Damage assessment teams are still sifting through destruction left in the wake of a tornado that struck east New Orleans on Tuesday. The tornado’s devastating winds swept through the 9th Ward community, damaging hundreds of homes and businesses.
Residents of the 9th Ward of New Orleans are no strangers to severe storms, having suffered the brunt of Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and extensive flooding last year. Luckily, out of the nearly 3 dozen injuries reported, only 5 were listed as serious and all but 2 of those injured individuals had been released from the hospital as of February 10.
Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards declared a state of emergency and has allocated all available resources to begin the daunting process of rebuilding the area.
Interactive map details the tornadoes path. Select damage points for more information. (NOAA/NWS)
An Unprecedented Storm
A survey crew with the National Weather Service determined that the tornado rated as an EF3, reaching wind speeds of up to 165 mph winds and cutting a 10 mile-long path. Officials at the National Weather Service said that no other EF3 tornado has been recorded in New Orleans in recorded history.
How Are Tornadoes Rated?
Tornadoes were formally rated on the Fujita Scale, named for T. Theodore Fujita who was a University of Chicago meteorologist. He invented the scale in 1971 to assess the wind speed and type of damage caused by a tornado.
In February 2007, the Fujita Scale was replaced by the Enhanced Fujita Scale. It’s similar to the original scale, but it uses a greater number of criteria to determine the level of damage caused. The “EF” scale classifies severity based on the type of objects damaged. Small barns for example would have a low score, while the score for thick trees and brick buildings would be relatively high. The specific damage experienced by a structure is also taken into account (i.e. broken windows, collapsed roof, total destruction, etc).
The Enhanced Fujita Scale classifies tornadoes into six different categories (EF0 through EF5).
New Orleans Tornado Facts:
- On Tuesday, February 7th 2017, a devastating tornado ripped through east New Orleans
- The tornado was rated an EF3 with winds speeds reaching 136 to 165 miles per hour.
- 33 injuries were reported, but fortunately there were no fatalities.
- The tornado cut a path over 10 miles long and 600 yards wide.
- The latest count lists 250 structures as a complete loss, 400 with moderate but repairable damage, and another 1,000 structures receiving only minor damage.
- During the storm some 10,000 homes in the metro area were without power. As of February 9th, crews had restored electricity to 60% of these residents.
- Winters storms strong enough to produce tornadoes are very rare but last February the area saw a similar outbreak.
