Five Year Anniversary of the Comfrey/ St. Peter Tornado Outbreak March 29

PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TWIN CITIES/CHANHASSEN MN
915 PM CST WED MAR 26 2003
...FIVE YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF THE COMFREY/ST PETER TORNADOES ON SATURDAY MARCH 29...
THE GREATEST MARCH TORNADO OUTBREAK IN MINNESOTA HISTORY TOOK PLACE ON MARCH 29 1998...
RESULTING IN TWO FATALITIES.  FOURTEEN TORNADOES TOUCHED DOWN THAT DAY...INCLUDING 
THIRTEEN FROM A SUPERCELL THAT TRACKED FROM THE SOUTHWEST CORNER OF MINNESOTA...TO JUST 
A FEW MILES FROM THE WISCONSIN BORDER.  ONE OF THE TORNADOES WAS RATED F4...HAD A PATH 
LENGTH OF 67 MILES...AND A MAXIMUM WIDTH OF 1.25 MILES.

THE OUTBREAK EASILY ECLIPSED ALL KNOWN TORNADO RECORDS FOR MINNESOTA IN MARCH.  
PRIOR TO 1998...THERE HAD ONLY BEEN SIX TORNADOES EVER IN MARCH.  
SOME HAVE ASKED IF THIS WAS THE EARLIEST MINNESOTA EVER HAD A TORNADO.  
THE ANSWER IS NO...BUT IT DID COME CLOSE.  THE EARLIEST KNOWN TORNADO WAS MARCH 18 
1968 IN WATONWAN COUNTY.

THE WEATHER MAP SHOWED A STRENGTHENING LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM NEAR SIOUX FALLS...WITH A 
WARM FRONT EXTENDING NORTHEAST TOWARD RED WING. THE STORM WOULD TRACK ALONG THE NORTH 
SIDE OF THE WARM FRONT. AROUND 2 PM...SEVERAL THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPED NEAR SIOUX FALLS...AND 
LARGE HAIL FELL JUST EAST OF SIOUX FALLS.  THE COMPLEX MOVED NORTHEAST 40 MILES...CONTINUING
TO PRODUCE LARGE HAIL.  THEN AT 323 PM CST...TWO MILES NORTH OF LISMORE...THE FIRST OF
SIX BRIEF TORNADOES TOUCHED DOWN.  THE SUPERCELL CONTINUED MOVING NORTHEAST... 
AND FOR THE NEXT 20 MILES...PRODUCED FIVE MORE BRIEF TOUCHDOWNS.  
EACH OF THESE SIX TORNADOES HAD A PATH LENGTH NO GREATER THAN 200 YARDS.

SOON THEREAFTER...THE COMPLEX TRANSITIONED TO A MASSIVE STORM WHICH WOULD SPAWN
THREE LONG TRACKED MULTIPLE VORTEX TORNADOES.  THE FIRST OF THESE LONG TORNADOES 
TOUCHED DOWN 7 MILES EAST OF AVOCA AT 350 PM. IT STRUCK SIX COUNTIES AND CAUSED 
SEVERE DAMAGE IN THE CITY OF COMFREY. TWENTY PEOPLE WERE CAUGHT OUTSIDE A COMFREY 
CHURCH WHEN THE TORNADO STRUCK...THEY DESCRIBED THAT AFTER THE FIRST BLAST OF WIND
...THEY WERE IN A RELATIVE CALM FOR NEARLY 20 SECONDS DURING WHICH TIME SOME WERE 
ABLE TO GET INSIDE THE CHURCH BEFORE THE BACKSIDE OF THE STORM STRUCK.
TWENTY MILES AFTER MOVING THROUGH COMFREY...IT STRENGTHENED TO F4 STATUS 
WHERE IT KILLED ONE MAN IN HIS FARMHOUSE 3 MILES NORTHWEST OF HANSKA.

WITNESSES DESCRIBED THIS MASSIVE TORNADO AS A MASS OF BLOWING DUST OR A ROLLING 
FOG BANK.  BECAUSE IT WAS SO WIDE...AND THE CLOUD BASE SO LOW TO THE GROUND...
MOST PEOPLE DID NOT REALIZE IT WAS A TORNADO UNTIL IT GOT VERY CLOSE.  
AFTER 67 MILES...IT FINALLY DISSIPATED 4 MILES WEST OF COURTLAND AT 515 PM CST. 
 AS IT WAS DISSIPATING...HOWEVER...ANOTHER LONG TRACKED MULTIPLE VORTEX TORNADO 
WAS DEVELOPING TWO MILES TO ITS SOUTHEAST.

THIS NEW TORNADO TOUCHED DOWN TWO MILES EAST OF NICOLLET AT 518 PM AND MOVED 
NORTHEAST FOR 18 MILES. ITS MAXIMUM WIDTH WAS ALSO 1.25 MILES.  THE TORNADO CAUSED
 F3 DAMAGE AND TRAVELED THROUGH DOWNTOWN ST PETER. ONE FATALITY OCCURRED WHEN A 
FAMILY WAS IN THEIR VAN ONE MILE WEST OF ST PETER...AND THE VAN WAS BLOWN ABOUT 
100 YARDS OFF THE ROAD...KILLING A SIX YEAR OLD BOY.  ONCE AGAIN...MANY EYEWITNESSES
DID NOT RECOGNIZE IT AS A TORNADO COMING TOWARD THEM. INSTEAD...THEY THOUGHT 
IT WAS BLOWING DUST OR A ROLLING FOG BANK. AFTER ROARING THROUGH ST PETER...IT 
DISSIPATED 5 MILES WEST OF LE CENTER...AND ANOTHER LONG TRACKED MULTIPLE 
VORTEX TORNADO THEN DEVELOPED 2 MILES NORTH OF CLEVELAND.

THIS THIRD LONG TRACKED TORNADO HAD A MAXIMUM WIDTH OF ONE MILE AND PRODUCED 
F2 DAMAGE. IT TORE THROUGH LE CENTER WHERE IT STRUCK A MOBILE HOME COURT. 
THE MANAGERS OF THE MOBILE HOME COURT HEARD THE WARNING AND RAN TO EACH HOME 
TO ENSURE EVERYONE WAS AWARE OF THE TORNADO. VIRTUALLY ALL RESIDENTS WERE IN 
THE SHELTER WHEN THE TORNADO STRUCK.  THE TORNADO DISSIPATED JUST AS IT WAS 
ABOUT TO HIT THE CITY OF MONTGOMERY.
SUBSEQUENTLY...FOUR OTHER SHORT LIVED TORNADOES TOUCHED DOWN. THE LAST ONE 
LIFTED OFF FIVE MILES SOUTHWEST OF HASTINGS AT 648 PM...HAVING BEEN ON THE 
GROUND FOR ONE MILE.  THEREAFTER...THE PARENT SUPERCELL DISSIPATED IN WESTERN
WISCONSIN.  CHECKS FLOATED BACK DOWN TO THE GROUND AS FAR EAST AS RICE LAKE WISCONSIN.

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URL: http://climate.umn.edu/doc/journal/comfrey_tornado_five_year.htm
Last modified: March 28, 2003