How new research led to North Dakota tornado's EF5 upgrade
Deadly North Dakota tornado upgraded to EF5
A powerful tornado struck Enderlin, North Dakota, on June 20, causing significant damage and leading to a rare EF5 classification after new research. FOX 9's Cody Matz breaks down how the research led to the upgrade.
ENDERLIN, N.D. (FOX 9) - A powerful tornado struck Enderlin, North Dakota, on June 20, causing significant damage and leading to a rare EF5 classification after new research.
Tornado's impact on Enderlin
Local perspective:
Meteorologists from the National Weather Service in Grand Forks estimate the tornado's winds reached at least 210 mph. The tornado's strength was determined over several months, as forensic meteorologists and engineers analyzed the extensive damage, particularly to a freight train and its rail cars, one of which was thrown several hundred feet.
The National Weather Service issues a preliminary rating, generally within a few days of the storm, using standardized damage intensity indicators that have been left behind. These identifiers can range anywhere from flattened corn and debarked trees, to blown off roofs and buildings being completely blown away. However, the strongest of storms often need further research involving engineers and forensic meteorologists that scour through the mounds of data to justify a classification. Sometimes these "deeper dives" lead to classification changes like this one. To read more on the damage survey, head to this link.
Enderlin, North Dakota, tornado upgraded to EF5.
The backstory:
The EF5 rating is rare, with only 10 tornadoes categorized as such since the Enhanced Fujita Scale's introduction in 2007. The last EF5 tornado occurred in May 2013 in Moore, Oklahoma, marking a 12-year gap between top-of-the-scale ratings.
The original scale was called the Fujita scale, which was developed by Ted Fujita in the 1970s. He came up with the original damage scale to be able to identify weak tornadoes from stronger ones so we can learn more about them and to help them become more predictable. The scale was updated to the "enhanced scale" in the early 2000s, adjusting the scale to account for new understanding of modern construction and how winds would interact with it.
New research influences tornado classification
Enderlin, North Dakota, tornado upgraded to EF5.
What they're saying:
Cutting-edge research from the Canadian Severe Storms Laboratory and the Northern Tornado Project played a crucial role in the tornado's EF5 classification. The tornado derailed 33 train cars, including several that were full, weighing more than a quarter of a million pounds. The fully loaded cars were derailed, tipped and moved, but one of the empty tankers was thrown several hundred feet.
Scientists applied findings from this new peer-reviewed study published in the journal Monthly Weather Review last year, to identify the wind speeds it would take to push and throw these objects. The study would conclude that moving train cars this far would more than exceed the EF5 threshold, with some meteorologists suggesting it could take winds upwards of 260 mph. For more information on this new research, head to this link.
What's next:
With this new research being accepted by scientific entities like the National Weather Service, it's possible that other strong tornadoes since 2013, like the Greenfield, Iowa, tornado from 2024 just to name one, could also be upgraded sometime in the future.
Enderlin, North Dakota, tornado upgraded to EF5.