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1881 Minnesota tornado outbreak

Weather event in Minnesota, United States

Field	Value
image	NewUlm1881.jpg
caption	Damage to New Ulm, Minnesota, from an F4 tornado

On July 15–16, 1881, a deadly tornado outbreak struck southern Minnesota, featuring at least least six tornadoes, 24 deaths, and 123 injuries. The deadliest tornado of the outbreak, retroactively rated F4 on the Fujita scale, killed 20 people in and near New Ulm; it was likely a long-tracked tornado family and may have caused F5 damage to rural farmsteads. An F4 tornado elsewhere in Minnesota killed four more people, and additional strong tornadoes occurred in the state.

Confirmed tornadoes

Prior to 1990, there is a likely undercount of tornadoes, particularly E/F0–1, with reports of weaker tornadoes becoming more common as population increased. A sharp increase in the annual average E/F0–1 count by approximately 200 tornadoes was noted upon the implementation of NEXRAD Doppler weather radar in 1990–1991. 1974 marked the first year where significant tornado (E/F2+) counts became homogenous with contemporary values, attributed to the consistent implementation of Fujita scale assessments. Numerous discrepancies on the details of tornadoes in this outbreak exist between sources. The total count of tornadoes and ratings differs from various agencies accordingly. The list below documents information from the most contemporary official sources alongside assessments from tornado historian Thomas P. Grazulis.

Weather map of the low pressure system near Canada that would produce the tornado outbreak over Minnesota on July 15, 1881.

July 15 event

F#	Location	County / Parish	State	Time (UTC)	Path length
SE of Ortonville to Fairfield to N of Appleton	Lac qui Parle, Big Stone, Swift	MN	20:00–?	30 mi	600 yd
4 deaths – This long-lived, violent tornado may have formed across the Minnesota–South Dakota state line, damaging six farms near Odessa, but with no deaths. It leveled numerous farms in the Odessa–Correll area before killing four people in and near Fairfield. 15 injuries occurred.
Western Bird Island to S of New Ulm	Renville, Sibley, Nicollet, Brown	MN	21:30–?	40 mi	1,760 yd♯
20 deaths – See section on this tornado – 93 people were injured.
S of Sleepy Eye	Brown, Watonwan	MN	22:50–?	≥8 mi	200 yd
A tornado leveled barns and snapped or uprooted trees. Grazulis originally rated it F4, noting a 50 mi path and 30 injuries in 1984, but subsequently downgraded it.
N of Winnebago	Blue Earth, Faribault	MN	00:00–?	5 mi	400 yd
A tornado hit and destroyed 12 farm buildings, including three or more barns. 11 injuries occurred.
S of Mountain Lake to W of Odin	Cottonwood, Watonwan	MN	00:10–?	8 mi	200 yd
An intense tornado nearly leveled a farmhouse, except for a wall fragment. It also tore apart four other farmhouses, each of which it unroofed, and killed cattle as well. Four injuries occurred.

July 16 event

F#	Location	County / Parish	State	Time (UTC)	Path length	Width	Damage	color	cat2}}; border-bottom: 1px solid black"	F2
Boys Lake	Redwood	MN
A tornado swept away outbuildings, a stable, and a farmhouse, leaving "hardly a vestige" behind, according to an account quoted by Grazulis.

Bird Island–New Ulm, Minnesota

| fujita-scale = F4+ A potent, long-lived tornado family—likely of F5 intensity—devastated farms and the western side of New Ulm. It struck five farms in Wellington Township, obliterating every building on each of them and causing a few deaths. The tornado killed five more people in Cairo Township, all in one family. A boy and his herd of 40 cattle perished as well. On the Minnesota River, the tornado razed nine homes in West Newton, claiming five more lives. Observers reported two parallel damage swaths nearby, indicating two or more tornadoes in the area and possible reformation into a distinct event. Next, the tornado veered sharply to the left as it entered the western side of New Ulm, destroying that section of town, demolishing 47 structures, and killing half a dozen people. The town was hard hit, with 247 buildings damaged or destroyed; many homes in town were leveled as well. In New Ulm the tornado was up to 1 mi wide, following a zigzag track.

Notes

References

Sources

References

(2004). "Tornado Outbreak Day Sequences: Historic Events and Climatology (1875–2003)". [[American Meteorological Society]].
(March 5, 2015). "The Online Tornado FAQ (by Roger Edwards, SPC)". [[Storm Prediction Center]].
(March 5, 2015). "Enhanced F Scale for Tornado Damage". Storm Prediction Center.
(June 6, 2013). "Enhanced Fujita Scale (EF-Scale)". [[Environment and Climate Change Canada]].
(2016). "The International Tornado Intensity Scale". [[Tornado and Storm Research Organisation]].

Info: Wikipedia Source

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