The remaining foundation and basement after a house was slept clean as a result of a tornado that occurred on Oct. 9, 2001, (NWS Hastings, Courtesy)
HASTINGS — On this day 24 years ago, a late season tornado outbreak took place in south central Nebraska with at least nine tornadoes occurring.
“The National Weather Service in Hastings conducted a damage survey of tornadoes which occurred Tuesday, Oct. 9, hitting parts of Hamilton, Merrick, Nance and Polk counties in south central Nebraska. Two teams of meteorologists, along with emergency management personnel, surveyed the area,” per an event summary written by NWS Hastings.
“One survey team covered northern Hamilton, Polk and extreme eastern Merrick Counties. A series of at least four tornadoes occurred along a 35 mile path starting seven miles southwest of Marquette in northern Hamilton County, crossing the northwest half of Polk County and into the extreme eastern part of Merrick County near Silver Creek,” per NWS Hastings.
With the exception of parts of western Polk County, damage along this path was rated a F1 on the Fujita Scale, with winds of 73-112 mph.
The tornadoes were rated on the original Fujita scale at the time, an enhanced version of the scale would be introduced in 2007 and all subsequent tornadoes rated as “EF.”
Initial reports of tornadoes southwest of Marquette eventually lead to the most significant tornado of the day. This multiple vortex, F3 tornado had winds of 158-206 mph.
“One home located three miles north of Polk was blown completely from its foundation as the tornado passed. The tornado itself was likely 400 yards wide, although less severe damage was surveyed up to one mile away from the tornado itself,” per NWS Hastings.
Damage in the Silver Creek area was caused by a tornado which developed in northern Polk County and crossed the river into town.
At least 20-30 farmsteads sustained some damage along the path of this family of tornadoes, with a common theme of machine sheds, grain bins and outbuildings being destroyed.
Windows were broken and siding was torn from many homes. Property damage losses will be in the millions of dollars. Thousands of acres of unharvested crops were also lost. Not serious injuries were reported, per NWS Hastings.
A second survey team covered the rest of Merrick County and the western half of Nance County. A total of five tornadoes were noted.
“One tornado began southeast of Chapman on the south side of the river, crossed into Merrick County and dissipated east of Champan. This F1 tornado caused broken windows, destroyed two outbuildings and knocked down power lines,” per NWS Hastings.
“Survey results indicated the most damaging tornado in this area moved from eight miles north of Central City, to southwest of Fullerton near the Loup River. One farmstead in northern Merrick County sustained approximately 250,000 dollars in damage,” per NWS Hastings.
Damage was consistent with a F2 tornado, with winds of 113-157 mph. At its widest point, the path was up to 300 yards wide.
“Two miles to the north, near the Nance and Merrick County line, grain bins, a barn and garage were destroyed. Other tornadoes were reported in the county, with one in the far northwest part of the county on the ground for about 4 miles. Again, no serious injuries were reported,” per NWS Hastings.
In addition to the tornadoes, large hail was reported included 1.75 inch stones measured two miles south of Elba.
“Larger outbreaks occur when warm, humid air from the Gulf of Mexico meets up with the increasingly stronger cold fronts and jet stream winds that typically sweep across the country. That’s generally the same setup we often see in spring,” according to the Weather Channel website.
“Just like spring, fall is a battleground season: Tornado counts don’t plunge to zero after summer because the conditions that spawn them can still occur in fall and winter in some parts of the country,” per the Weather Channel site.
