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Tornadoes of 2023
Clockwise from top: A rope tornado near Yuma, Colorado; A deadly EF2-rated tornado near Cheyenne, Oklahoma; Tornado damage near Adamsville, Tennessee following a late-march tornado outbreak; An F0 tornado in Rhineland-Palatinate; Heavy damage to a truck produced by a tornado that hit Rolling Fork, Mississippi. | |
| Timespan | January 2 – December 19 |
|---|---|
| Maximum rated tornado | EF4 tornado
|
| Tornadoes in U.S. | 1,378 |
| Fatalities (U.S.) | 83 |
| Fatalities (worldwide) | 116 |
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This is a list of notable tornadoes and tornado outbreaks worldwide in 2023. Strong, destructive tornadoes form most frequently in the United States, Argentina, Brazil, Bangladesh and East India, but can occur almost anywhere. Tornadoes develop occasionally in southern Canada during the Northern Hemisphere's summer, and at other times of the year across Europe, Asia, Argentina, Australia and New Zealand. They are often accompanied by other forms of severe weather, including thunderstorms, strong winds, and large hail. Worldwide, 116 tornado-related deaths were confirmed – 83 in the United States, 12 in China, nine in Indonesia, eight in Myanmar, three in Turkey, and one in Saudi Arabia.
January had the third-highest number of tornado watches and confirmed tornadoes of any January on record in the United States.[1] The first two months of the year had the fourth-highest number of confirmed tornadoes for the first 59 days of any year on record.[2] The year was deadlier than average, with a number of fatal tornadoes. By April 5, 63 tornado-related deaths were recorded in the United States; this was almost three times higher than 2022's total of 23 fatalities, approaching the annual average of roughly 70 deaths.[3] Below-average tornadic activity occurred in May, but active weather patterns spawned damaging tornado outbreaks throughout the summer and 12 more people died. Damaging tornadoes also affected parts of Canada during that time, including the country's first violent tornado since 2018. Tornadic activity decreased dramatically in September, and was almost non-existent during much of the autumn. Most Atlantic tropical cyclones missed the United States during the peak of hurricane season, with few early-season frontal systems; an intense outbreak in December produced 18 tornadoes, causing seven fatalities.[4]
Several European organizations, including the European Severe Storms Laboratory and Deutscher Wetterdienst, began publishing and using the new International Fujita scale in August 2023.[5] The first major tornado outbreak using the scale occurred three months later, when Storm Ciarán affected much of Europe.
- ^ NWS Storm Prediction Center [@NWSSPC] (February 1, 2023). "January 2023 was an active tornado month. Preliminarily, 126 tornadoes have been confirmed, which is the 3rd most on record. https://t.co/PtEmxagWOW" (Tweet). Archived from the original on March 22, 2023. Retrieved March 28, 2023 – via Twitter.
- ^ "February Month in Review". Facebook. NOAA NWS Storm Prediction Center. Archived from the original on March 11, 2023. Retrieved March 11, 2023.
- ^ Livingston, Ian (April 6, 2023). "Tornado deaths in 2023 are already more than double last year's total". Washington Post. Retrieved April 7, 2023.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
DATwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Pieter Groenemeijer (ESSL); Lothar Bock (DWD); Juan de Dios Soriano (AEMet); Maciej Dutkiewicz (Bydgoszcz University of Science and Technology); Delia Gutiérrez-Rubio (AEMet); Alois M. Holzer (ESSL); Martin Hubrig; Rainer Kaltenberger; Thilo Kühne (ESSL); Mortimer Müller (Universität für Bodenkultur); Bas van der Ploeg; Tomáš Púčik (ESSL); Thomas Schreiner (ESSL); Miroslav Šinger (SHMI); Gabriel Strommer (ESSL); Andi Xhelaj (University of Genova) (July 30, 2023). "The International Fujita (IF) Scale" (PDF). European Severe Storms Laboratory. Retrieved July 30, 2023.
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