2011 Tuscaloosa-Birmingham tornado

2011 Tuscaloosa–Birmingham tornado

EF4 tornado
A flattened residence in Concord, Alabama after the EF4 tornado
Formed	April 27, 2011, 4:43 p.m. CDT (UTC−05:00)
Duration	1 hour, 31 minutes
Dissipated	April 27, 2011, 6:14 p.m. CDT (UTC–05:00)
Max rating1	EF4 tornado
Highest winds	190 mph (310 km/h)
Damage	$2.4 billion (2011 USD)
Casualties	64 fatalities (+8 indirect), 1500 injuries
Areas affected	Tuscaloosa to Birmingham, Alabama, U.S.
1Most severe tornado damage; see Enhanced Fujita scale Part of the 2011 Super Outbreak

¹Most severe tornado damage; see Enhanced Fujita scale

The 2011 Tuscaloosa–Birmingham tornado was a large and violent EF4 multiple-vortex tornado that devastated portions of Tuscaloosa and Birmingham, Alabama, as well as smaller communities and rural areas between the two cities, during the late afternoon and early evening of Wednesday, April 27, 2011. It is one of the costliest tornadoes on record. It was one of the 362 tornadoes in the 2011 Super Outbreak, the largest tornado outbreak in United States history. The tornado reached a maximum path width of 1.5 mi (2.4 km) during its track through Tuscaloosa, and once again when it crossed Interstate 65 north of Birmingham, and attained estimated winds of 190 mph (310 km/h) shortly after passing through the city. It then went on to impact parts of Birmingham as a high-end EF4 before dissipating. This was the third tornado to strike the city of Tuscaloosa in the past decade, and the second in two weeks.

On April 23, the Storm Prediction Center (SPC) began monitoring the potential for a substantial severe weather outbreak in the extended range. As a shortwave trough tracked across portions of the Mid-South and southeastern United States, moderate instability and strong wind shear ahead of a trailing cold front was expected to promote the development of supercell thunderstorms capable of producing tornadoes, large hail, and damaging winds. Two days before the event, on April 25, the SPC issued a moderate risk of severe weather encompassing portions of central and eastern Kentucky, middle and eastern Tennessee, northeast Mississippi, central and northern Alabama, and northwest Georgia. Due to the combination of rich low-level moisture, strong shear, and focused large-scale ascent, there was relatively high confidence across the outlined area for strong tornadoes – a tornado rated EF2 or higher on the Enhanced Fujita scale – and widespread damaging winds. By the morning of April 27, the SPC upgraded to a high risk of severe weather, noting that a dangerous tornado outbreak capable of producing several violent – an EF4 tornado or stronger on the Enhanced Fujita scale – and long-track tornadoes was expected.