| EF5 tornado | |
|---|---|
 The tornado as an EF4. | |
| Date | January 19, 2019 |
| Times | 644-710 |
| Touchdown location | Near Gilbert, South Carolina |
| Highest winds |
225 MPH (estimated) |
| Injuries | 29 |
| Fatalities | 19 |
| Damage | 989 Million (2019 USD) |
| Areas affected | Lexington and Richland counties in South Carolina |
| Part of the 2019 Tornado Season | |
The 2019 Lexington Tornado was a very strong EF5 rated tornado which struck the city of Lexington, South Carolina on the morning of January 19, 2019. It is the only F5 or EF5 tornado ever confirmed in the state of South Carolina. The tornado killed a total of 19 people, injured 29, and caused 989 Million in (2019) US dollars.
Overview[]
On the morning of January 19, 2019, a squall line crossed Georgia during the morning hours. The storm shifted across the state around 4:00 AM before rapidly intensified near the Georgia and South Carolina state line.
By 5:00 AM, several small supercells developed ahead of the main system, and began to spawn tornadoes across South Carolina. Several violent tornadoes were reported. The strongest tornado of the outbreak was the Lexington tornado.
At 6:35 AM, the National Weather Service put up a Tornado Warning for Much of Lexington County. The tornado touched down at 6:44 AM, and reached peak strength at 6:53 AM EST before dissipating at 7:10 AM.
The EF5 rating was given to this tornado due to the amount of well built structures that were swept away, and the amount of ground scouring that was done by the tornado. The EF5 rating managed to go undisputed, as nobody on the survey team found damage that would be classified under EF5 standards.