The February 28, 2017 tornado
EF4Perry, Randolph, Jackson and Franklin counties, Illinois and Missouri
An EF4 tornado on a 53.5-mile path that killed 1 and injured 12. It was one of 30 tornadoes recorded in the U.S. that day, 4 of them rated F3/EF3 or stronger.
Watch how it happenedEF4 tornado · February 28, 2017
How it happened
Follow the tornado’s path, minute by minute.
The tornado
- Rating
- EF4
- Enhanced Fujita scale
- Path length
- 53.5 mi
- Width up to 1,100 yards
- Killed
- 1
- Along the whole path
- Injured
- 12
- Along the whole path
- Date and time
- Tuesday, February 28, 2017
- 7:51 PM CST
The National Weather Service account
Written by the local Weather Service office after its damage survey.
This large and violent tornado touched down about four miles west of Perryville. The tornado quickly became violent, reaching EF-4 intensity and leveling five homes just west of Interstate 55, about 3.5 miles northwest of Perryville. Numerous unoccupied cars from a salvage yard were blown into or over Interstate 55. The lone fatality occurred when a southbound vehicle on Interstate 55 was intercepted by the tornado. The victim's pickup truck was tossed into a field at least 100 yards from the interstate. The coroner reported that the victim was thrown from the vehicle and died at the scene. The passenger in the vehicle was treated for minor injuries at a local hospital. The area of greatest home and property destruction was three miles north of Perryville, in the vicinity of U.S. Highway 61. Maximum wind speeds were estimated near 180 mph in the vicinity of Interstate 55 and also near U.S. Highway 61. The damage path showed multiple vortex characteristics with ground striations and scarring to bare ground. At least 100 homes were damaged or destroyed in Perry County, mostly on the northern outskirts of Perryville. Most persons in the tornado's path took shelter in their basements. All twelve tornado injuries occurred in Perry County, where the tornado was at its strongest. At least one couple was trapped in their basement until rescuers removed debris. As the tornado approached the Mississippi River, multiple ground striations were noted in a farm field, indicative of multiple vortices. The maximum path width was over one-half mile shortly before the tornado crossed the Mississippi River into Randolph County, Illinois.
The storm system that day
Isolated supercell thunderstorms developed across southeast Missouri during the evening hours. The storms developed ahead of a cold front in a destabilizing air mass characterized by dew points in the lower to mid 60's. The most intense supercell storm awaited the approach of a mid-level impulse from Oklahoma, which was downstream from the primary shortwave trough over the southern Plains. The supercell produced a violent tornado in Perry County. A southwesterly low-level jet increased substantially during the evening, creating favorable conditions for tornadoes. Outside of the thunderstorm activity, some of the southwest winds aloft mixed down to the surface in the form of isolated gusts from 40 to 45 mph.
NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database.
Counties on its path
Storm Prediction Center severe weather database. Path drawn as a straight line from the recorded start to end point.