Tornado Hits La Plata, Maryland

A number of severe thunderstorms swept through the mid-Atlantic states on April 28, bringing high winds, hailstones, and heavy rains to many areas. The intense storms spawned at least two tornadoes, one of which was classified as an F4 twister. The powerful tornado touched down in southern Maryland and ripped through the town of La Plata, destroying most of the historic downtown. The twister—the strongest ever recorded to hit the state and perhaps the strongest ever recorded in the eastern U.S.—flattened everything in its path along a 39 kilometer (24 mile) swath running west to east through the state.

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NASA Earth Observatory image created by Jesse Allen, using data provided courtesy Lawrence Ong, EO-1 Mission Science Office, NASA GSFC.

Published May 2, 2002
Data acquired May 1, 2002

Sources:

EO-1

EO-1 > ALI