85 Facts About The 1997 Miami Tornado That Will Put You In A Spin

One of the most devastating and sadly quite frequent weather phenomena is that of tornadoes.

Due to the geographical location and surrounding weather conditions, different coastal regions of the United States come face to face with tornadoes of different intensities. One of the states in the US which is most prone to tornadoes is the sunshine state of Florida.

Almost every year Florida witnesses tornadoes of various magnitudes. Most of these tornadoes are small and not very dangerous. But when it comes to the 1997 Miami Tornado, the story is quite different. The Miami Tornado was one of the most devastating and dangerous tornadoes to have ever hit the state of Florida.

In the year 1997, the great Miami tornado hit Downtown Miami and wreaked havoc. The tornado was an F1 twister and landed in the city on May 12, 1997. This tornado is regarded mainly for the dangerous pictures that were noticed by people all over the world though luckily, the damage caused by the tornado was not too devastating.

The tornado landed at around 2.10 p.m. on the Silver Bluff Estate region. The tornado then moved through various regions of Downtown Miami and passed across the skyscrapers in the city. The tornado was closely monitored by the local storm prediction center located in Oklahoma which then issued further warnings of similar incidents taking place in the near future.

In Downtown Miami, storms have always been regarded as the most significant weather phenomena that can affect South Florida. The atmosphere of the region is susceptible to F0 or F1 tornadoes that can have a rapid rotation speed and fling a lot of debris in the air causing a lot of damage.

The great Miami tornado happened in 1997. The great Miami tornado touched and affected Miami beach and south Florida. It had done minor damage to both Miami Beach and South Florida.

After reading about this infamous tornado to hit the downtown area of Miami, also check facts about 1992 hurricanes and 1972 Iran blizzard.

How strong was the 1997 Miami tornado?

The cyclone which started along Miami Beach was a massive F1 cyclone that had wind speeds of up to 112 mph (180 kph).

The tornado landed at around 2.00 p.m. on the Silver Bluff Estate region on May 12, 1997. Initially, the tornado started with a speed of up to 25 mph (40 kph) but later gained more speed as it passed along Miami Beach. The damage caused by the clone was estimated at $500 million. The overall damage caused by the Tornado was not that significant but the pictures of the event shocked people all over the world.

When it comes to the most prominent weather threats facing Miami, you will be surprised to know that while hurricanes are regarded as the biggest threat to South Florida, it is actually the tornadoes that cause major damage across the region.

The 1997 Miami Tornado is regarded as one of the most memorable weather phenomena experienced in South Florida for the last 20 years. This tornado affected some of the most important regions of South Florida including Downtown Miami, Miami Beach, Biscayne Bay, and Little Havana. While tornadoes that are witnessed in South Florida are normally small, this one emerged as a truly haunting phenomenon and was a frightening and unforgettable experience for the residents of the state.

How many people died in the 1997 Miami tornado?

The F-1 cyclone, with wind speeds of up to 110 mph, caused extensive harm in Little Havana, where it even ripped the rooftop off an apartment building.

A few windows were smothered by structures downtown, with the Citadel building on NW fourth street virtually lost all of its windows on the lowest three stories of its south side. Many vehicles were harmed by flying flotsam and jetsam. Maybe the most terrifying moment was when the twister ignored a Metro Mover raised rail vehicle and derailed it.

The 1997 twister followed for 8 mi (12.87 km) and lasted for 15 minutes. It caused more than $500 million in damage and harmed a total of 12 individuals. Fortunately, nobody was killed during the tornado.

This cyclone was solid by South Florida norms. While twisters are common in Florida and the surrounding areas, they are normally more vulnerable EF-0′s (the cyclone rating scale was refreshed from F to EF in 2007). The twisters will more often than not be extremely brief, in contrast to the more grounded and longer-enduring ones from the Great Plains.

The pictures of the 1997 Miami tornado circulated widely over news reports as well as various websites. As a matter of fact, even to date, many people are surprised by the impact and coverage of his relatively smaller tornado, making it one of the most memorable weather events of the last two decades in the year 1997. Moreover, the 1997 Miami tornado is also regarded as amongst the most documented tornadoes in modern history.

Why are Florida tornadoes weak?

Florida has on average around 52 tornados a year! Luckily most of these tornadoes are small and short-lived.

Florida positions exceptionally high in the country as far as the number of cyclones it sees every year. Be that as it may, the majority of Florida's cyclones are of the more fragile assortment. Florida positions among the least in cyclones classified as serious or amazingly hazardous, all the more regularly evaluated EF0 or EF1.

Genuinely damaging cyclones are most often revealed in Florida throughout the spring and summer; the most impressive ordinarily strike in spring. Florida has the questionable differentiation of having a higher recurrence of cyclones per 10,000 sq mi (25899.8 sq km) than some other states, including Oklahoma. In Florida, estimated in recurrence of twisters for every 10,000 sq mi (25899.8 sq km), the coast between Tampa Bay and Fort Myers has an especially high rate, as do the western panhandle and portions of the Atlantic Coast.

Florida encounters a bigger number of rainstorms than some other states yet fewer supercell storms. Florida cyclones are all the more regularly produced by the incessant standard tempests that happen over the state. Typhoons and other hurricanes can create huge quantities of tornadoes. Non-supercell cyclones are seldom just about as solid as supercell-produced storms.

The Strongest Tornado In Florida

As a state, the location of Florida makes it highly susceptible to tornadoes. In fact, several small tornadoes are experienced in South Florida every year, depending on the prevailing weather conditions.

When it comes to the strongest tornadoes in Florida, the two most grounded twisters in Florida history have happened in Polk County.

As indicated by the Florida Climate Center at FSU, a twister created F4 harm on the then Fujita scale on April 15, 1958, in Polk County, becoming one of just two F4 cyclones recorded in the province of Florida. The second F4 twister happened on April 4, 1966, in Polk County close to Gibsonia.

Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly facts for everyone to enjoy! If you liked our suggestions for 85 Facts about the 1997 Miami tornado that will put you in a spin then why not take a look at 1925 Tristate tornado, or 1935 Houston flood.