SPC Stats - Tornado #1
Path length: 1 mile
Width: 100 yards
Fatalities: 8
Injuries: 200
Rating: F4
County: Galveston
SPC Stats - Tornado #2
Path length: 2 miles
Width: 10 yards
Fatalities: 0
Injuries: 0
Rating: F3
County: Galveston
Tornado Path
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Galveston F4:
SPC: 29.32 / -94.78
Corrected Coordinates based on Grazulis/Storm Data:
Start: 29.292769/-94.777185
End: 29.295411/-94.794087
Galveston F3:
SPC: Start: 29.27 / -94.87
Corrected Coordinates based on Grazulis:
Start: 29.255308/-94.858209
End: 29.270490/-94.886751
Note: Exact tornado path may not be straight and/or continuous.
Hurricane Carla continued to produced tornadoes in Coastal Texas during the wee hours of the morning of September 12, 1961. We look at two that moved through Galveston, TX.
The first developed at 315am CT. The path length was only 1 mile. Per the Storm Data Narrative it traveled between 19th and 25th streets. Per Thomas Grazulis in Significant Tornadoes, this tornado began as a waterspout over the Gulf and then came inland. It “was probably the most intense tornado ever to hit Galveston.” Eight people were killed. Grazulis mentions that the death toll could have been much higher but many had evacuated because of Carla. 60-75 buildings were destroyed. There is a discrepancy in the injury count. There are 200 injuries recorded in the SPC Database. 55 injuries are recorded in the Storm Data Narrative and by Grazulis.
Tornado #2 formed at 6am, traveled a short length (2 miles) and destroyed 6 homes. There were no injuries or fatalities from this second tornado. It is recorded as an F3 in the SPC database. Grazulis lists a rating of F2.
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Newspaper Clippings
Discrepancies:
We gathered information for this event from the SPC & NCDC Databases, the September 1961 Storm Data Narrative and Thomas Grazulis in Significant Tornadoes and found the following differences:
Injury Count (Tornado #1):
- SPC/NCDC have an injury county of 200.
- Storm Data and Grazulis list 55 injuries.
Width (Tornado #2):
- SPC has a 10 yard width.
- NCDC has a 33 yard width.
- No info from Storm Data and Grazulis.
Rating (Tornado #2):
- SPC/NCDC have F3 rating.
- Grazulis has F2 rating.
Sources:
September 1961 Storm Data Publication
Grazulis, Thomas P. (1993). Significant Tornadoes 1680-1991: A Chronology and Analysis of Events. St. Johnsbury, VT: The Tornado Project of Environmental Films. Page 1038.
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