Alabama and southern US mark 15 years since the Super Tornado Outbreak of 2011

Communities across the southern U.S. — and in Alabama in particular — are marking 15 years since the April 27 Super Tornado Outbreak of 2011, a day etched in memories forever as the deadliest and one of the most destructive severe weather outbreaks in recorded American history.

Cities, towns and neighborhoods were transformed forever — 240 people were killed in Alabama alone on that Wednesday.

The multiday tornado outbreak initially began on April 25, and during the next three days, the spring storm system impacted 26 states, killing at least 321 people and injuring thousands more.

This somber milestone comes with severe weather yet again in the forecast this Monday, although it is not expected to even approach the tragic scale of 2011.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) reported at least 350 tornadoes formed during the 2011 outbreak, including four rare EF-5s with winds over 200 mph.

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Meteorologist JP Dice, who served as the chief meteorologist for FOX 6 in Birmingham during the historic event, recalled the first scenes of tornadoes forming that morning.

"Those pictures coming into live from our cameras — it almost looked like something coming out of Hollywood — it didn't look real," said Dice.

"I've never seen anything like that in my television career — tornadoes that were that large, doing that much damage." 

The outbreak was not a surprise to meteorologists at NOAA's Storm Prediction Center (SPC), who issued a high risk (5 out of 5) threat and placed the bull's-eye zone over northeast Mississippi, south Tennessee and northern Alabama.

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A series of squall lines produced many of the tornadoes throughout the day, but where storm cells were able to tap into the unstable environment, they produced strong, long-track tornadoes.

One of the most destructive twisters was an EF-4 that hit populated areas in Alabama that included Tuscaloosa and Birmingham, killing 65 people and injuring 1,500 along its devastating path.

The tornado is believed to have stayed on the ground for 80 miles and with peak winds around 190 mph.

Immediately after the storms, Jeff Byard, an executive operations officer for Alabama Emergency Management, said he knew the scope of the damage was unfathomable.

 "It soon became very apparent that the state could not handle the emergency alone. It will go down in history as the worst outbreak of tornadoes in Alabama," Byard said.

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The Federal Emergency Management Agency reported 247 residents in the state, and more than 23,000 homes were either damaged or destroyed.

NOAA estimated damages at roughly $12 billion, making it the costliest tornado outbreak in history.

The outbreak was one of several during April 2011 that pushed the tornado count to 751, the most ever reported during a single month.

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"We had always looked at the 1974 event as being the benchmark for tornado events," Dice said, referring to the April 3, 1974, outbreak that's remembered for the F-5 tornado that tore through Xenia, Ohio.

"Now, anytime there's severe weather, people immediately go back to April 27, 2011, as being that new benchmark."

While 2026 is not expected to approach the 2011 event, a volatile atmosphere is expected to develop over the Midwest and Mid-Mississippi Valley on Monday, according to the FOX Forecast Center.

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"All severe weather hazards are possible on Monday, including long-tracked, strong tornadoes," the FOX Forecast Center said.

The SPC has issued a Level 3 out of 5 risk of severe thunderstorms across the region, including the St. Louis and Paducah, Kentucky metro areas.