April 3, 2012 tornado outbreak
Radar loop of storms affecting Dallas/Fort Worth during the outbreak.
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| Type | Tornado outbreak |
|---|---|
| Duration | April 3, 2012 |
| Tornadoes confirmed | 22 |
| Max rating1 | EF3 tornado |
| Duration of tornado outbreak2 | 6 hours, 27 minutes |
| Highest winds |
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| Largest hail | 3.5 in (89 mm) near Forney |
| Damage | ≥$1 billion(estimated) |
| Casualties | 0 fatalities, 29 injured |
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1Most severe tornado damage; see Enhanced Fujita scale 2Time from first tornado to last tornado |
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1Most severe tornado damage; see Enhanced Fujita scale
The Tornado outbreak of April 3, 2012 was a small, albeit localized tornado outbreak that primarily affected the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. During the morning of April 3, a large low-pressure area and associated frontal boundaries tracked across the Southern US Plains. Initially, environmental conditions did not favor the development of tornadoes. However, an outflow boundary from an area of storms in Oklahoma moved southwards before stalling over the Dallas–Fort Worth area. This allowed the formation of individual supercells, which would produce numerous tornadoes in the region. Many of these tornadoes occurred in the afternoon and evening hours of the day. One of these tornadoes was an EF3 tornado which struck areas of Forney, Texas, damaging homes and businesses; this tornado would be the strongest confirmed during the outbreak. However, the costliest tornado was of EF2 intensity, and struck the counties of Ellis and Dallas, causing roughly $400 million in damages. The same tornado also injured 10 people, but did not cause any damage. Throughout the duration of the outbreak, there were 22 confirmed tornadoes, though 17 of them were rated EF0 – the lowest rating on the Enhanced Fujita Scale.
In conjunction with the tornadoes, numerous hail and wind reports were received by the Storm Prediction Center (SPC) that day, though it is unclear which were directly associated with the storm complex. However, severe weather in Texas resulted in excess of $1 billion in damages, mostly due to the tornadoes. It was estimated that at least 1,100 homes in the metropolitan area were damaged in the outbreak, including at least 349 that were destroyed. Despite hitting heavily populated areas, however, no deaths were reported. However, a total of 29 injuries were confirmed.
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