The Tornado Chronicles: Bodock Farms, AL (Near Montgomery) Tornado of December 25, 2012

A strong tornado touched down just to the Southwest of Mongtomery, AL, in the Bodock Farms area of Lowndes County on Christmas Day 2012.  

According to the National Weather Service (NWS) survey, the tornado touched down at approximately 8:32 pm CST about 2 miles Northwest of Hayneville and traveled North/Northeast for 9.55 miles before lifting at approximately 8:46 pm about 7 miles West of the Montgomery Regional Airport:

The maximum intensity of the tornado according to the damage survey was EF-2, with winds estimated at 120 mph.

Hundreds of trees and several power poles were bent or snapped as the tornado initially touched down and crossed State Highway 97 to the Northwest of Hayneville:

The EF-2 intensity damage took place at a farm as the tornado crossed U.S. Highway 80 to the East of Lowndesboro.  Here, two large cattle barns were heavily damaged or destroyed, including the metal supports being bent and/or collapsed:

The tornado also lofted a large steel trash dumpster and threw it approximately 250 yards across Highway 80.  Debris from the farm was found over 1/4 of a mile to the North/Northeast.

Most of the remainder of the damage along the tornado's path was EF-0 or EF-1 intensity, associated with damage to trees and/or tree limbs.  There was a roof that was partially removed on a manufactured home just to the Northeast of where the EF-2 damage took place:

The tornado lifted just to the North of the entrance to the old GE Plastics plant along CR-37.  The tornado flipped several empty semi-trailers on the property before lifting just to the North of Gate 1, to the East of CR-37.

Just like most of the other tornadoes associated with the Christmas Day 2012 outbreak, no photos or videos of the actual tornado have been provided thus far.  We'll continue to keep our eyes open and post any updates as new information is discovered.

This EF-2 tornado was the 3rd in a series of tornadoes that were produced by the same supercell thunderstorm.  The other two tornadoes were weak and very short lived.  The first touched down near Farmersville (EF-1 intensity) at 8:09 pm and the second touched down to the East of Mosses (EF-0 intensity) at 8:26 pm:

After producing the third, strongest (EF-2) and longest track tornado at Bodock Farms, the same supercell thunderstorm continued to exhibit strong signs of rotation on radar as it moved Northeast across the Northwest side of the city of Montgomery (white circled area on the wind velocity radar images below):

Fortunately, despite the strong radar indication of a tornado, no touch downs were reported as the storm moved into the much more heavily populated suburbs of northwestern Montgomery.

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The Tornado Chronicles: Troy, AL Tornado of December 25, 2012

The tornado that tracked to the West and Northwest of Troy, AL (also dubbed the "Conecuh River Tornado") on Christmas Day 2012 has been rated at a maximum of EF-2 intensity by the National Weather Service (NWS) survey team.

The videographer didn't do a very good job of steadying the camera at several instances, but here is a thorough aerial documentation of the tornado's path that has been posted on YouTube:

According to the survey, the tornado initially touched down at approximately 10:24 pm CST just over 1 mile West of Goshen and lifted at approximately 10:40 pm CST about 5 miles North of Troy:

The most intense damage along the tornado's path took place along County Road 11, about 2.75 miles North/Northeast of Goshen.  This is where the EF-2 intensity damage was observed by the survey team, which included mobile homes that were rolled and destroyed by the tornado:

EF-2 damage was also noted along County Road 1101, where several brick veneer homes were significantly damaged:

The tornado then weakened as it continued Northeast, producing mainly EF-0 to EF-1 intensity damage to trees before lifting near County Road 103:

Just like the majority of the other tornadoes that took place on Christmas Day 2012, there are no known photos or videos of the tornado itself that have come forward to date.  We'll continue to be on the lookout and post any new information and/or photos as they become available.

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The Tornado Chronicles: Pennington, TX Tornado of December 25, 2012

The first tornado of the Christmas Day 2012 Outbreak was a strong one that impacted a mostly rural area (thank Goodness) to the Northwest of Pennington, TX during the morning hours.

The National Weather Service (NWS) ground survey detected EF-3 intensity damage, with maximum winds estimated at 150 mph.  The tornado reached a maximum width of 300 yards, and was on the ground for approximately 7 miles.

The tornado initially touched down at approximately 9:25 am CST, about 5 miles West/Southwest of Pennington.  It then traveled in a general Northeasterly direction for approximately 7 miles before lifting at 9:35 a.m. CST, about 2 miles North of Pennington:

The worst of the damage took place along Highway 287, approximately one mile Northwest of Pennington.  This is where the EF-3 damage was observed, with a metal building system completely destroyed:

The following YouTube video shows additional damage in this same general vicinity along Highway 287:

Otherwise, several mobile homes were heavily damaged along the path of the tornado, with mostly EF-1 and EF-2 intensity damage noted.

Just before the tornado lifted just to the North of Pennington, it rolled and destroyed a travel trailer, thankfully, no one was injured:

Just like the majority of the other tornadoes that took place on Christmas Day 2012, there are no known photos or videos of the tornado itself that have come forward to date.  We'll continue to be on the lookout and post any new information and/or photos as they become available.

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The Tornado Chronicles: Monticello, MS Tornado of December 25, 2012

A strong tornado tracked just to the West and Northwest of Monticello, MS (Lawrence County) during the mid to late afternoon hours of Christmas Day, 2012.

The National Weather Service (NWS) ground survey rated this tornado EF-2 intensity, with maximum winds estimated at 120 mph.  Approximately 7 people were injured as a result of this tornado, which reached a maximum width of one-quarter mile.

The tornado initially touched down at approximately 3:35 pm CST, 8.25 miles West/Southwest of Monticello.  It then tracked generally toward the Northeast for approximately 9.2 miles before lifting 1.5 mile North of Monticello at approximately 3:44 pm CST:

The tornado initially produced damage mainly to trees and some minor damage to roof shingles:

As it tracked Northeast toward James Cox road, the tornado widened to nearly 1/4 mile, and took off a portion of the roof of at least 1 home:

The width of the tornado decreased as it approached Highway 84, but the tornado intensified, producing EF-2 intensity damage to several mobile homes and travel trailers which were lifted off the ground and thrown back down to be completely destroyed (photo via examiner.com):

This area of enhanced damage is also where the 7 injuries took place (which required hospitalization - there were likely other minor injuries as well).  A small business in the area also had substantial roof damage and two exterior walls were blown down (photo not available as of this writing).

The tornado then decreased in intensity as it traveled Northeast beyond Highway 84, producing mainly light tree damage before lifting to the North of Monticello.

Just like the majority of the other tornadoes that took place on Christmas Day 2012, there are no known photos or videos of the tornado itself that have come forward to date.  We'll continue to be on the lookout and post any new information and/or photos as they become available.

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The Tornado Chronicles: Riderwood, AL Tornado of December 25, 2012

A short lived but strong tornado touched down near the Community of Riderwood in Choctaw County, Alabama during the late afternoon hours of Christmas Day, 2012.  The tornado was rated EF-2 intensity with maximum winds estimated within the 111-135 mph range.

The National Weather Service (NWS) survey of this tornado notes a starting point along Pineview Road near Riderwood, or about 8 miles West/Southwest of Butler, AL, around 4:45 pm CST.  The tornado then traveled generally toward the Northeast for 6 miles, lifting approximately 4.6 miles Northwest of Butler, AL at about 4:56 pm CST.  

The tornado produced EF-2 damage very near where it first touched down, with 3 manufactured homes completely destroyed.  One of the homes rolled over and the debris was carried several hundred yards away:

The tornado then continued to the Northeast and mainly caused EF-0 or EF-1 intensity damage to trees and some power lines:

Fortunately, the tornado became almost one-half mile wide as it crossed Riderwood Drive in a very rural area, shortly before dissipating.  Had the tornado tracked just over 3 miles to the East at that point, it would have dealt a potentially devastating blow to the town of Butler.

Just like the majority of the other tornadoes that took place on Christmas Day 2012, there are no known photos or videos of the tornado itself that have come forward to date.  We'll continue to be on the lookout and post any new information and/or photos as they become available.

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The Tornado Chronicles: Grove Hill, AL Tornado of December 25, 2012...

Another long track tornado took place in association with the Christmas Day Tornado Outbreak of 2012.  This one touched down near Grove Hill, AL, and caused damage up to EF-2 intensity along its 30 mile path.

According to the National Weather Service (NWS) storm damage survey, the tornado initially touched down 8 miles Southwest of Grove Hill, then tracked Northeast for approximately 30 miles before lifting 12 miles Southwest of Camden, AL.  The tornado was on the ground for approximately 40 minutes, and had a maximum damage path width of 150 yards.

Most of the damage associated with this tornado was of EF-0 to EF-1 intensity and mainly consisted of extensive damage to trees (including some older hardwoods that were completely uprooted) and small outbuildings:

The damage that warranted the EF-2 intensity rating is not shown, but was described as being located about 6 miles Southwest of Grove Hill along Highway 43.  Extensive damage was caused to farm equipment in this area, and a grain bin was completely destroyed.  This resulted in the maximum estimated wind speed of 111-135 mph that was assigned to this tornado.

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The Tornado Chronicles: Pearl River County, MS Tornado of December 25, 2012...

Of all of the tornadoes associated with the Christmas Day Tornado Outbreak of 2012, the longest tracked and most intense has been dubbed the "Pearl River County Tornado".  It gets its name from the county in which it initially touched down in extreme southern Mississippi.  

According to the National Weather Service's (NWS) ground surveys, this tornado initially touched down about 2.75 miles Southwest of the town of McNeil, and tracked approximately 61 miles to the Northeast before lifting near the town of McLain in western Greene County, MS (click to enlarge):

This tornado was on the ground for nearly 90 minutes, from 3:10 pm until approximately 4:34 p.m. CST.  

The maximum damage path width associated with the tornado was about 175 yards, with EF-3 intensity damage (estimated winds of around 140 mph) found along Joe Smith Road and Sones Chapel Rd. near McNeil, MS:

As you can see in the photo above, all but 2 small portions of an interior wall collapsed on this home which was made of a wood frame with brick veneer, providing the basis for the EF-3 intensity rating of the tornado.

There was extensive damage classified within the EF-2 intensity category from just Southwest of McNeil to just northeast of McNeil, as shown in the damage photos below (from the NWS survey):

From there, the tornado weakened after crossing Highway 11, causing mostly EF-0 to EF-1 intensity damage to trees and damage to some roofs:

The damage survey in Pearl County indicated that 22 homes were completely destroyed, 8 homes had major damage and 25 homes had minor damage.  Approximately 8 people were injured, but none seriously thank goodness.  

The tornado reintensified to EF-2 intensity near Red Hill Church Road along the Pear River / Stone County lines, and produced fairly extensive EF-2 damage as it crossed Will Lee Road in Stone County.  Several mobile homes were completely destroyed at this point along the tornado's path, with much of the debris completely carried away:

Shortly after crossing Will Lee Road in Stone County, the tornado weakened once again, producing mostly EF-0 and EF-1 intensity damage, mainly in the form of downed trees and tree limbs along much of its track through Forrest County.

By the time the tornado reached extreme northeast Forrest County, approaching the Perry County line, it began producing EF-2 intensity damage once again near the intersection of Pap Armstrong Road and Jay Bailey Road.  This included the snapping of utility poles as well as complete to near complete destruction of several mobile homes:

As the tornado crossed the Perry County line, it caused mainly EF-0 to low end EF-1 damage to trees until it reached the State Highway 29 and Lula Cooley Road areas in the northeast part of the county.  Here, additional utility poles were snapped in half or completely uprooted and extensive EF-2 damage was done to additional mobile homes in the area:

The tornado then weakened back to EF-0 to low end EF-1 intensity, mainly causing damage to trees and tree limbs as it crossed the Greene County line and lifted just to the North/Northeast of the town of McLain.

Despite the fact that the tornado was on the ground for nearly 90 minutes and crossed I-59 as well as Highway 49 in Mississippi, no photos or videos of the tornado itself have been revealed so far.  We will be sure to post any updates, including photos of the actual tornado, if and when they become available...

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