Tornado outbreak of January 12, 2023

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Tornado outbreak of January 12, 2023
Map of tornado warnings and confirmed tornadoes from the outbreak.
Meteorological history
DateJanuary 12, 2023
Duration15 hours, 24 minutes
Tornado outbreak
Tornadoes42
Maximum ratingEF3 tornado
Highest winds155 mph (249 km/h) (Griffin, Georgia EF3)
Overall effects
Casualties8 fatalities (+1 indirect), 53 injuries
Damage$760 million (Estimated economic loss)[1]
Areas affectedSoutheastern United States

Part of the tornado outbreaks of 2023

An early-season tornado outbreak impacted the Southeastern United States on January 12, 2023. The result of a mid-level trough moving through, moisture and the presence of a strong low-level jet aided in the development of numerous severe and tornadic thunderstorms. Early in the outbreak, a strong EF2 tornado caused considerable damage in Winston County, Alabama, while another EF2 tornado struck just south of Greensboro. A destructive high-end EF2 tornado struck Selma, causing widespread damage and two injuries.[2] The same storm produced a long-lived EF3 tornado that moved through or near Old Kingston, Titus, Equality, and Lake Martin, resulting in seven fatalities and several injuries in Autauga County alone.[3] Another EF2 tornado from the storm struck areas in or around Five Points and Standing Rock before crossing into Georgia. After the dissipation of that tornado, nine more tornadoes, five of which were strong, caused heavy damage across west-central Georgia, especially in LaGrange, Griffin, and Experiment, the second one of which was impacted by four tornadoes in the span of 10 minutes, including two that were rated EF2 and EF3 respectively. Another EF2 tornado from the storm caused major damage and another fatality in the Jackson Lake area as well; an indirect death from the tornado also occurred the following day. Elsewhere, other tornadoes caused damage in Sumter and Mobile counties in Alabama, as well as parts of Mississippi, Tennessee, Kentucky, Illinois, and the Carolinas.[4] In all, 43 tornadoes were confirmed.

Satellite image of the storm system responsible for the tornado outbreak that occurred on January 12, 2023.
  1. ^ Global Catastrophe Recap First Half of 2023, Aon Benfield
  2. ^ "Tornado Outbreak of January 12, 2023". www.weather.gov. National Weather Service Birmingham AL. Retrieved January 19, 2023.
  3. ^ "TIMELINE: Seven dead, dozen missing in Autauga County after tornado hits central Alabama". Montgomery Advertiser. Retrieved January 12, 2023.
  4. ^ "Tornado hits Selma, Alabama; 7 deaths reported across South". Retrieved January 13, 2023.