First EF-5 Tornado Since 2013 Confirmed in North Dakota

It has been over 12 years since an EF-5 tornado ripped through the U.S. However, a new forensic analysis of a twister that spun up in North Dakota last June has confirmed that it reached the rare EF-5 status. Here is a look at how meteorologists used data to rate this tornado months after it happened.

North Dakota Tornado Assigned EF-5 Rating

A deadly tornado that left a trail of damage in North Dakota on June 20 is now being assigned a rating of EF-5 by the National Weather Service (NWS). Three people were killed by the twister that roared through the town of Enderlin. The initial damage assessments gave the tornado a preliminary rating of an EF-3 or higher, as defined by the Enhanced Fujita Scale.

The June tornado was part of a volatile derecho that whipped up winds to over 100 mph as the line of storms swept through North Dakota and into western Minnesota. The Enderlin tornado was one of 25 twisters to be confirmed that night.

The new rating makes the North Dakota tornado the first to hit the U.S. since the deadly May 20, 2013, event in Moore, Oklahoma.  The 12-year gap was the longest time without an EF-5 tornado in the U.S. since official records began in 1950.

According to the final assessment from the NWS, teams performed additional surveys and consulted wind damage experts to estimate that the event's wind speeds clocked in at greater than 210 mph. An EF-5 designation is applied to the rare tornado that produces winds over 200 mph.  This tornado was estimated to be over one mile wide.

In addition to killing three people, the Enderlin tornado was responsible for widespread damage that extended for 12 miles. The only fortunate aspect of this deadly weather event was that it hit a relatively rural area. In contrast, the Moore tornado struck a populated suburb of Oklahoma City, amplifying the damage and the loss of life. The Moore tornado was blamed for 24 fatalities, the destruction of 1,150 homes, and economic damages of about $2 billion.