National Weather Service United States Department of Commerce

Tropical System in the Gulf; Dangerous Heat and Air Quality Concerns; Severe Thunderstorms for Midwest to mid-Atlantic

Tropical system in the Gulf expected to gradually strengthen the next couple of days off the Florida Panhandle and Alabama coasts. Instances of flash flooding will be possible through Thursday along the eastern and central Gulf Coast. Severe thunderstorms will develop and move along a cold front crossing the Upper Midwest, and through the Ohio Valley/Mid-Atlantic on Tuesday. Read More >


Representatives from the National Weather Service Map of damage area completed a preliminary survey of damage in the Flintville, Tennessee area. The damage occurred with a supercell thunderstorm that intensified across southeastern Lincoln county between 5:30 and 5:35 PM. The storms occurred ahead of a strong cold front which pushed into southern middle Tennessee around 7 PM on the 14th.

The tornado path began approximately 3.5 miles west southwest of Flintville and continued east northeast to approximately 2.4 miles southeast of Flintville. The tornado initially had a path width of 75 yards, a path length around 5.3 miles, and maximum wind speeds of 90 mph. This falls under EF-1 tornado damage on the Enhanced Fujita scale.

One mile south southwest of the Flintville area, a storage shed was destroyed and a pole barn suffered considerable damage. Also, a large oak tree at least 50 years old was uprooted just northeast of the pole barn. In other locations along the path, EF-0 damage was evident, with trees blown down and tops of trees snapped off.

 
Radar imagery from Hytop, AL Radar imagery from Hytop, AL
Radar data from the Hytop, Alabama doppler radar shows indications of strong rotation southwest of Flintville near Tennessee Highway 275 at 5:35 PM CST. The tornado is estimated to have just touched down by this point.
 
Damage Pictures

Note: In picture number 2, all of the farm equipment in the picture was previously under a barn, which was completely blown away and deposited in a field just to the north.
Storm Damage in Lincoln County Storm Damage in Lincoln County
Storm Damage in Lincoln County Storm Damage in Lincoln County
Storm Damage in Lincoln County Storm Damage in Lincoln County