The March 2, 2012 tornado
EF3Menifee, Morgan, Lawrence, Johnson, Wayne and Lincoln counties, Kentucky and West Virginia
An EF3 tornado on a 85.0-mile path that killed 10 and injured 118. It was one of 70 tornadoes recorded in the U.S. that day, 10 of them rated F3/EF3 or stronger.
Watch how it happened Part of the outbreak of March 2, 2012: 70 tornadoes in 11 statesEF3 tornado · March 2, 2012
How it happened
Follow the tornado’s path, minute by minute.
The tornado
- Rating
- EF3
- Enhanced Fujita scale
- Path length
- 85.0 mi
- Width up to 1,580 yards
- Killed
- 10
- Along the whole path
- Injured
- 118
- Along the whole path
- Date and time
- Friday, March 2, 2012
- 5:39 PM EST
The National Weather Service account
Written by the local Weather Service office after its damage survey.
A storm damage survey team from the National Weather Service Forecast Office in Jackson, Kentucky confirmed that an EF-3 tornado occurred in Menifee County on March 2, 2012. The tornado touched down on Tarr Ridge about 2 miles southwest of Mariba at 539 pm EST. The tornado then tracked east-northeast crossing highway 77 and causing extensive damage to several homes. The most extensive damage in Menifee County occurred on Opossum Hollow Road, where several structures were destroyed including a brick house which was totally destroyed except for the basement. The tornado crossed highway 460 just southeast of Wellington and continued into Morgan County. Two fatalities occurred in Menifee County as a direct result of the tornado. One other fatality occurred due to a fall down stairs in the clean-up effort following the tornado.
The storm system that day
During the afternoon and evening hours of March 2nd, 2012, an historic tornado outbreak occurred in eastern Kentucky. Tornadoes struck Menifee, Morgan, Bath, Wolfe, Laurel, Johnson and Martin Counties causing a combined 16 deaths in those counties. The hardest hit areas were West Liberty in Morgan county, Salyersville in Magoffin county, and East Bernstadt in Laurel county. One of the strongest tornadoes in this outbreak, rated at EF-3 with winds estimated at 140 mph, caused extensive damage in Menifee and Morgan counties. This tornado killed 2 people in Menifee county and took an additional 6 lives in Morgan county. The town of West Liberty was particularly hard hit, with every building in the downtown area suffering some degree of damage. Several homes were swept off their foundations. ||A second EF-3 tornado touched down in extreme southeast Wolfe County and cut a path of damage across portions of Magoffin, Johnson, and Martin Counties. This twister was at its most intense strength in Magoffin and Johnson Counties, with winds estimated at 160 mph. This tornado caused catastrophic damage in parts of Salyersville. This second tornado killed 2 people in Johnson County. ||A third strong tornado caused extensive damage in and near the community of East Bernstadt in Laurel County. This tornado was rated at EF-2 and caused 6 fatalities. Most of these deaths occurred when several trailer homes were picked up and destroyed by the tornado. ||An EF-1 tornado was also confirmed in Bath County. This tornado caused extensive damage to trees, farm buildings and residences along its track. Fortunately, no deaths or injuries occurred as a result of this tornado. ||The storms that occurred on March 2nd also produced very large hail. Reports were received of hailstones as big as baseballs. Extensive damage to trees and structures due to thunderstorm wind gusts also occurred. To top it all off, the heavy rain produced by the large and powerful thunderstorms lead to flash flooding in several counties where tornadoes also occurred.
NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database.
Counties on its path
Other notable tornadoes that day
- EF4, Washington County11 killed
- EF4, Grant County4 killed
- EF2, Laurel County6 killed
Storm Prediction Center severe weather database. Path drawn as a straight line from the recorded start to end point.