Tornado outbreak of June 23, 2002

Tornado outbreak of June 23, 2002
TypeTornado Outbreak
DurationJune 23, 2002
Tornadoes
confirmed		8
Max. rating1F4 tornado
Duration of
tornado outbreak2		94 minutes
FatalitiesNone
Damage~$1 million (2002 USD)
Areas affectedThe Dakotas

1Most severe tornado damage; see Fujita scale
2Time from first tornado to last tornado

A small but intense tornado outbreak occurred predominantly over McPherson and Brown County, South Dakota on June 23, 2002. A supercell thunderstorm produced six tornadoes in 72 minutes within the two counties. Two of the tornadoes were rated F3 and F4 respectively, and caused considerable damage to several homes and farms. Two other tornadoes occurred in North Dakota during the same time. The outbreak in Brown County was documented by a group of storm chasers and was featured on an episode of The Weather Channel's Storm Stories.

Meteorological synopsis

The area hit by the outbreak was in a drought; in the past three months, the area had only received four inches of rain. On June 23, a triple point was set up across eastern South Dakota, setting the stage for a powerful supercell to form.[1]

Confirmed tornadoes

Confirmed tornadoes by Fujita rating
FU F0 F1 F2 F3 F4 F5 Total
0 4 2 0 1 1 0 8
List of confirmed tornadoes – Sunday, June 23, 2002[note 1]
F# Location County / Parish State Start Coord. Time (UTC) Path length Max width Summary
F0 NE of Leola McPherson SD 00:20–00:22 0.2 mi (0.32 km) 50 yd (46 m) A brief tornado caused no damage.[2]
F1 NE of Leola to NW of Barnard McPherson, Brown SD 00:32–00:43 5 mi (8.0 km) 500 yd (460 m) A barn was destroyed, a farmhouse was damaged, and many trees were downed in McPherson County. No damage was recorded in Brown County.[3]
F0 NW of Barnard Brown SD 00:43–00:45 0.3 mi (0.48 km) 50 yd (46 m) This tornado touched down as the previous tornado dissipated. No damage was reported.[4]
F3 W of Barnard to SE of Barnard Brown SD 00:53–01:23 10 mi (16 km) 900 yd (820 m) Two farmhouses sustained extensive damage, one of which lost its garage and most of its roof. Several farm buildings and equipment were heavily damaged, and a pickup truck was tossed 100 yards (91 m) into a grove of trees, totaling it. High-tension power lines and a support tower were downed, and numerous trees were downed, some of which were snapped off just above the base and/or debarked.[5]
F0 N of Bismarck Burleigh ND 00:55 2 mi (3.2 km) 40 yd (37 m) A brief tornado over open country caused no damage.[6]
F4 SE of Barnard to NE of Barnard Brown SD 01:24–01:55 9 mi (14 km) 900 yd (820 m) This violent tornado demolished two unoccupied homes and several outbuildings, damaged a farmhouse and several more outbuildings, and heavily damaged or destroyed farm equipment. Many trees were downed.[7]
F0 E of Barnard Brown SD 01:30–01:32 0.1 mi (0.16 km) 50 yd (46 m) This brief satellite tornado of the F4 tornado caused no damage.[8]
F1 SW of Velva Ward, McHenry ND 01:34–01:54 2 mi (3.2 km) 50 yd (46 m) Several homes had shingles blown off, and several trees were uprooted.[9]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ All dates are based on the local time zone where the tornado touched down; however, all times are in Coordinated Universal Time for consistency.

References

  1. ^ "June 2002 Archives -". Retrieved 6 April 2021.
  2. ^ South Dakota Event Report: F0 Tornado. National Climatic Data Center (Report). National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. 2002. Retrieved April 5, 2021.
  3. ^ South Dakota Event Report: F1 Tornado. National Climatic Data Center (Report). National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. 2002. Retrieved April 5, 2021.South Dakota Event Report: F1 Tornado. National Climatic Data Center (Report). National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. 2002. Retrieved April 5, 2021.
  4. ^ South Dakota Event Report: F1 Tornado. National Climatic Data Center (Report). National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. 2002. Retrieved April 5, 2021.
  5. ^ South Dakota Event Report: F3 Tornado. National Climatic Data Center (Report). National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. 2002. Retrieved April 5, 2021.
  6. ^ North Dakota Event Report: F0 Tornado. National Climatic Data Center (Report). National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. 2002. Retrieved April 5, 2021.
  7. ^ South Dakota Event Report: F4 Tornado. National Climatic Data Center (Report). National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. 2002. Retrieved April 5, 2021.
  8. ^ South Dakota Event Report: F0 Tornado. National Climatic Data Center (Report). National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. 2002. Retrieved April 5, 2021.
  9. ^ North Dakota Event Report: F1 Tornado. National Climatic Data Center (Report). National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. 2002. Retrieved April 5, 2021.

Brown County supercell research