← Back to Dashboard
March 17, 2021 · Montgomery County · 2021
EF0

March 17, 2021

9:43 PM
Montgomery County, Alabama · Near Montgomery (ZIP 36043)
Fatalities
0
Injuries
0
Path Length
0.3 mi
Max Width
140 yd
DateMarch 17, 2021
Time9:43 PM
CountyMontgomery
CityMontgomery
Property Loss$0
Crop Loss$0
SourceNCEI 945132
NWS Birmingham

4 NNW Pine Level A tornado touched down briefly on the east side of Highway 231 on the north side of Pine Level. The tornado produced damage on a farmstead, uprooting trees in the front yard, destroying a playhouse and trampoline. A tree fell on the house, damaging the roof. Additional structural damage was also noted to the roof mainly in form of shingle loss. The tornado continued northeast across the farm property uprooting mainly softwood trees with some sporadic snapping of trees along its path. The tornado lifted abruptly near the back pastureland. The tornado damage path was 0.30 miles long and was 140 yards wide. The maximum winds were estimated around 80 mph. Start: 32.1279/-86.0797 End: 32.1306/-86.0756

NWS EF Scale: F0

Event Narrative

National Weather Service meteorologists surveyed damage in eastern Montgomery County and determined that it was consistent with an EF0 tornado, with maximum winds near 80 mph. The short-lived tornado touched down on the east side of Highway 231 just north of County Road 72. The tornado produced damage on a farmstead, uprooting trees in the front yard, destroying a playhouse and trampoline. A tree fell on the house, damaging the roof. Additional structural damage was also noted to the roof mainly in form of shingle loss. The tornado continued northeast across the property uprooting mainly softwood trees with some sporadic snapping of trees along its path. The tornado lifted near the back pastureland.

Episode Narrative

An active southern jet stream set-up across the southern United States during the middle of March. Several short-wave troughs became negatively tilted as each one traversed across Texas and towards Alabama. This resulted in a single hail event one Monday, March 15, and significant tornado outbreak on Wednesday, March 17. Many supercells began to develop across Central Alabama by midday Wednesday and continued into the evening hours before a squall line moved through the state. Sufficient instability and strong wind shear produced conditions favorable for tornadoes to develop. The event consisted of twenty-one tornadoes in the NWS Birmingham forecast area.

Outbreak Context

Part of 21-tornado outbreak on March 17, 2021

Shared Episode Narrative

An active southern jet stream set-up across the southern United States during the middle of March. Several short-wave troughs became negatively tilted as each one traversed across Texas and towards Alabama. This resulted in a single hail event one Monday, March 15, and significant tornado outbreak on Wednesday, March 17. Many supercells began to develop across Central Alabama by midday Wednesday and continued into the evening hours before a squall line moved through the state. Sufficient instability and strong wind shear produced conditions favorable for tornadoes to develop. The event consisted of twenty-one tornadoes in the NWS Birmingham forecast area.

Source Data
NCEI Event ID: 945132

See Also

0.3 mi140 yd wide