Severe Thunderstorms in the Southern Plains; Heavy to Excessive Rainfall in South Central Texas

Widespread rain may produce flash flooding across the Southern Plains into the Ozarks today. Numerous instances of flash flooding are expected in south-central Texas, including the Hill Country. There will also be a risk of isolated severe thunderstorms across the southern Plains today, where an instance or two of severe wind, hail, or a brief tornado may occur. Read More >

Overview

Tuesday, June 3,1980 marked one of the most unique tornado events to ever impact Nebraska, if not the entire United States. It is arguably an unparalleled event in meteorological history. This tornado outbreak provided the basis for a book and television movie, as well as tornado and engineering research.

During the early evening hours, a massive supercell thunderstorm complex developed just north-northwest of Grand Island. This complex moved very slowly southeast through the area at around 10 MPH. Over a period of just under 3 hours, this storm complex would produce multiple tornadoes in and around the city of Grand Island.

This many slow-moving, damaging tornadoes affecting such a small-but-populated geographic area makes it an one-of-a-kind event, but what made it even more unique was the fact that 3 of the 7 tornadoes were anti-cyclonic!

Five people lost their lives as a result of these tornadoes, with around 200 people injured. Hundreds of homes and businesses were destroyed, with a total damage of nearly 300 million dollars (in 1980 dollars).

This is the only known photo of the tornadoes from June 3, 1980. This is Tornado #2 (left) and #3 (right), looking north
from North Johnson Drive, or roughly Webb & Faidley.
Photo was taken about 9 p.m. by Rod Gartner.

Tornado Basics
Environment
Satellite/Radar
Damage Photos
Additional Information

Below is a summary of the tornadoes that touched down in and around Grand Island on June 3, 1980.
Click on the image below to enlarge.

The majority of tornadoes in the northern hemisphere are cyclonic, meaning they spin counterclockwise. One of the unusual aspects of this event was that 3 of the 7 tornadoes were anti-cyclonic, meaning they rotate clockwise.

Another interesting tidbit about this event is that there were times where multiple tornadoes were on the ground simultaneously!

Between 9:05-9:12 p.m. CDT, Tornadoes #1, #2, and #3 were on the ground
Between 9:12-9:30 p.m. CDT, Tornadoes #1 and #3 were on the ground
Between 10:25-10:28 p.m. CDT, Tornadoes #5 and #6 were on the ground
That's a total of 28 minutes for the event!

Tornado #1

Cyclonic
Rating: F3
Time: 8:45 - 9:34 p.m. CDT
The first of seven tornadoes set down 11 miles northwest of Grand Island, or 3 miles north of Prairie Creek. This 700-yard wide tornado tracked south for 7 miles, lifting 4 miles northwest of downtown Grand Island. While the straight line path was 7 miles, the twisting and erratic motion covered more than twice that distance, 14.5 miles, while spending 49 minutes on the ground. Along this path, a woman was killed while trying to drive to a relative's house, 25 people were injured, and farm houses were torn apart.

Left: Tornado schematic by Ted Fujita and Roger Wakimoto.

Tornado #2

Anti-Cyclonic
Rating: F1
Time: 9:00 - 9:12 p.m. CDT
A short-lived tornado set down north of Highway 2 near the intersection of Webb Road and Airport Road, just east of the first tornado. This tornado was the first of 3 anti-cyclonic tornadoes that evening, and moved northeast approximately 1 mile before lifting.

Left: Tornado schematic by Ted Fujita and Roger Wakimoto.

Tornado #3

Anti-Cyclonic
Rating: F3
Time: 9:05 - 9:30 p.m. CDT
The third tornado of the evening, and the second anti-cyclonic, touched down between Webb Road and Highway 281, just north of Airport Road. This 500-yard wide tornado briefly tracked north, then reversed course to the south, then southeast across northern Grand Island, leaving a 3.7 mile long path of destruction. Most of the damage was rated F0, with the F3 damage occurring in the vicinity of the VA Hospital on Capital Avenue. While there were no fatalities, 40 people were injured by this tornado before it lifted over the center of town.

Left: Tornado schematic by Ted Fujita and Roger Wakimoto.

Tornado #4

Anti-Cyclonic
Rating: F1
Time: 9:46 - 9:50 p.m. CDT
The fourth tornado, and third and final anti-cyclonic tornado, touched down near Highway 34 and Shady Bend Road. This tornado tracked to the southwest, just northeast of the intersection of Stuhr and Shimmer Roads, then turned north along the west side of Stuhr Road before lifting near Highway 34. Its path was approximately 2.5 miles.

Left: Tornado schematic by Ted Fujita and Roger Wakimoto.

Tornado #5 - The "South Locust" Tornado

Cyclonic
Rating: F4
Time: 10:16 - 10:28 p.m. CDT
The deadliest and most powerful tornado of the evening touched down on the east side of Grand Island in the Eagles Lake and Crystal Lake areas. This 1000-yard wide tornado swept west just north of Bismark Road, crossed Shady Bend and Stuhr Roads, before turning southwest across Bismark Road north of the Fonner Park area. The tornado continued to move southwest through residential areas until it reached the business district at South Locust Street and Fonner Park Road. From this point, the tornado then moved due south along South Locust until turned to the southeast a few blocks north of Highway 34. The tornado crossed Highway 34 and tracked another half-mile southeast before lifting. The damage was most devastating along the minutes the tornado trekked down South Locust Street, where homes and businesses were "obliterated". The almost 6-mile long path took 12 minutes to cover and resulted in 4 fatalities and numerous injuries.

Left: Tornado schematic by Ted Fujita and Roger Wakimoto.

Tornado #6

Cyclonic
Rating: F2
Time: 10:25 - 10:35 p.m. CDT
The sixth tornado touched down east of Shady Bend Road just north of Highway 34. This tornado moved southwest to near Stuhr Road south of Highway 34, then turned southeast, traveling south of Shimmer Road to about 1 mile southwest of the Hall/Hamilton County bridge. This 600-yard wide tornado tracked approximately 4 miles over mainly rural areas, though additional injuries did occur.

Left: Tornado schematic by Ted Fujita and Roger Wakimoto.

Tornado #7

Cyclonic
Rating: F1
Time: 10:45 - 11:30 p.m. CDT
The final tornado of the evening touched down southeast of the Hall-Hamilton County bridge. This tornado moved east and northeast over mainly open farmland for just over 13 miles.

Left: Tornado schematic by Ted Fujita and Roger Wakimoto.

Here is a top-down view of the atmosphere behind the June 3rd tornado outbreak. Click images to enlarge.

Upper air analysis shows a jet streak of 70-90 knots nosing into portions of the Central Plains from the southwest.

500mb analysis shows ridging across the interior U.S., migrating east of the
Missouri River ahead of a low pressure system and trough pushing onto the West Coast.

700mb analysis shows flow across the Central Plains was southwesterly, with a
'kink' in the flow indicating a shortwave trough lifting out of Colorado and Kansas.

850mb analysis shows increased southerly flow (low-level jet) developing during the evening hours, helping sustain thunderstorm activity.

Surface analysis shows a warm front lifting north into the region during the day.
This frontal boundary provided a focusing mechanism for thunderstorm development.
Analysis is courtesy of Brian Barjenbruch.

As that surface warm front lifted north, it brought along warm and moist air, increasing the instability across the area. These images show surface based Convective Available Potential Energy, otherwise known as CAPE (J/kg).

Putting these features together, the environment was
favorable for any thunderstorms which developed to become severe.

The images below show Visible (VIS) SMS-II (pre-GOES) data. While VIS satellite imagery can show great details in the evolution of clouds, a limitation is the fact it is dependent on sunshine to view. Once the sun sets (seen in the gradual darkening of the images below), VIS is no longer usable until the next morning. On days where severe weather is a threat, the behavior of clouds (or the lack of clouds period) can provide insight on where thunderstorm development is (or is not) likely. During the afternoon hours, the development of cumulus clouds can show where instability is available and the cap (atmospheric conditions preventing storm initiation) is weakening. Note the rapid development of the storm between 6-8 p.m. CDT.


Visible - 6 p.m. CDT June 3rd	Visible - 7 p.m. CDT June 3rd	Visible - 8 p.m. CDT June 3rd

The images below show Infrared (IR) SMS-II (pre-GOES) data. Unlike Visible satellite imagery, IR satellite data is not dependent on sunlight and is available 24-hours a day. The various colors show the temperatures of the earth's surface and clouds, and can clue you in to the heights a storm is reaching. In convective situations, such as June 3rd, the rapid development and expansion of the brighter colors (especially the reds) between 6-8 p.m. CDT shows the storm's explosive growth. This complex continued to grow through the evening, shown by the 11 p.m. CDT image.



IR - 6 p.m. June 3rd	IR - 7 p.m. CDT June 3rd	IR - 8 p.m. CDT June 3rd	IR - 11 p.m. CDT June 3rd

The images below are radar images taken from the Weather Serveillance Radar-1957 (WSR-57) which was in service at the Weather Service Office at the Grand Island Airport from the early 1970s through the mid 1990s. Tornado warnings were issued for Grand Island and surrounding areas based on the radar signatures and storm spotter reports.


Radar loop of the NW Grand Island tornado: https://youtu.be/rTTSVANU-Rs	Radar loop of the SE Grand Island tornado: https://youtu.be/fiRg8FLI6gE	Curious to learn more about the WSR-57? Check out this video from NWS Paducah: https://www.youtube.com/watch?reload=9&v=YmFnNmiWdlo&t=10s

The images below are screen captures of radar imagery. Click to enlarge.

Tornado #1 located WNW of the radar at 9:01 p.m. The tornado center is the large hole just left of center.	Tornadoes #1 (left) & 2 (right, anti-cyclonic) located just west of the radar at 9:08 p.m.	Tornado #4 (anti-cyclonic) located south of the radar at 9:48 p.m. CDT. Dashed line shows 5 mi from the radar site.	Formative stages of tornado #5 at 10:16 p.m. The tornado is the spiral feature SSE of the radar.

Radar technology has changed tremendously in the years since this event. The WSR-57 located at the Grand Island Airport was decommissioned in the mid 1990s, replaced by the new Weather Surveillance Radar-1988 Doppler (WSR-88D), which remains in service today near Blue Hill, NE. Additional advances in computing power and equipment improvements over the past several years have given meteorologists powerful tools to assess anything from drizzle to freezing rain to tornadoes. The images below show some of the differences between then and now. Click on the images to enlarge.


A quick comparison of the WSR-57 (in service on June 3, 1980) and the WSR-88D (currently in service). Click to enlarge.


A quick comparison of the WSR-57 (in service on June 3, 1980) and the WSR-88D (currently in service). Click to enlarge.

Below are images of the damage and aftermath caused by the tornadoes. Click on images to enlarge.


Tommy's Restaurant	Meaves Bowl	Star School	Destroyed car and debris

Dairy Queen	Residential damage	South Locust Street	South Locust Street

Residential damage	Street view	Residential damage	Star School

Village Inn South Locust	Broken windows at the Veteran's Hospital	Meaves Bowl	Aerial view of damage from tornado #5 in the Eagles & Crystal Lake areas.

Aerial view of damage from tornado #5 in the Eagles & Crystal Lake areas.	Aerial photo of the bowling alley (Meves Bowl) on East Bismark Road	Farmstead destroyed	K-Mart building on South Locust Street was spared major damage and served as a command post for post-storm operations.

Aerial view of extensive damage in northwest Grand Island	Aerial view of extensive damage in northwest Grand Island	Damge to a house with debris along tornado path. Prairie Creek runs along the left side of the photo.	Aerial photo of tornado path through a field. A 'swirl' pattern of the tornado circulation is visible.

Aerial view of scour marks from a tornado just southeast of Grand Island.	Damage in rural areas just southeast of Grand Island	More scour marks from one of the tornadoes southeast of Grand Island	Aerial view of the Veteran's Hospital

Residential Damage	Aerial damage view	Car dealership	Hotel and parking lot

Aerial photo of damage	President Carter Visit	President Carter Visit	President Carter Visit

Damage by the numbers in Grand Island:

Homes: 531 destroyed, 415 damaged, 1,038 had minor damage
Businesses: 49 destroyed, 23 with major damage, 35 with minor damage
City blocks: 325 blocks affected
Hospitals: 250 people treated in 12 hours
National guard personnel: 400 personnel brought in
Government trailers: 352 trailers
City curfew: In effect through June 8th

Cost:

Approximately 300 million dollars in 1980 (would equate to roughly 1 billion dollars in 2020)

Damage by the numbers in rural areas outside of Grand Island:

Farms: 35 badly damaged or destroyed, 11 with major damage, 20 with minor damage
Farm buildings: 48 destroyed, 80 with minor damage
Grain bins and elevators: 100 destroyed
Farmland affected: 17 square miles

Cost:

Approximately 5.1 million dollars (would equate to roughly 17 million dollars in 2020)

Statistics from the June 3rd event. Click to enlarge.

Model reanalysis data from the SPC Tornado Outbreak Interface: https://www.spc.noaa.gov/exper/outbreaks/#

Grand Island Independent event page: http://gitwisters.com/gitwisters/

More information about the F-Scale and Enhanced F-Scale can be found here: https://www.spc.noaa.gov/faq/tornado/f-scale.html

F-Scale (1971-2006)			Enchanced F-Scale (2007-present)
Scale	Wind Estimate (mph)		Scale	Wind Estimate (mph)
F0	<73		EF0	65-85
F1	73-112		EF1	86-110
F2	113-157		EF2	111-135
F3	158-206		EF3	136-165
F4	207-260		EF4	166-200
F5	261-318		EF5	>200

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