Two F5 Tornadoes Hit Same Town on Same Day (Blog Update #11)

Ef-5 tornadoes are very rare and the United States usually only has one Ef-5 tornado a year. However, during the tornado outbreak of 1974, one location in Alabama, near the town of Tanner about 20 miles west of Huntsville, was actually hit by two EF-5 tornadoes in the same day. The tornadoes actually hit the town with 30 minutes of each other .

Paths of the 148 tornadoes generated in United States during the 1974 Super Outbreak. Courtesy: T. Theodore Fujita

Tanner took a direct hit when the twister was most powerful at around 7:15 pm. At 7:30 pm the second tornado formed and followed a path almost identical to the first tornado. Tanner was struck by the second tornado around 7:45 pm. The first tornado killed 28 people and the second one killed 22 people.

Link to video showing footage of the tornadoes.