What the record says
On 1 April 1998, a tornado touched down near Ashland, Virginia. The Storm Prediction Center records its path as 5 miles long and up to 400 yards wide, rated F3 on the Fujita (F) scale. It killed 2 people.
- F3Fujita rating
- 2deaths
- 0injuries
- 5 mipath length
- 400 ydmaximum width
It has its own page because it was rated 3 and killed at least one person.
This page gives the official record's figures. Numbers of deaths and injuries are sometimes revised after a survey, and they cannot convey what the day was like for the people who lived through it.
Counties it crossed
The start point was at 37.88, -77.62 and the end point at 37.88, -77.53 (latitude, longitude).
How to read this path
The Storm Prediction Center records most tornadoes as a straight line from the point where they touched down to the point where they lifted. The real path usually curved and was not the same width all the way along. The width given is the widest part. Older records are less precise, and the record starts in 1950.
Source: the NOAA Storm Prediction Center database, public domain.
Other notable tornadoes in Virginia
- Charlottesville, Virginia tornado30 September 1959, F3, 11 deaths, 4 injuries, 0.8 miles long
- Petersburg, Virginia tornado6 August 1993, F4, 4 deaths, 246 injuries, 1 mile long
- Abingdon, Virginia tornado27 April 2011, EF3, 3 deaths, 50 injuries, 19.6 miles long
- Waverly, Virginia tornado24 February 2016, EF1, 3 deaths, 8 injuries, 8.9 miles long
- Williamsburg, Virginia tornado16 April 2011, EF3, 2 deaths, 24 injuries, 26.5 miles long
- Arlington, Virginia tornado5 September 1979, F3, 1 death, 6 injuries, 17.9 miles long
Other notable tornadoes of 1998
- Birmingham, Alabama tornado8 April 1998, F5, 32 deaths, 259 injuries, 30.3 miles long
- Orlando, Florida tornado22 February 1998, F3, 25 deaths, 150 injuries, 28 miles long
- Sanford, Florida tornado22 February 1998, F3, 13 deaths, 36 injuries, 16 miles long
- Gainesville, Georgia tornado20 March 1998, F3, 12 deaths, 171 injuries, 4 miles long
- Farmer, South Dakota tornado30 May 1998, F4, 6 deaths, 150 injuries, 14 miles long
All tornadoes of 1998 · Virginia tornado history · All notable tornadoes