What the record says
On 13 August 2004, a tornado touched down near St. Helena, North Carolina. The Storm Prediction Center records its path as 5 miles long and up to 500 yards wide, rated F2 on the Fujita (F) scale. It killed 3 people and injured 29.
- F2Fujita rating
- 3deaths
- 29injuries
- 5 mipath length
- 500 ydmaximum width
It has its own page because it killed three or more people.
This page gives the official record's figures. Numbers of deaths and injuries are sometimes revised after a survey, and they cannot convey what the day was like for the people who lived through it.
Counties it crossed
The start point was at 34.40, -77.88 and the end point at 34.47, -77.83 (latitude, longitude).
How to read this path
The Storm Prediction Center records most tornadoes as a straight line from the point where they touched down to the point where they lifted. The real path usually curved and was not the same width all the way along. The width given is the widest part. Older records are less precise, and the record starts in 1950.
Source: the NOAA Storm Prediction Center database, public domain.
Other notable tornadoes in North Carolina
- Greenville, North Carolina tornado28 March 1984, F4, 16 deaths, 153 injuries, 28 miles long
- St. Pauls, North Carolina tornado28 March 1984, F3, 12 deaths, 101 injuries, 40 miles long
- Askewville, North Carolina tornado16 April 2011, EF3, 12 deaths, 58 injuries, 17.9 miles long
- Sandyfield, North Carolina tornado16 November 2006, F3, 8 deaths, 20 injuries, 2.2 miles long
- Laurinburg, North Carolina tornado28 March 1984, F4, 7 deaths, 100 injuries, 17 miles long
- Raleigh, North Carolina tornado16 April 2011, EF3, 6 deaths, 103 injuries, 65.2 miles long
Other notable tornadoes of 2004
- Mark, Illinois tornado20 April 2004, F3, 8 deaths, 12 injuries, 15.8 miles long
- Blountstown, Florida tornado15 September 2004, F2, 4 deaths, 5 injuries, 7 miles long
- Weatherby, Missouri tornado29 May 2004, F4, 3 deaths, 6 injuries, 22 miles long
- Cooter, Missouri tornado18 October 2004, F2, 3 deaths, 7 injuries, 0.5 miles long
- Daykin, Nebraska tornado22 May 2004, F4, 1 death, 38 injuries, 54 miles long
All tornadoes of 2004 · North Carolina tornado history · All notable tornadoes