Indianapolis, IN

Weather Forecast Office

Tornado and Severe Storms of November 18, 2017

Overview

A strong low pressure system moved across central Indiana, bringing warm and humid air up with it. Thunderstorms developed with the low and along/ahead of its associated cold front. Outside of storms, winds gusted over 40 mph.

Tornado
Microburst
Wind Gusts
Photos
Radar
Storm Reports
Rainfall
Environment

Tornado:

Tornado - Near Dayton
Tippecanoe County

Date	November 18, 2017
Time (Local)	11:15 AM - 11:16 AM
EF Rating	EF-0
Est. Peak Winds	75 MPH
Path Length	0.5 miles
Max Width	110 yards
Injuries/Deaths	0
Summary: The brief tornado damaged a house and several trees.

Track Map


Radar and Velocity at 11:15 AM EST	House Damaged by Tornado

The Enhanced Fujita (EF) Scale classifies tornadoes into the following categories:

EF0 Weak 65-85 mph	EF1 Moderate 86-110 mph	EF2 Significant 111-135 mph	EF3 Severe 136-165 mph	EF4 Extreme 166-200 mph	EF5 Catastrophic 200+ mph

Microburst

Microburst - Near Frankfort
Tippecanoe County

Date	November 18, 2017
Time (Local)	11:50-11:54 AM EST
Est. Peak Winds	85 MPH
Path Length	1.54 miles
Max Width	300 yards
Injuries/Deaths	0
Summary: A microburst producing damaging straight line winds damaged buildings, including a high school and a church, downed trees, and blew over an empty 18-wheel truck.

Map of Microburst Location


Radar and Velocity at 11:52 AM EST	Damage from Microburst

Wind

Below are the highest wind gusts observed during the event.

...Wind Reports...

Location                     Speed     Time/Date       Provider                           
1 ESE Dayton                 54 MPH    1140 AM 11/18   INDOT                
Frankfort                    52 MPH    1155 AM 11/18   AWOS                 
5 NNW Decker                 52 MPH    1100 AM 11/18   INDOT                
Indianapolis, In             48 MPH    1208 PM 11/18   ASOS                 
3 ENE Edinburgh              45 MPH    1239 PM 11/18   CWOP                 
Daviess County Airport       44 MPH    0555 PM 11/18   AWOS                 
3 NNW Edinburgh              44 MPH    0410 PM 11/18   INDOT                
2 NNW Terre Haute            44 MPH    0215 PM 11/18   CWOP                 
Monroe County Airport        44 MPH    1150 AM 11/18   ASOS                 
5 NNE Zionsville             44 MPH    1139 AM 11/18   NONFEDAWOS           
Indianapolis Terry Airport   43 MPH    1215 PM 11/18   AWOS                 
2 NE Plainfield              43 MPH    1154 AM 11/18   CWOP                 
1 ENE Bloomington            43 MPH    1042 AM 11/18   CWOP                 
Cloverdale                   42 MPH    1120 AM 11/18   INDOT                
Hulman Regional Airport      41 MPH    1003 PM 11/18   ASOS                 
Eagle Creek Airpark Airport  41 MPH    0414 PM 11/18   ASOS                 
2 NW Crows Nest              41 MPH    0410 PM 11/18   CWOP                 
Columbus Municipal Airport   41 MPH    1146 AM 11/18   AWOS                 
1 SSE Loogootee              41 MPH    1040 AM 11/18   INDOT                
Delaware County-johnson Fiel 40 MPH    0452 PM 11/18   ASOS                 
2 SE Washington              40 MPH    0320 PM 11/18   CWOP                 
Kokomo Municipal Airport     39 MPH    0515 PM 11/18   AWOS                 
Shelbyville Municipal Airpor 39 MPH    0411 PM 11/18   ASOS                 
2 NNW Lake Hart              39 MPH    0203 PM 11/18   CWOP                 
2 ESE Greenwood              39 MPH    0113 PM 11/18   CWOP                 
4 ENE Brownstown             39 MPH    1240 PM 11/18   INDOT                
Purdue University Airport    38 MPH    0236 PM 11/18   ASOS                 
Country Club Heights         38 MPH    0113 PM 11/18   CWOP                 
Mt Comfort Airport           38 MPH    1256 PM 11/18   AWOS                 
1 NW Ellettsville            38 MPH    1222 PM 11/18   CWOP                 
Greensburg                   38 MPH    1220 PM 11/18   INDOT                
3 NNE Pittsboro              38 MPH    1155 AM 11/18   CWOP                 
3 NW Dublin                  37 MPH    0100 PM 11/18   INDOT                
2 NNW River Forest           36 MPH    0719 PM 11/18   CWOP                 
1 WNW Pendleton              36 MPH    0713 PM 11/18   CWOP                 
1 SSE New Palestine          36 MPH    0612 PM 11/18   CWOP                 
1 SSW Sullivan               36 MPH    0540 PM 11/18   INDOT                
2 WSW Homecroft              36 MPH    1228 PM 11/18   CWOP                 
3 SW Westfield               35 MPH    0822 PM 11/18   CWOP                 
2 ESE Lapel                  35 MPH    0540 PM 11/18   CWOP                 
2 WSW Columbus               35 MPH    0240 PM 11/18   INDOT                
Frankfort                    35 MPH    1153 AM 11/18   CWOP

Photos:

Selected Photos of Damage


Damage near Dayton (NWS Storm Survey)	Damage near Dayton (NWS Storm Survey)	Damage near Dayton (NWS Storm Survey)

Debris from Microburst	Damage from Microburst	Damage from Microburst

Radar:

Selected Images from the event. A radar loop of much of the event is available.


Radar at 10:30 AM EST	Radar at 11:30 AM EST	Radar at 12:30 PM EST	Radar at 2:30 PM EST

Storm Reports

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT...SUMMARY
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE INDIANAPOLIS IN
1049 PM EST SAT NOV 18 2017

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

1120 AM     TSTM WND DMG     2 ENE DAYTON            40.39N 86.73W
11/18/2017                   TIPPECANOE         IN   EMERGENCY MNGR

            TREES DOWN AT 900 E AND 200 S. TIME
            ESTIMATED FROM REPORT AND RADAR.

1120 AM     FLOOD            LAFAYETTE               40.41N 86.87W
11/18/2017                   TIPPECANOE         IN   PUBLIC

            MULTIPLE REPORTS OF WATER PONDING IN YARDS
            ACROSS LAFAYETTE.

1132 AM     TSTM WND DMG     2 E LINDEN              40.19N 86.86W
11/18/2017                   MONTGOMERY         IN   PUBLIC

            TREES DOWN ACROSS THE ROAD AND TWO POLE
            BARNS DAMAGED. TIME ESTIMATED FROM RADAR.

1150 AM     TSTM WND DMG     1 E FRANKFORT           40.28N 86.48W
11/18/2017                   CLINTON            IN   PUBLIC

            WALMART ROOF COLLAPSE AND FRONT DAMAGED.
            STORE EVACUATED. SEMI TRUCKS POSSIBLY
            KNOCKED OVER. INJURIES REPORTED, UNSURE HOW
            MANY.

1220 PM     FLOOD            THORNTOWN               40.13N 86.61W
11/18/2017                   BOONE              IN   PUBLIC

            YARDS FLOODED IN THORNTOWN. VIA TWITTER.

0110 PM     TSTM WND DMG     5 W GREENWOOD           39.63N 86.21W
11/18/2017                   JOHNSON            IN   NWS EMPLOYEE

            TREE SNAPPED AT BASE, ABOUT ONE FOOT IN
            DIAMETER. TIME ESTIMATED.

0220 PM     FLOOD            2 N COUNTRY CLUB HEIGHT 40.15N 85.69W
11/18/2017                   MADISON            IN   PUBLIC

            YARDS AND ROADS FLOODED.

0342 PM     HEAVY RAIN       2 NW FISHERS            39.97N 86.05W
11/18/2017  M2.06 INCH       HAMILTON           IN   TRAINED SPOTTER

            AMOUNT SINCE MIDNIGHT AT MAIN STREET AND
            HAZELDALE PARKWAY; WIND GUST TO 44 MPH.

0522 PM     TSTM WND DMG     5 SW CLARKSBURG         39.38N 85.40W
11/18/2017                   DECATUR            IN   EMERGENCY MNGR

            TREE DOWN ON POWER LINES AT COUNTY ROAD 300N
            AND 400E.

Rain Reports

Map of 24 hour rainfall ending 7AM EST Nov 19.

24 hour rainfall map

Environment

A strong low pressure system moved across central Indiana, bringing warm and humid air up with it. Thunderstorms developed with the low and along/ahead of its associated cold front.


Figure 1: Surface pressure, temperature, and dewpoint at 11 AM EST	Figure 2: Most Unstable CAPE and 0-3km shear at 11 AM EST	Figure 3: Surface Vorticity at 11 AM EST

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