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1 1 (November 26, 2024)

handle is hein.crs/goverki0001 and id is 1 raw text is: Tornadoes: Background and Forecasting Tornadoes are narrow, violently rotating columns of air, c SS a extending from the base of a thunderstorm to the ground. Experts estimat They affect communities across the United States every examining the year. Tornadoes can cause fatalities and injuries, destroy actual wind spe property and crops, and disrupt businesses. For example, a estimation met weather system on April 25-28, 2024, produced over 150 three decades, tornadoes (Figure 1), high winds, and large hail; it caused and adoption o multiple deaths and injuries across parts of the Midwest and scale, or EF-sc South, according to preliminary estimates from the National types of damag Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). structures, and Tornadoes have been reported on all continents except Antarctica. They occur most commonly in North America, EF Number particularly in the United States, which reports approximately 1,200 tornadoes per year based on official 0 data dating back to the 1950s. Tornadoes occur across the United States but form frequently in three regions: (1) 2 southern plains (e.g., Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas), (2) Gulf 3 Coast (e.g., Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi), and (3) northern plains and upper Midwest (e.g., North and South Dakota, Nebraska, Iowa, Minnesota). Although tornadoes can form at any time, they occur mostly during Source: NOAA, spring and summer and usually during the late afternoon or Tornado Damage. earlyNotes: EF = Enha Updated November 26, 2024 e the strength or wind speed of a tornado by damage it caused rather than by measuring eds during an event. The Fujita, or F-scale, hod, developed in 1971, was used for over but its limitations prompted the development f a new scale in 2007, called the enhanced F- ale (Table 1). The EF-scale uses 28 different e indicators, such as building type, trees. Table I. Enhanced F-Scale 3-Second Gust (mph) 65-85 86-110 S111-135 136-165 166-200 Over 200 Storm Prediction Center, Enhanced F Scale for nced F-scale. A 3-second gust is estimated at the point of damage based on the EF-scale's 28 damage indicators. The 3- second gust is not equivalent to wind speed measured in standard surface observations. Figure I. U.S. Tornadoes Daily Count and Running Annual Trend (as of November 25, 2024) 1 120, - - U r) 1800 1600 1400 1200 1000,0 U 600 400 200 0 L -cfI-~ -reu- -ridI - -Ap- -mady- Jy1ul ul .ky -L- -VV--t'- Source: NOAA, Storm Prediction Center (SPC), Daily Counts and Annual Running Trend, November 25, 2024. Notes: The 2024 U.S. daily occurrence and trend for preliminary tornadoes is shown in red, and the average daily and annual trend (2005- 2015) is shown in gray. Because tornado reports come into forecast centers quickly, the trend for preliminary tornadoes reflects an estimate of the number of tornadoes. The National Climate Data Center and SPC analyze these reports to produce a final count, which may lower the count in cases where a tornado is reported more than once (NOAA, National Severe Storms Laboratory, The Relationship Between Preliminary and Final Tornado Reports, February 13, 2009).

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