May 1989 tornado outbreak
| Type | Tornado outbreak |
|---|---|
| Duration | May 5, 1989 |
| Tornadoes confirmed | 16 |
| Max rating1 | F4 tornado |
| Duration of tornado outbreak2 | ~ 7 hours |
| Damage | $169 million (non-normalized) |
| Casualties | 7 fatalities, 168 injuries |
| Areas affected | Georgia, The Carolinas, Virginia |
|
1Most severe tornado damage; see Fujita scale 2Time from first tornado to last tornado |
|
1Most severe tornado damage; see Fujita scale
The May 1989 tornado outbreak occurred on May 5, 1989. The outbreak spawned 16 tornadoes in Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia, and was responsible for a combined total of $169 million in damage in the four states. It also caused 7 deaths and 168 injuries.
Sources: [1]
The first tornadoes of this outbreak were reported between 1 and 2 P.M. near Gainesville, Georgia and . During the mid-afternoon, severe storms began moving northeast into the northwest corner of South Carolina, spawning additional tornadoes in Oconee County.
The first violent tornado (F4? intensity - see Fujita scale) of the outbreak was reported shortly thereafter, north and northeast of Spartanburg and Gaffney, South Carolina.
Other F4 tornadoes soon formed just to the north (on a path from northern Cleveland County to southwest of Hickory), and also in Union County, southeast of Charlotte. The Cleveland-Lincoln-Catawba tornado caused 30 injuries and $20 million in property damage in the Belwood community, before then causing 4 fatalities and 19 additional injuries in the Toluca community in northwestern Lincoln County. Weaker tornadoes were noted in the NC foothills near Lenoir, and the Union County supercell later spawned F1 tornadoes in nearby Anson and Stanly counties.
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