Weather History For April 27
1857
Heavy snow in parts of Connecticut caused buildings to collapse. Six foot snow drifts were reported.
(Ref. Wilson Wx. History)
1890
Very destructive rain, wind and hailstorm at Baltimore doing $100,000 in damage.
2003
Topeka, Kansas:
The first Weather Bureau kite is launched for daily, early morning, atmospheric observations. By year's end, sixteen additional launch sites will be in operation.
(Ref. WxDoctor)
1898
The first Weather Bureau kite was launched in Topeka, KS to report daily, early morning, atmospheric observations. By year's end, 16 additional launch sites would be in operation.
(Ref. Wilson Wx. History)
1899
A tornado struck Kirksville MO killing 34 persons and destroying 300 buildings.
(David Ludlum)
1912
One of the worst tornado outbreaks in Oklahoma's history occurred. 16 tornadoes rated F2 or greater touched down in the state with 6 of them rated F4. 29 people were killed.
(Ref. Wilson Wx. History)
1915
The maximum temperature for the date is 95°F. in Washington, DC.
(Ref. Washington Weather Records - KDCA)
The maximum temperature for the date is 96°F. at the Richmond International Airport and the highest for the month and also occurred on four other dates.
(Ref. Richmond Weather Records - KRIC)
1922
For two weeks, the city of New Orleans, LA had been under siege from a major flood on the Mississippi River. On this date, a levee failure occurred 12 miles downriver from New Orleans at Poydras in St. Bernard Parish. The Poydras crevasse would become an opening 1,500 feet wide in the levee and flooding Plaquemines and St. Bernard Parishes, but saving New Orleans. As the Corps of Engineers built more and more levees, the river went higher and higher. The 1922 flood was a preview of a worse flood that would occur in 1927.
(Ref. Wilson Wx. History)
1923
A tornado moved east from the northeast corner of Baca County, Colorado. Accompanied by two other funnel clouds, the tornado struck the Sherwood school, 14 miles northwest of Johnson Kansas, killing the teacher and injuring five small children. The body of the teacher was carried 100 yards. The prairie grass in this sparsely settled region appeared to be burned.
(Ref. Wilson Wx. History)
1931
The temperature at Pahala, located on the main island of Hawaii, soared to 100 degrees to establish a state record.
(The Weather Channel)
(Ref. Lowest and Highest Temperatures for the 50 States)
1933
The minimum temperature for the date is 38°F. in Washington, DC.
(Ref. Washington Weather Records - KDCA)
This was the 11th day during the month where the low temperatures at Rockford, IL fell below the freezing mark. The morning low of 26° tied a record low for the date.
(Ref. Wilson Wx. History)
1942
A destructive tornado swept across Rogers County and Mayes County in Oklahoma. The tornado struck the town of Pryor killing 52 persons and causing two million dollars damage.
(David Ludlum)
1970
Heavy snows fell across Montana, including 39 inches at Red Lodge and 35 inches at Summit.
(Ref. Wilson Wx. History)
1984
A significant tornado outbreak struck the southern Plains, with 11 tornadoes reported over the eastern half of Oklahoma. The most devastating of the storms tore through the town of Morris, in Okmulgee County. This storm destroyed 28 square blocks of Morris, killing eight people and injuring nearly 100. Another tornado killed three people and injured 37 on its path through Creek and Pawnee counties. The severe storms also dumped large hail, with hailstones up to the size of grapefruits reported.A strong tornado touched down 8 miles southwest of Plainfield, in northeast Illinois, and lifted just southeast of town. This tornado damaged 43 homes, of which 14 were nearly destroyed. Large wooden beams were driven into nearby homes. One person was killed.
(Ref. Wilson Wx. History)
1987
Forty-two cities in the western and south central U.S. reported record high temperatures for the date. The afternoon high of 87 degrees at Olympia WA was an April record, and highs of 92 degrees at Boise ID, 95 degrees at Monroe LA, and 96 degrees at Sacramento CA tied April records.
(The National Weather Summary)
More than 300 daily temperature records fell by the wayside during a two-week long heat wave across thirty-four states in the southern and western U.S. Thirteen cities established records for the month of April.
(Sandra and TI Richard Sanders - 1987)
1988
Mount Washington, NH reported seven feet of snow in ten days, pushing their snowfall total for the month past the previous record of 89.3 inches set in 1975.
(The National Weather Summary)
1989
Thunderstorms produced severe weather from the Lower and Middle Mississippi Valley to Virginia and the Carolinas. Hail up to four and a half inches in diameter caused five million dollars damage around Omaha NE. Thunderstorms spawned eleven tornadoes, and there were 160 other reports of large hail and damaging winds.
(The National Weather Summary) (Storm Data)
Miles City, MT recorded their wettest April day on record as 15 inches of snow fell; equivalent to 2.06 inches of liquid.
(Ref. Wilson Wx. History)
1990
Thunderstorms produced severe weather in eastern Texas and the Lower Mississippi Valley. Severe thunderstorms spawned thirteen tornadoes in Texas and twelve in Louisiana. A tornado southwest of Coolidge TX injured eight persons and caused more than five million dollars damage. There were also eighty-five reports of large hail and damaging winds, with baseball size hail reported at Mexia TX and Shreveport LA.
(The National Weather Summary) (Storm Data)
1990
Forty-three cities in the eastern U.S. reported record high temperatures for the date.
Records highs included 94 degrees at Charleston WV, 95 degrees at Baltimore MD and 96 degrees at Richmond, VA.
(The National Weather Summary)The maximum temperature for the date is 96°F. at the Richmond International Airport and the highest for the month and also occurred on four other dates.
(Ref. Richmond Weather Records - KRIC)
(Ref. Wilson - Additional Temperatures Listed On This Link)
2003
For only the 11th time since records began in 1871, hail was observed in Key West Florida. A severe thunderstorm produced hail to 1.75 inches in diameter which easily broke the previous record of a half an inch in diameter which was set on May 10, 1961.
(Weather Guide Calendar with Phenomenal Weather Events 2007 Accord Publishing, USA)
2011
April 27 was the single deadliest day for tornadoes since records were started in 1950.The death toll from Wednesday has surpassed 300 and is rising. The worst day in recorded history for storm fatalities is March 18, 1925, with 747 deaths."A big question is the tornado in Tuscaloosa and Birmingham, is it the same one? I think they are the same," he said."There's a pretty good chance some of these were a mile wide, on the ground for tens of miles and had wind speeds over 200 mph," said Harold Brooks of the National Severe Storms Laboratory in Norman, Okla.
(Source: Associated Press. 4/28/11)
(Weather Channel Video-Falling Debris, Aerial shots, Tornado Sound)
(Weather Channel Video-Jim Corte Tornado Damage)
(Weather Channel Video-Before & After, Unv. of AL Student Video, Lightning in Miss.)
(Weather Channel Video-Tuscaloosa TV Station Video of the Very Large Tornado)
The other outbreak occurred soon after the much talked about deadly tornadoes in Alabama. There were four EF1 tornadoes north and west of Richmond on the evening of April 27th. Fortunately there were no injuries or deaths but some good tornado footage was produced. See the following link for more details and tornado pictures:
(Ref.NWS Tornado Outbreak in the Western Part of VA)
(Ref. Tornadoes in the Western Part of VA)
2014
Central and Southern US Tornado Outbreak: April 27-28. Although the annual tornado count dropped below 900 for the first time in 25 years, there were several deadly outbreaks this year. The deadliest one caused 34 deaths in Arkansas, Iowa, Oklahoma, Mississippi, and Tennessee, accounting for 72% of all United States tornado deaths in 2014.
Ref. (Weatherwise MA-JUNE 2015, page 14)
