest with dead trees every where. Also if you go to pleasant grove in google earth there’s a clearly visible 1/2 mile wide swath that cuts right through neighborhood

[@kjburns3226]

Michael Is the man oh and also there are many other visible paths from other tornadoes as well there is a gis/kml file where you can see most of the paths (some are cut off or missing like the Hackleburg and Rainsville tornado) www.weather.gov/source/bmx/GIS/2011/042711_AllTracks.kmz

[@michaelistheman1533]

Kane Burns I’m from Wisconsin and I remember watching this unfold on tv, I could not believe what I was witnessing all the way from Wisconsin .. it’s so crazy that there is sooo many scars from this outbreak

[@R2D2C_3po]

I have seen many videos of tornadoes. However, that is truly one of the largest and most terrifying tornadoes I have ever seen! The skyscrapers in downtown Birmingham help reveal the true scale and scope of that tornado. That tornado was absolutely massive, and was one of the most terrifying tornadoes I’ve ever seen.

[@Kevinimages]

I remember watching this on TV live. It was probably the most disheartening thing I have ever witnessed on any news channel, especially since you were witnessing a natural disaster happening live, destroying anything in it's path. I hope Tuscaloosa and everybody has recovered and still recovering are safe and ready for perhaps another year of bad weather :/

[@SRJason747]

Its not that he is zooming to nothing, he is zooming into where the tornado is. The tornado is rain-wrapped so it is hard to see. This is about the best footage they could get from this far away.

[@YourLocalUranus]

I'll let out prayers for Tuscaloosa, Birmingham, Joplin, El Reno, Moore, and Dayton Ohio Tornadoes.

[@kristystewart1274]

Why did I get this 9 years later

[@SPUPRR]

I have a peice of debris from the south west side of Birmingham that landed in my yard in Gadsden.It is a recept from Birmingham Bronze that was located about 15 miles south west of town.I am located 60 miles North of Birmingham.THe tornado passed about 8 miles south of here and took out my friend house.

[@raypratt3611]

So,this tornado was the same one that went through TUSCALOOSA??I always thought they were 2 different TORNADOS?!?!

[@TheO21790]

It was the same storm. The super cell originated in eastern Mississippi, dropped a tornado there. It crossed the state line, hit Tuscaloosa, hit Birmingham, then lifted. It dropped another tornado in the next county over and continued all the way into Georgia.

[@cynthiacollins2832]

I was a B'ham metro bus driver, I stayed home, my route was in north Birmingham, Pratt City Route 6 was wiped out when I came back.Horrible!

[@spartan7911]

This isn't the only city of Birmingham that was hit by a tornado, it also happened in the United Kingdom (2005 - EF-2)

[@danadavisrn3600]

G. T. No offense but I will take your EF-2 Over that EF-5 twister anytime! Not to say that your tornado is nothing. But you have a lot better chance surviving an EF -2. An EF-5 tornado 🌪 actually pulls asphalt off of the roads. It dismembers bodies like a sick serial killer. If you are above ground your chance of survival is maybe 1%. An EF-2 is survivable above ground as long as you take shelter in a sturdy building with interior rooms. Always wear a football or bicycle helmet to protect your head. Head injuries are the most common injuries to kill people in a tornado. I’m a trauma/ critical care Registered Nurse and have seen what these monsters can do...it’s sad when some things can be prevented!

[@spartan7911]

@@danadavisrn3600 From where I live, we get mostly EF-0 or EF-1 in Houston, Texas. That's even better!

[@fabiana7157]

@@danadavisrn3600 He was just pointing out the fact that 2 cities with the same name were hit by a tornado, which is interesting

[@PicklEmpire]

@@danadavisrn3600 wasn't this tornado rated high end EF4?

[@Kam87900]

I’ll never forget coming home from School in 6th grade watching this live!

[@sethy661]

I remember watching this Live like it was yesterday never seen a tornado rip through a city as it happened it was wild.

[@theknowitall4090]

This was rated an EF4 that caused more damage than any 4 in history. This was a 5 if there ever was one. This thing was a mile wide or greater for a couple hundred miles. A local weatherman said this, in his opinion, should have been actually an EF6 which had never been used before. El Reno had 8 deaths. This one tornado killed 64. El Reno had 151 injuries. This tornado totaled 1500 injuries. El Reno damage cost was 40 million. This tornado caused 2.4 BILLION in damage. I don't believe, in recorded tornado history, we had ever seen anything like this. This tornado absorbed the friggin wall cloud in the tornado. Dismembered body parts were found weeks after. People were sucked up in the tornado and shredded to the point that no evidence of their death was ever found. Easily the most underrated tornado in American history.

[@StevenViets2006]

Anyone else watching in 2019?

[@sassylady2001]

Yep - I live in this area and love to watch it. I remember it well.

[@GoldenHeartIncorporated]

We live near jasper this day will never be forgotten. Gives me high anxiety watching again.

[@michaelistheman1533]

Katelyn Ingle isn’t there still visible damage from this outbreak to this day?

[@GoldenHeartIncorporated]

Michael Is the man oh yeah! In many places! There were whole towns wiped off the map and places I had been all my life I could not even recognize it even ripped up roads in places couldnt tell where you were.. it was scary.

[@Christopher0184]

Watching in 2020.

[@nenblom]

That is the first time I have ever heard about a wall cloud being that close to the ground, if not on the ground. How are the people of Tuscaloosa, Birmingham and also Joplin, MO doing now?

[@Lessinath]

It's rare to have a storm that powerful so there are only a few documented cases of it.

[@bruceeigsti5274]

and to think it started near tuscaloosa and did such damage in 2 cities over 100000 people so rare and so sad

[@john90mpw]

A tornado warning is issued when there are "recognizable signs" of a tornado on radar. A tornado emergency is when a tornado is officially confirmed to be on the ground by spotters and/or meteorologists. Hope that kinda helps....

[@rosievortex2808]

Tornado emergency is when there is a confirmed tornado on the ground moving towards or in a populated area.

[@otterinbham9641]

I think it's funny that the Weather Channel thought anyone was watching them. Everybody in our area knows to watch James Spann.

[@kpopfanforever7720]

Otter InBham this was mainly for those out of that area that has family there or something

[@TheHelghast1138]

James is the man

[@itzkgt2919]

Otter InBham I was watching them

[@itzkgt2919]

Otter InBham James is good but the weather channel has Multiple chief meteorologist

[@michaelwilson1461]

It's the same way in Memphis. Everyone knew to watch Dave Brown lol

[@smoketr41]

This tornado roughly followed the same path as the 1977 F-5 Tornado and the 1998 F-5 Tornado, effecting the same communities. When the 2011 Tornado came over Fultondale, multiple witnesses stated it had multiple vortexes, and was weakening. The rotation subsided just Northeast of Fultondale over the Black Creek area.

[@ILoveOldTWC]

There was also a tornado in 1956 that followed that path in Jefferson County. You're right it subsided, and spared areas like Center Point and Trussville, but spawned another violent tornado that dropped near Argo near the Jefferson/St. Clair County border. That one went through Ohatchee, Lake Henry Neely, passed just south of Gadsden, and followed a similar path that the 1994 Palm Sunday tornado that hit the church outside of Piedmont followed.

[@jamessimms415]

Was literally in the dark in Tuscaloosa as power was cut as this storm cut the power. Knew Tuscaloosa & other places before had been hit but nothing else until 24 hours later when power to my neighborhood was restored

[@davidmatheny1993]

I watched this and James Spann's coverage from the Atlanta metro on that day. I was thinking for sure that there would be at least one strong to violent tornado in the area with how many storms were coming across Alabama that evening. I could not imagine an outbreak of this magnitude in a metro area the size of Atlanta.

[@TheTWISTEDCREECH96]

Same..imagine a tornado like this inside of 285, going through Fulton County and the suburbs..chills to think about

[@RonaldSpears-q8t]

this tornado literally envelopes the entire city from a distance imagine if it hit us like it did tuscaloosa

[@ViableNutria797]

I'm very surprised that the house that I'm living in now is still standing. Even though Hurricane Katrina didn't destroy my house, I'm still worrying about the weather down here. (I live in the Ensley community of Birmingham,AL)

[@cita_m]

I will never forget that day. Almost 10 years ago... Insulation flowed through the air in the city and surrounding areas for weeks. Random objects from different cities in your yard. Pea green skies and deadly silence. Fear, shock, violence, and destruction. I had to fly about a week later, and from above it looked like a giant hand had angrily scraped the ground.

[@slabbusterrtr7690]

Never saw it raining house parts until that day hope to never see it again very scary

[@muffs55mercury61]

A violent year for tornadoes. Not too long after this, the Joplin tornado happened. 160 killed.

[@DanielTrue16]

That spring was horrible for the entire South. I lived in Arkansas at the time and we had a lot of tornadoes that spring. First it was Alabama, and then Missouri, and then Arkansas.

[@kevindavis296]

I so remember this. It was live. Looks like it was a mile away from downtown Birmingham. All of Alabama was until a high risk for severe weather.

[@MadirdTiger91]

I still believe this was an EF5...

[@mattkowal90]

Final Rating: High-End EF4 with winds at 190 MPH. Tornadoes with that rating to a T with the winds: -Mayflower-Vilonia, Arkansas (4/27/14) -Washington, Illinois (11/17/13) -Canton, Oklahoma (5/24/11) -Goldsby, Oklahoma (5/24/11) -Ringgold, Georgia-Apinson, Tennessee (4/27/11) -Cleveland, Tennessee (4/27/11)

[@mattkowal90]

Yes I did, the damage in Birmingham was actually a lot worse than Tuscaloosa. Another one in which he and I agreed is an EF5 is definitely the 2013 El Reno event since we have proof that it was one (although it didn't hit anything when at EF5 strength) since we had measured 295 MPH legit, one source said 302 possibly. The 301 in OKC 1999 was also 318.

[@mattkowal90]

Oh yeah, the lighter the object the farther it's going to go. The famous double tornado that hit Dunlap, IN during the '65 Palm Sunday Outbreak threw an airplane wing 35 miles away. The Topeka F5 threw textbooks 60 miles out of town. Huge pieces from the Tuscaloosa-Birmingham EF4 were raining down on Birmingham when the monster was still 20 minutes away from Birmingham. Yes, some checks and papers were thrown from Joplin to the other side of Missouri, as well as Iowa, and parts of Arkansas. Even nearly 5 years later there are probably pieces that haven't been found.

[@kenperk9854]

+Matthew Kowal (Matt102490) It's so subjective and political. Politics are involved in EVERYTHING you know. Even though no evidence of EF5 damage was found in Joplin by the engineers, it was rated an EF5 because of the amount of damage it caused. That tornado did damage for a little over 20 miles. This one did catastrophic damage for around 80 miles! The politics came in here: Dr Forbes toured the damage area (and he's probably the most knowledgeable person on tornadoes and damage) and deemed it EF5. The dude that thinks he's God's gift to severe weather hear's that and isn't about to let Forbes get away with upstaging him but he has a problem. If he rates it an EF4, he will be the laughing stock of the severe weather community so thinking quickly, he comes up with "high-end EF4." Good job tim.

[@mattkowal90]

Yes I have heard of CAPE (Convective Available Potential Energy). Not only that but we had a huge amount of wind shear, instability of course, the jet stream was abnormally faster, the gulf waters were abnormally warmer, dew points were way high, and all that instability had built up over 48 hours prior to that. Conditions that only come together once every 50 years.

[@Seralious]

Was there any reason that tornadoes were so prevalent in 2011? Seriously. All of the _really_ bad ones within my recent memory happened during this year.

[@karlitosway7474]

la ninã

[@veeo987]

+Ø There was a very exceptionnal air mass. Alabama got that day the same weather conditions than those you can see in Oklahoma in May. The air mass was very unstable, but not as unstable as usual. It was incredibly unstable.

[@patrickdezenzio4988]

Can't be explained but one thing the local weather station crews knew was that this was going to be big 3 or 4 days before. The numbers they were seeing have never been seen before in any part of the world. Most times you see 2 or 3 indices perfect for tornadoes but this day had them all pegged. This is no fluke really. If you look up historical tornadoes, they all follow almost the exact same path even down to the neighborhoods. Ironically, the Interstate I-20 is a perfect track and actually is used as a boundary. Usually the worst tornadoes follow right above it and most of our snow storms seem to be stronger north of the interstate. It's all about topography. I wonder as man builds outwards, will it affect the strength and paths. We have a ton of hills and valleys in that area that range from sw to ne like gouges and tornadoes follow. So if neighborhoods are built over this land area, will it change the topography enough? One thing is for sure, I wouldn't live in those tracks. Safe and sound in Pelham, AL where we are on the south side of Oak Mountain (extreme southern edge of Birmingham metro). This small range acts as a shield and we historically have seen just 3 tiny tornadoes EF0 to EF1. Not complaining.

[@megaoldskool76]

Patrick Dezenzio You're absolutely right! I live in Birmingham (Pratt city) and we were hit HARD but now that you mention it, I've never heard of Pelham being torn up...🤔 something to think about.

[@carlahead2945]

Simplyric I share your question,Simplyric; I was about to ask that same question myself.

[@talladegajunkie1439]

Thoughts and prayers from Charlotte, NC. Godspeed recovery for Birmingham.

[@phxsunsfan56]

It was officially rated a high-end EF4 though it's been up for debate because one survey team found EF5 damage.

[@ILoveOldTWC]

I think it should've been rated an EF5. I think that damage they found that you're talking about, the buildings weren't strongly built enough to justify an EF5 rating.

[@MRAMX390]

This tornado came within a half mile of my house. We had documents from Tuscaloosa in our yard and fragments of someone's boat in the street. Very scary day for many folks.

[@carlahead2945]

Ricky Buchanan I am so happy to hear that you and your family escaped the brunt of that particular tornado. Did you guys have a basement in your house,sir? I hope so. GOD SENT HIS GUARDIAN ANGELS TO WATCH OVER YOU AND YOUR FAMILY THAT DAY SO NO HARM CAME TO YOU,YOUR FAMILY,AND EVERYONE IN ALABAMA WHO WERE AFFECTED BY THESE LIFE THREATENING TORNADOES. My heart went out everyone that day.

[@joebracy1]

Ricky Buchanan Mine too bro!

[@wdwlimelight6307]

I know a tornado recently hit Alabama. Are you ok?

[@jayneejames]

My daughter was in this, she survived. I watched on TV in Florida...felt helpless. It was so scary...so many large billboards, signs and debris all over their yard and surrounding areas.

[@alabamajenny8751]

That day was absolutely violent. It felt eerily tropical! Hot and wind like Ive never seen except at beach. We got the morning storm, it blew down a tree next door, root ball large enough to park a SUV in! Most sickening feeling watching that tornado move across Tuscaloosa and UA. Killed so many that day, state wide. I hope we never see another day like this one ever. Its a helpless feeling.

[@ubernoobly]

11 fucking years and it still feels like it just happened. ill never forget the fear and confusion. seeing my mom panic trying to get in contact with her mother as a tornado hit her house. we drove as fast as we could as the first big one hit, the road was closed and we were told another one was coming. i dont remember when the tornados stopped but i remember going back home huddled in the bathroom with my family. no power. i was 11 and worried about my parakeets being safe so i put their cage in the bathroom with the rest of the family. my grandma told me that she and my grandfather were outside watching the sky until my grandma saw "birds" flying around my grandpa told her it was debris and it was heading straight for them. they hid in a closet and prayed. I will also never forget how a community who lost everything came together to help anyone and everyone!!!

[@ubernoobly]

looorddd i forgot i was at school when it initially started!! my teachers were brave but terrified, we did NOT do the tornado drill where huddle in the hallway and cover. we sat in the bathrooms away from any windows 🤣 i remember my class was in the boys bathroom and it was terrible!!! one teacher watched the weather while the other one was making sure everyone got home. i do believe at some point teachers drove students home too.

[@darkknightdelta2880]

I live in Virginia so I was nowhere near this thank God. But I remember watching all of this on TWC. It was scary.

[@lindaminaga2649]

PDS❓ WAS that phrase not in the weather reporting language at that time.

[@badwater]

Yes, a PDS watch was in effect for the area when this tornado occurred.

[@KansasStormChaser]

It's amazing that I watched this live.

[@susanherrin1217]

And lived to tell the tale!

[@janminor1848]

I will never forget this day. I had back surgery the day before at Brookwood Medical. Patients were evacuated into the hallway and the hospital went on emergency generator backup power. Very scary! I remember looking to the large window at the end of the hallway and all you could see was a fog of gray, purple, green and black. I overheard 2 nurses passing in the hallway in a panic stating that the tornado that hit Tuscaloosa was heading straight for us. I took that opportunity to slip off, take the elevator to the bottom floor. (That's right, not 24 hours after back surgery) Nobody was paying attention to me in the lobby, and l took that opportunity to go down a hallway and located an empty interior doctor/patient conference room without windows. I went inside, closed the door, and rode the storm out in there. Very scary day!!

[@brittthomas7618]

I remember this day like I remember 9/11.. exactly 1 month before I graduated high school.

[@floodescapeguy8063]

I was watching this in dallas and I was hoping everyone was safe.

[@MarkMeadows90]

The Phil Campbell/Hackleburg tornado was a rough one. It ended up dissipating after it crossed over into Harvest, AL right in the same area as the Anderson Hills tornado back in 1995. I was at work at the time when that tornado came through and dissipated. I was in Huntsville and all I remember was the power going out, not knowing how bad this outbreak was really going to be. I was sent home early afterwards. Came home to an eerie sight going through Harvest. Downed power lines, and damage and debris spread everywhere. RIP to those who perished in these storms.

[@Swampzoid]

Thoughts and prayers from San Francisco to the people effected by this massive and horrifying storm.

[@shortyd999]

I was at work that day in downtown Birmingham in the att building watching it on my iPad. We were down in the basement of the building. Scary day, very scary day.

[@tiffanyrobinson9366]

Do we need to evacuate

[@VideOH]

The folks at The Weather Channel really need to compile and upload the entire day of coverage from April 27, 2011 -- This is one of the few 16:9 videos available from the day, and The Weather Channel could monetize on it, considering how significant this day was for so many people, and for Science.

[@Disassociated2]

April 27th, 2011 was the worst tornado outbreak in the us, taking place mostly in Alabama. I pray for anyone who went through these dark times, and hope that this situation helped us grow strong. I don’t live anywhere near Alabama, but I’m praying still for those who lived through these dark times and pay respects to those who went through these horrible tornados. Stay safe!

[@boogitybear2283]

As bad it was that day in Alabama, Joplin Missouri the next month was worse. I always remember both Tuscaloosa and Joplin at once.

[@sylviaross5486]

Yeah, dude, that "hill" you're talking about is Red Mountain. I used to live on the side of it. You could see all the storms from miles around.

[@GuardinAngelSarah]

I saw this when it actually happened and I live a couple of counties down from Montgomery. I feel so bad for all of those people. I know their gonna be alright and we're all gonna get back up on our feet again

[@ILoveOldTWC]

Troy area? Be glad it missed you to the north. I've watched some of WSFA's coverage and Rich Thomas was warning that south central Alabama wasn't in the clear just yet, even though he expected the worst of it to remain north. He was right, as Eclectic and Lake Martin got hit.

[@waynestewart1919]

Wow! I knew that two tornadoes had come in the city limits. However, I didn't realize that it was a mere ten minutes from my house! (Aprox 7-8 at its calculated velocity)

[@Renrutdahc]

I’ll never forbet this outbreak, peak of my meteorology passion, I was glued to the screen watching this, when I realized how wide that tornado was I’ll never forget the feeling I got in my stomach knowing how bad that was going to be

[@tarandajones2154]

My husband and I came down a week later from Tennessee...I just burst into tears...we saw a house with only the porch stairs and rail, the house was gone, I mean gone, to the foundation!!...several houses like doll houses with the front not bad but back completely gone and you could see some of the furniture still intact, china cabinets not touched...trees like someone just broke them off at the tops, glass everywhere...the weirdest we saw was an apartment building, roof, sides, windows, totally destroyed except for the balcony, where 2 patio chairs and a small table was still there...

[@mws755]

At the time of this video I was inside the AT&T building. Not the large one but the one with the white tower on the far left on the video .The tornado was so large I didn't even know that it was the tornado at the time. I thought that was just dark clouds all in the sky

[@nmulae]

Something tells me this was probably what the Great Tri-State Tornado of 1925 probably looked like. Even though there are no photos, film footage, or surviving sketches of it, this tornado pretty much matches that of the Tri-State tornado’s appearance being that it looks like a big grayish-black looking fog bank or boiling clouds on the ground. Although it didn’t travel as long, I sometimes even ask could this be somewhat of the Tri-State Tornado’s return?

[@mkl62]

Some thought that the 1925 tornado was a big dust storm. Even weather wise residents and farmers were fooled.

[@xpy1]

What year was this

[@haileyrblx8845]

This tornado went into my home tuscaloosa. I regretted everything that day and hated my life that year.

[@michaelnelson9211]

You didn't do anything. ☹

[@GillFan26]

Hard to believe that this happened 2 years ago.

[@chadmartin7879]

that will be a day that will go down in history

[@isaiahsoma]

And on multiple occasions there have been multiple spotters reporting tornadoes over cities and farm buildings that resulted in nothing more than the words "Storm spotters reported a tornado on the ground near..." and nothing else was made of it until after the damage reports came in.(Ex."School heavily damaged in Northwood","Farm building destroyed near Campbell")

[@kenperk9854]

Tuscaloosa/Birmingham tornado that caused catastrophic damage for more than EIGHTY MILES not 20 or so like most tornadoes: The home at bottom right was likely the one mentioned in the NWS survey as having been swept completely away near Holt Peterson Drive. The house was obliterated in EF5 fashion, but tree damage nearby was not consistent with winds of EF5 intensity. By saying the well-built large home that was swept completely away wasn't EF5 damage because some nearby tree damage didn't measure up is obvious proof of intentionally underrating a tornado. Unless tiny tim fell on her head and and forgot, these destructive tornadoes were almost all multi-vortex which means a house can be destroyed while a tree ten yards away suffers little damage. I'll never forget the live chicken found in a narrow neck gallon jug after a tornado, UNINJURED! Tornado damage can be very bizarre just as marshal's conclusions. The tornado was a mile wide as it passed through this area. Due to the mountainous terrain, the damage pattern became complex and erratic. *****Less than a mile northeast of this area, the tornado destroyed a railroad bridge and hurled a 34 ton (68 THOUSAND POUNDS) steel support-truss 100ft uphill.***** After exiting the Tuscaloosa metropolitan area, *****the tornado plowed through 35 miles of unpopulated forestland. Aerial imagery of tree damage suggests that the tornado maintained EF4+ intensity and widened to over a mile in width.***** Very few tornadoes maintain peak intensity for more than a few miles, nevertheless the tornado encountered a coal yard rail depot about 40 miles away, southwest of Pleasant Grove, overturning all but two of the heavy cars. *****One car, which weighed 36 tons (72 THOUSAND POUNDS), was hurled 120 yards!. Eyewtiness statements suggest the car was thrown in one toss and not rolled (Knupp et al., 2012). This is the longest distance a railroad car has ever been moved by a tornado and possible evidence of EF5 winds.***** Damage in the suburbs of Birmingham also reached borderline EF5 intensity, particularly in a narrow swath of devastation through Concord but I'm sure tiny tim found some flowers that weren't sufficiently molested. Now if getting some 100 pound concrete stops, which 9 times out of 10 aren't even anchored, thrown around warrants EF5 then wouldn't you think a tornado that destroyed a railroad bridge and hurled a 36 ton (68 THOUSAND POUNDS) steel support-truss 100ft uphill and then 45 miles later overturned all but two of the heavy cars and hurled a 36 ton (72 THOUSAND POUNDS) rail car ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY YARDS HAD TO BE stronger? Politics... POLITICS. norman does NOT want to share tornado research funding with Southern states so tim marshal, at every opportunity, downgraded the tornadoes of April 27, 2011. A great source: extremeplanet.me/2012/07/31/was-the-tuscaloosa-tornado-an-ef5-examining-aerial-damage-photographs/

[@AlekaJ1003]

BRING THE OLD WEATHER CHANNEL BACK!

[@ianat841]

They say the great Tri-State tornado of 1925 didn't look like a tornado but like a rolling mass of dark clouds, and thus people didn't realize what was happening until too late. I'm guessing this is what the Tri-State tornado looked like.

[@christinab.2864]

Do you think they did away with the TOR:CON at the weather channel?

[@randallcarney1216]

The 1998 tornado followed nearly the same path leveled everything just like the 2011 one!

[@xlwolfshirt]

Wow, it's pretty rare to see the Weather Channel cover current weather these days. I expected a rerun of "When Weather Changed History" to be on instead.

[@finisher3x]

If they're running reruns of weather related TV shows, that's a good thing. That means that there are no catastrophic storms to be covered.

[@joestl314]

Where would I find this type of doppler radar? The amount of detail in these images is amazing! I'm so sick of seeing them same cheesing looking doppler radar on local news stations. Any advice would be great!

[@isaiahsoma]

Well, sometimes no tornado warning will be issued and some tornado damage will be occurring. About a month ago there was an EF2 tornado that tracked for 18 miles northeast of Fargo, ND and no tornado warning was ever issued. The whole reason the NWS even went to do a damage survey out there was because there were multiple wind damage reports.

[@lolmetswhathappeneduhhh2029]

Looks like the entire mesocyclone was down on the ground like they said. Incredible and utterly terrifying.

[@TheBreadman904]

remember watching this live

[@harryprater9014]

Myself and my oldest son were in Hazel Green AL...We had canceled checks and insulation floating down into our yard. Then about 10 min. later ...one tornado passed us 1/2 mile south and another 1/2 mile north, they went on north to Tn.