The February 2, 2007 tornado
EF3Lake and Volusia counties, Florida
An EF3 tornado on a 26.0-mile path that killed 13 and injured 51. It was one of 5 tornadoes recorded in the U.S. that day, 3 of them rated F3/EF3 or stronger.
Watch how it happenedEF3 tornado · February 2, 2007
How it happened
Follow the tornado’s path, minute by minute.
The tornado
- Rating
- EF3
- Enhanced Fujita scale
- Path length
- 26.0 mi
- Width up to 450 yards
- Killed
- 13
- Along the whole path
- Injured
- 51
- Along the whole path
- Date and time
- Friday, February 2, 2007
- 3:37 AM EST
The National Weather Service account
Written by the local Weather Service office after its damage survey.
The mesocyclone that produced the Lady Lake tornado reintensified and produced a second F3 tornado in a rural area west southwest of Paisley. The tornado move east northeast at over 50 MPH toward the Lake Mack area just west of the St. Johns river. The tornado produced a quarter mile wide track across the Lake Mack area destroying 86 residences and damaging 144. Many mobile homes were completely destroyed. Thirteen people died in mobile homes.
The storm system that day
A series of powerful tornadoes swept across Sumter, Lake and Volusia counties during the early morning hours of February 2, 2007. A discontinuous swath of tornado damage was observed from near Wildwood in Sumter County to the town of Lady Lake (Lake County) to New Smyrna Beach (Volusia County). This was a distance of over 70 miles. A total of 21 fatalities occurred within Lake County. Central Florida was located in the warm sector ahead of an advancing cold front. Large scale lift was supported by a very strong jet aloft, with strong vertical shear. Instability increased overnight with temperatures and dew points increasing through the pre-dawn hours. A single long-tracked supercell thunderstorm traveled from Sumter County to the coastal waters of Volusia County during the early morning hours of February 2, 2007. Three tornadoes touched down along this track.
NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database.
Counties on its path
Other notable tornadoes that day
- EF3, Lake County8 killed
Storm Prediction Center severe weather database. Path drawn as a straight line from the recorded start to end point.