1953 — May 11, Tornado Outbreak, Tom Green and McLennan Counties (Waco), TX– 127

–127  Carbin, Schaefer, Edwards (SPC).  The 15 Deadliest U.S. Tornado Days since 1950.

–127  Grazulis.  Significant Tornadoes 1680-1991. 1993, p. 970

–127  NCEI, NOAA. Storm Events Database. Texas Tornadoes (3). 5-11-1953.

 

McLennan County, Waco Tornado

–114  Brooks & Doswell 2000

–114  Collins 2003, 204

–114  Grazulis. Significant Tornadoes.  2003, xiv.

–114  Grazulis. “The Top Ten US Killer Tornadoes.”

–114  Gunn. “Waco, Texas, Tornado,” Chapter 121 in Encyclopedia of Disasters (V. 2). P. 436.

–114  Ludlum. The American Weather Book, 1982, p. 107.

–114  NCEI, NOAA. Storm Events Database. TX, McLennan Co., Tornado, 5-11-1953, 16:10.

–114  NWS WFO, Fort Worth, TX: Remembering the May 11, 1953 Waco Tornado…   2007.    

–114  NWS WFO, Paducah, KY. NOAA/NWS 1925 Tri-State Tornado. “General Information.”

–114  Sizer. Texas Disasters: Wind, Flood, and Fire. “A Hideous Darkness,” 2005, p. 152.

–114  Storm Prediction Center, NOAA.  The 25 Deadliest Tornadoes.

 

Tom Green County

–13  F4 tornado, 15:00 CDT, 9.9 miles in length.  NCEI, NOAA. Storm Events Database.

 

Narrative Information

 

Grazulis: “TX  MAY 11, 1953 1415 13k 159inj 800y 20m F4. TOM GREEN–Moved ESE from 17m WNW of San Angelo into town. About 519 homes, 19 businesses and 150 cars were damaged or destroyed across the northern third of San Angelo. A two-story school, near the center of the track, had $100,000 damage. The roof and several walls were either sheared off or collapsed. All students were in central corridors, and only a dozen or so had minor injuries. About 15 square blocks were virtually leveled. Near-F5. $3,239,000.

 

“TX     MAY 11, 1953 1610 114k 597inj 600y 23m F5.  MCLENNAN–This massive tornado leveled a home 3m NNW of Lorena, passed near Hewitt, moved to the NNE, devastating downtown Waco, then lifted 5m E of Axtell. Homes were “leveled” both north and south of Waco, but detailed information is difficult to obtain. All reports centered on the disaster in Waco. About 200 business buildings were destroyed and 400 were damaged. About 150 homes were destroyed and 700 damaged to some degree. Over 2000 cars were damaged or destroyed. $41,000,000….” (Grazulis. Significant Tornadoes 1680-1991. 1993, p. 970.)

 

Waco Tornado

 

Grazulis: “This massive tornado leveled a home near Lorena, passed near Hewitt, moved north-northeast, devastating downtown Waco, Texas, then lifted east of Axtell. Homes were “leveled” both north and south of Waco, but detailed information is difficult to obtain. All reports centered on the disaster in Waco. About 200 business buildings were destroyed and 400 were damaged. The most publicized damage was to large brick buildings in the downtown area, especially the collapse of a six-story furniture store. Bricks from the store filled the street to a depth of up to five feet. Five people were killed in two of the cars crushed in the street. At least 30 people, mostly employees, were killed in the furniture store. Survivors were buried for up to 14 hours and several days were needed to remove the bodies buried under the tons of rubble. About 150 homes were destroyed and 700 damaged to some degree. Over 2000 cars were damaged or destroyed. $41,000,000.” (Grazulis. “Descriptions of the Top Ten US Killer Tornadoes #10:  The Waco Tornado.”)

 

NWS: “…the deadliest tornado in Texas since 1900. The violent and deadly twister ripped through the downtown area, killing and injuring hundreds….The tornado touched down around 4:10 pm southwest of Waco, near the town of Lorena in McLennan County. After destroying a home north of Lorena, the tornado moved north-northeast toward Waco. The tornado was approximately one-third of a mile wide and wreaked havoc through the downtown area. Eyewitness reports indicated very heavy rain falling at the time of the tornado, making it difficult for people in downtown Waco to see the twister coming and take appropriate action….The twister continued plowing northeast of Waco, finally dissipating near the community of Axtell after a 23 mile-long path of destruction….

 

“Killing 114 and injuring 597, the Waco tornado holds the somber title of the deadliest tornado in Texas history since 1900. Striking the heart of the downtown area at the end of the work day, many people were caught unaware of the impending severe weather. 30 people were killed when a 6-story furniture store collapsed, while 5 others were killed in their cars. The destruction was so massive, survivors waited up to 14 hours to be rescued and some bodies could not be recovered for several days following the disaster….The F5 twister destroyed over 600 homes and businesses and damaged over 1000, including the Dr. Pepper bottling plant, which still stands today. 2000 vehicles also sustained damage. Monetary damages topped $41 million in 1953, equating to over $310 million in 2006 dollars….

 

“As a result of the deadly Waco twister, Texas A&M University and the United States Weather Bureau (now the National Weather Service) organized the Texas Tornado Warning Conference in June 1953 to discuss tornado warning procedures and weather radar. The purpose of the conference was to use all available resources from the federal government, academic communities, and the private sector to devise an efficient tornado warning system for severe weather. The future goal was to prevent death tolls like that of the Waco tornado.  The conference led to improved communications between numerous agencies, an early development of the SKYWARN storm spotter program, and a national radar network.”  (NWS, Remembering the May 11, 1953 Waco Tornado)

 

Newspapers

 

May 11, AP: “Waco, Tex., May 11 (AP) – At least 42 persons were killed and more than 400 injured late today when a pair of tornadoes crashed with deadly fury on two widely separated Texas cities…. The Waco civil defense unit estimated the dead at 44 with the probability of at least 100 dead.  The American Red Cross said it had reports of 67 dead.

 

“Eight were killed at San Angelo and more than 100 injured when another tornado slashed through a residential section of the city — 200 miles west of here — just two hours before the Waco storm.

 

“Downtown Waco was left a twisted mass of crumpled steel and broken concrete as the vicious

twister pounced twice in the heart of the city about 4:45 p. m. (CST)….The tornado hit Waco, a Central Texas metropolis of about 90,000, in a blinding rainstorm.  The approach was so silent that some victims got their first warning from a horrible suction that lifted them off their feet and slammed them into crumbling buildings.

 

“The injured poured into two Waco hospitals so fast doctors and nurses only had time to slap a piece of adhesive tape on the head of the injured, scribble their names on it and give them a shot

to ease the pain….

 

“San Angelo, a wool growing center of about 55,000, felt the slash of the funnel-shaped cloud about 2:30 p. m. It carved a path of destruction about a mile long and half a mile wide through a residential section and the city’s fairgrounds.  AN elementary school was badly damaged and several of the students were injured.” (Galveston Daily News (TX). “Twisters Rip Through Waco, San Angelo,” May 12, 1953, A1.)

 

May 12, UP: “Waco, Tex. May 12 (UP) — Rain-drenched rescuers dug into ruins of a flattened pool hall here Tuesday in the belief that 20 more bodies there might bring the death toll still higher in the twin tornado smashes against Waco and San Angelo. The total so far was 67 dead, and new tornado alerts were issued.  Sixteen of 59 bodies recovered in downtown Waco came the pool hall, and authorities feared 18 more still were under the wreckage of the building.  One man was brought out alive from the pool hall…. Mayor Ralph Wolf of Waco…said at least 200 autos were either destroyed or badly damaged in the 36-block area…. The Lake View School at San Angelo bore the brunt of the storm there. Some 500 students were in the school and many of the injured were students.” (Delta Democrat-Times (Greenville, MS). “Texas Gets New Tornado Alerts As Waco Digs Out 59 Bodies From Rubble,” May 12,  1953.)

 

Sources

 

Brooks, Harold E. and Charles A Doswell III (NOAA/National Severe Storms Laboratory).  “Normalized Damage from Major Tornadoes in the United States: 1890-1999.” Revised manuscript submitted as Note to Weather and Forecasting, Vol. 16, 9 p., Sep 2000.  Accessed 11-25-2017 at: http://www.nssl.noaa.gov/users/brooks/public_html/damage/tdam1.html

 

Carbin, Greg, Joe Schaefer, Roger Edwards. The 15 Deadliest U.S. Tornado Days since 1950.  Storm Prediction Center, NOAA. 10-12-2009 at: http://www.spc.noaa.gov/faq//tornado/fatalday.htm

 

Collins, Ace. Tragedies of American History – Thirteen Stories of Human Error and Natural Disaster. New York: Plume Books, 2003.

 

Delta Democrat-Times, Greenville, MS. “Texas Gets New Tornado Alerts As Waco Digs Out 59 Bodies From Rubble.” 5-12-1953. Accessed at:  http://www.newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=57149084

 

Galveston Daily News, TX. “Twisters Rip Through Waco, San Angelo,” May 12, 1953, A1.  Accessed at:  http://www.newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=45137974

 

Grazulis, Thomas P. Significant Tornadoes 1680-1991: A Chronology and Analysis of Events. St. Johnsbury, VE: Environmental Films, 1993.

 

Grazulis, Thomas P. “Top Ten US Killer Tornadoes.” Accessed 10-12-2009 at:  http://www.tornadoproject.com/toptens/toptens.htm

 

Gunn, Angus M. Encyclopedia of Disasters: Environmental Catastrophes and Human Tragedies (Volume 2). Greenwood Press, 2007.

 

Ludlum, David M. The American Weather Book. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1982.

 

National Centers for Environmental Information. Storm Events Database. Texas, McLennan County, Tornado, 5-11-1953, 16:10. NCEI, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Admin. Accessed 11-25-2017 at: https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/stormevents/eventdetails.jsp?id=10121804

 

National Centers for Environmental Information. Storm Events Database. Texas, Tom Green County, 5-11-1953. NCEI, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Accessed 11-25-2017 at: https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/stormevents/eventdetails.jsp?id=10121803

 

National Centers for Environmental Information. Storm Events Database. Texas Tornadoes (3). 5-11-1953. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Accessed 11-25-2017 at: https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/stormevents/listevents.jsp?eventType=%28C%29+Tornado&beginDate_mm=05&beginDate_dd=11&beginDate_yyyy=1953&endDate_mm=05&endDate_dd=11&endDate_yyyy=1953&county=ALL&hailfilter=0.00&tornfilter=0&windfilter=000&sort=DT&submitbutton=Search&statefips=48%2CTEXAS

 

National Weather Service Weather Forecast Office, Fort Worth, TX: Remembering the May 11, 1953 Waco Tornado — “The Deadliest Tornado in Texas since 1900.”  NWS, NOAA, May 7, 2007 last modified. Accessed 11-25-2017 at: https://www.weather.gov/fwd/wacotormay1953

 

Sizer, Mona D.  Texas Disasters: Wind, Flood, and Fire. Lanham: A Republic of Texas Press Book, 2005.

 

Storm Prediction Center. The 25 Deadliest U.S. Tornadoes. Norman, OK: SPC, National Weather Service. NOAA. Accessed 10-12-2008 at: http://www.spc.noaa.gov/faq/tornado/killers.html