Rare February Severe Weather

NOAA's Map of Severe Weather Reports for 2-7-2020

The severe weather in the DC Metro Area this past Friday, February 7, was a truly historic occurrence.  Not only did the National Weather Service confirm there were five tornadoes, but the fact they occurred between 7 a.m. and 9 a.m. was also highly unusual.  Neither Maryland, DC or Virginia typically see any tornadoes in February.  It was the most tornadoes so early in the season on record.

Tornado intensity is measured on the Enhanced Fujita Scale that ranks tornadoes from a minimal EF0 with wind speeds of 65 – 85 mph.  The strongest tornadoes are EF5’s with wind speeds of more than 200 mph.  All of Friday’s tornadoes were either an EF0 or an EF1.  An EF0 occurred in Loudoun County, Virginia, in the town of Leesburg and had winds of 85 mph.  It was on the ground for three minutes had a track of 3.3 miles.  According to National Weather Service records, this tornado broke the record of April 16 (1993, 2011) for earliest Loudoun County, Virginia, tornado by more than two months.

There was an EF1 in Montgomery County, Maryland, near the town of Dickerson that had wind speeds of 95 mph and a track of a mile.  Another tornado near Boyds ranked as an EF0 with wind speeds of up to 80 mph and had a track of 2.3 miles.  Two more EF1 tornadoes occurred: one each in Frederick and Carroll counties.

The last time there was a tornado in February anywhere in the DC Metro Area was on February 25, 2017.  That’s when an EF1 developed in Charles County, Maryland, which had maximum wind speeds of 90 mph with a track of more than eight miles.  An even larger tornado outbreak occurred the previous year on February 24, 2016.  A total of 33 confirmed tornadoes developed from Florida to Pennsylvania, with a fatal tornado in southern Virginia.  Three deaths were reported during a tornado in Sussex County, Virginia.  Only one tornado occurred in the DC Metro Area during this outbreak with an EF0 in St. Mary’s County, Maryland.

In conclusion, Friday’s severe weather outbreak was significant.  It occurred during the first week of February and was concentrated in the DC Metro Area.  It disrupted the A.M. rushour, which is unusual for any time of the year – much less February which is one of the quietest months in terms of severe weather in the United States.