F5 tornado | |
---|---|
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Date | June 19, 1705 |
Times | Unknown,but impacted Jerichow |
Touchdown location | Unknown |
Injuries | Unknown |
Fatalities | Unknown |
Damage | Unknown |
Areas affected | Unknown except for Jerichow |
Part of the 1705 tornado season |
The 1705 Jerichow tornado was a very powerful, violent tornado in Germany on the afternoon of June 19, 1705, and is the earliest tornado of such intensity known anywhere in the world. The tornado is estimated to have occurred between 1545 and 1600 UTC that day, and levelled much of the town, sweeping away much of the infrastructure as it passed through.
Analysis and rating[]
The analysis that was carried out in order to determine the intensity of the tornado was complex. The first stage of the investigation was to look through the surviving weather reports from the lead up to that day, which concluded that the 4 days leading up to the event had been very warm and muggy, with temperatures of at least 27C estimated from the reports. According to the reports, the weather had started out warm and muggy, before an unpleasantly warm breeze began blowing near the area around 1300, and strong thunderstorms began buffeting the area by 1530 before the tornado.
It is estimated that the tornado reached the town between 1545 and 1600, tearing apart structures and scattering debris over large distances. A report in a local newspaper described the scene afterwards as being "Horrific, with debris buried into the earth over large distances, leaving little behind", which helped to secure the final F5 rating.