A staggering tally of 86 midwinter tornadoes swooped over the nation`smidsection to claim 57 lives and cause more than $1 billion in damage onFebruary 5-6, 2008.The outbreak, sometimes known as the "Super Tuesday" outbreak for the electionprimaries with which it coincided, racked Arkansas, Tennessee, southeasternMissouri, western Kentucky, northern Mississippi and northern Alabama. What ismore, damaging straight-line winds raked through the western and middle OhioValley.
The outbreak was set up by a southern Great Plains storm together withrecord-breaking warmth bathing the mid-South. Plentiful Gulf moisture ahead ofthe storm`s trailing cold front rounded out the volatile severe weather setup.
In the end, it serves as a reminder that no season is altogether free of thepossibility of tornadoes and the threat they pose to life and property, atleast in the south central and southeastern United States.
Story by AccuWeather.com Senior Meteorologist Jim Andrews.
