Notable April Severe Weather Outbreaks

 

April 27, 2011 Severe Weather Reports  (Source: NOAA)

 

Although more common later in the spring, D.C. Area residents have experienced some memorable April severe weather events in recent years.  A “severe” thunderstorm is defined as one that contains any of the following: hail 1”/+ in diameter; wind gusts of at least 58 mph; or a tornado.  Some recent severe weather outbreaks stand out.

2019:  The Mid-Atlantic Region had several days with severe weather in April 2019.  Nearly 60 tornadoes touched down on April 19 from Pennsylvania to Florida, with several reported in Virginia.  The closest to the Nation’s Capital was an EF-0 in Reston in Fairfax County, VA.  Fortunately, no fatalities were reported during this severe weather outbreak.

2017: Washingtonians saw two EF-0 tornadoes within D.C. city limits on April 6.  Tornadoes within the District of Columbia are exceptionally rare and these were the first since September 2001.  They were relatively weak with winds of only 70-75 mph and caused minor damage.  

2011: There were over 2,200 severe weather reports, including 492 tornadoes, across the central and eastern United States from April 25 - 28.  The busiest day was April 27, when more than half (292) of the tornadoes occurred.  According to NOAA, four of these tornadoes reached EF-5 status with sustained winds of greater than 200 mph.  That remains the highest daily total since the “Super Outbreak” of April 3-4, 1974.  Sadly, over 200 weather-related fatalities were reported on April 27 alone. Part of what made this outbreak so deadly was that a high percentage of the tornadoes occurred during the overnight hours when people weren’t awake to get the latest watches and warnings.

Also, from April 27-28, 2011, there were a total of 19 tornadoes in the D.C. Metro Region.  The strongest of these was an EF-2, with winds of 130 mph, in Rockingham and Shenandoah counties in Virginia.

2008: On April 20, there was a total of 12 tornadoes in Virginia, Maryland, and North Carolina.  The two closest to the Nation’s Capital occurred in Middletown, Virginia, and one that tracked from Charles to Prince George’s County in Maryland.  While there were no fatalities, D.C. had 1.40” of rain that helped make that April D.C.’s wettest (4.92”) since April 2000 (5.13”).

2002:  Longtime residents may recall that the 20^th anniversary of Maryland’s strongest tornado on record is fast approaching.  The town of La Plata in Charles County was devastated by an EF-5 tornado on April 28, 2002.  At the time, it was ranked an F4 tornado, but its winds of 260 mph would make it an EF-5 on the “Enhanced Fujita Scale” that replaced the Fujita Scale in 2007.