1944 Appalachians tornado outbreak

1944 windstorm in the midwestern and eastern United States May 2025 the details of major tornadoes March 2023 February 2025 1944 Appalachians tornado outbreak Shinnston tornado damage at Hope Gas Plant.jpg Damage in Shinnston, West Virginia caused by an F4 tornado that tracked through the town. June 23, 1944 7+ F4 154+ fatalities 1,044 injuries Midwest, Mid-Atlantic The 1944 Appalachians tornado outbreak was a deadly tornado outbreak that hit the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States on June 22–23, 1944. The outbreak produced several strong tornadoes in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Maryland—areas that were falsely believed to be immune to tornadoes.Grazulis, The Tornado, 235. Particularly hard hit was the town of Shinnston in Harrison County, West Virginia, which was destroyed by a violent F4 tornado before 9:00 PM EDT on June 23. A total of 30 people died at Shinnston and at least 104 were killed in the state of West Virginia by this and two other intense tornadoes.Grazulis, Significant Tornadoes, 915. The outbreak itself was and still remains the deadliest tornado outbreak ever to hit the state of West Virginia.Dietz Leah Quiet Montrose Community Was Marked By Tragic Tornado The Inter-Mountain http://theintermountain.com/page/content.detail/id/16569.html?nav=5056 2007-09-14 2008-03-31 https://web.archive.org/web/20110717003932/http://theintermountain.com/page/content.detail/id/16569.html?nav=5056 2011-07-17 dead The Shinnston tornado was and is the only tornado to produce violent damage in West Virginia.West Virginia Hazardous Weather Awareness Week February 28-March 6, 2010 http://www.erh.noaa.gov/rlx/newsletters/svr2010.pdf National Weather Service 2 March 2014 Charleston, West Virginia 8 March 30, 2010 Confirmed tornadoes ≥ 7 0 ? ? 1 3 3 0 no June 23 event List of known tornadoes from June 23, 1944 F# Location County State Time (UTC) Path length Comments/Damage F3Rural Valley to Twin RocksArmstrong, Indiana, CambriaPA223030 mi km2 deaths – A long-tracked tornado damaged about 50 homes or farmsites in Armstrong County, though only a single home was destroyed; three people were injured. In Indiana County, the tornado destroyed 15 homes, killing two people. Damage in Cambria County may have been caused by downburst winds. Total losses reached $2 million (1944 USD). F2S of Edinburg to S of PalmyraPortage, MahoningOH23008 mi kmTwo farmhouses sustained near-F3 damage and eight others were reported damaged. The tornado killed livestock and damaged barns and outbuildings. F4Wellsburg, WV to N of Oakland, MDBrooke (WV), Washington (PA), Greene (PA), Fayette (PA), Preston (WV), Garrett (MD)WV, PA, MD231185 mi km30 deaths – The first of three major, long-lived, violent tornadoes was probably a tornado family that began in West Virginia. The tornado touched down in Wellsburg, unroofing 20 homes and fatally injuring a girl on a farm nearby. The tornado killed 22 people in 15 mi km on of path across Greene County, leveling numerous homes, including 53 in the mining community of Chartiers (10 deaths), east of Clarksville. The tornado killed eight more people at Dry Tavern, near Rices Landing, and destroyed a total of 86 homes in Pennsylvania. After striking Dry Tavern, the tornado passed near Smithfield (then also called Smithville) before lifting for some time. Debris from the storm fell in nearby Uniontown. The tornado may have dissipated and redeveloped into a new tornado that crossed into Maryland, killing three people, injuring 25, and destroying seven homes. The 26 deaths in Pennsylvania made it the deadliest tornado in the state. F4S of Pittsburgh to NW of SomersetAllegheny, Westmoreland, SomersetPA233050 mi km17 deaths – This major tornado affected what is now part of the Pittsburgh metropolitan area, beginning only 8 mi km on south of Pittsburgh. The tornado killed 17 people in Allegheny County, near McKeesport, mainly in the communities of Dravosburg, Port Vue, Versailles, Boston, and Greenock. In these communities, the tornado destroyed almost 88 homes and damaged 306. Many multi-story dwellings were leveled or torn apart, some single-story residences were also leveled, and more than 400 other structures were damaged or destroyed. As the tornado paralleled the Pennsylvania Turnpike, it destroyed six more homes near Donegal and two near Somerset. 200 people were injured. F4NW of Wyatt to Shinnston to Cheat MountainMarion, Harrison, Taylor, Barbour, Tucker, RandolphWV003060 mi km1944 Shinnston tornado100+ deaths – At about 8:30 p.m. EDT,http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,852023,00.html https://web.archive.org/web/20081214231532/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,852023,00.html dead December 14, 2008 Time CATASTROPHE: They Hoped for a Storm July 3, 1944 April 20, 2010McCormick, Kyle. Shinnston Tornado, Charleston, West Virginia, West Virginia Department of Archives and History, 1958.Shinnston buries her beloved dead http://www.wvhcgs.com/tornado.pdf 2 March 2014 The Shinnston News June 29, 1944 a powerful tornado touched down in Marion County, West Virginia, northwest of Wyatt. It quickly intensified as it moved to the southeast, killing three people in four homes that were destroyed in Joetown. Over the next 10 mi km on, the tornado widened to 1 mi km on across and killed at least 72 people. First, the funnel struck the farming community of Wyatt and killed three people in neighboring Peora. It then devastated the town of Shinnston, killing about 30 people in the "Pleasant Hill" part of town. Numerous homes in Pleasant Hill were leveled and had their debris blown into the West Fork River. In the Shinnston area, bark was peeled from trees, a steel radio tower was broken off, vehicles were moved almost 100 ft m 2 from where they originated, and a large gas plant was leveled.Images of the Shinnston Tornado http://www.wvculture.org/history/shinnston/shinnstontornado.html West Virginia Division of Culture and History 3 March 2014 2014 In Taylor County, the tornado killed nine more people, including seven in one family at Simpson. The tornado produced nine other deaths in and near Meadowville, Nestorville, and Philippi. The path passed near Montrose (seven deaths) and ended north of Alpena, on the slopes of Cheat Mountain. 381 people were injured. The death toll was at least 100: some sources indicate that 103 rather than 100 people died in this tornado. F3ThomasTuckerWV03251 mi km3 deaths – A tornado damaged or destroyed about 50 homes. F3Cambridge, MD to Delmar, DEDorchester (MD), Sussex (DE)MD, DE041528 mi km2 deaths – This possible tornado family destroyed a gas station, two barns, three warehouses, and 13 homes at Cambridge. Two people died there, near the beginning of the path. Damages reached $1 million (1944 USD) at Cambridge. Only F1 damage occurred in Delaware as the tornado broke windows, chimneys, and fences. Sources: Grazulis, Significant, p. 915 See also List of North American tornadoes and tornado outbreaks References Bibliography Grazulis, Thomas P. 1993 Significant Tornadoes 1680-1991: A Chronology and Analysis of Events Environmental Films 1-879362-03-1 2003 The Tornado: Nature's Ultimate Windstorm University of Oklahoma Press 978-0-8061-3538-0 External links Tornado damage images in Dravosburg, Pennsylvania The Monessen Daily Independent front page tornado article (June 24, 1944, edition) Category:F4, EF4 and IF4 tornadoes Category:20th-century tornadoes Appalachians,1944-06-22 Category:Tornadoes in West Virginia Category:Tornadoes in Pennsylvania Category:Tornadoes in Maryland Category:Tornadoes in Ohio Appalachians Tornado Outbreak Appalachians tornado outbreak 1944-06-22