The 1974 Super Tornado Outbreak Quiz

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. In all, how many twisters descended from the skies in the Super Outbreak?

Answer: 148

Tornado expert Dr. Ted Fujita (for whom the Fujita scale was named) figured that 90 percent of the twisters lasted about 40 minutes, while the longest-lasting (the Monticello tornado) stayed on or near the ground for just over two hours, nearly crossing the entire state of Indiana.

2. Taking all the individual paths the tornadoes took, how far did the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) estimate the combined path extended?

Answer: 2,600 mi (4,185 km)

The tornadoes scoured about 900 square miles (about 2,331 square kilometers) of 13 U.S. states and one Canadian province (Ontario) bringing death and destruction.

3. Many of the twisters formed one after another in succession from the same individual thunderstorm cells. What are these known as?

Answer: Families

There were about 30 such 'families' in the Super Outbreak, which made up 74 percent of the total tornadoes and accounted for 98 percent of the storm-related deaths. One 'family' treked for about five hours (the normal span was about two hours).

4. About how many people died in the Super Outbreak?

Answer: Over 300

The total number of fatalities range from 315 to 330. About 6,000 people were injured in the storms. Of those killed, 74 percent were killed in houses or other buildings, 17 percent were in mobile homes, six percent were in car or trucks and three percent were out in the open looking for shelter.

5. Of the four listed towns hit by tornadoes during the Super Outbreak, which one had the greatest loss of life?

Answer: Xenia, Ohio

The Xenia tornado started as a moderate storm in nearby Bellbrook, then witnesses say two tornadoes joined before the assault on the town (the same thing happened in Elkhart, Indiana in the 1965 'Palm Sunday' outbreak). 34 people were killed in Xenia, including two Ohio Air National Guardsmen effecting rescue. Brandenburg and Guin came closely behind.

6. There were six confirmed F-5 tornadoes (the most destructive in the Fujita scale) during the Super Outbreak. One such twister, known as the Sayler Park tornado, did something not done since the infamous Tri-State killer storm of 1925. What did this storm do?

Answer: Go through three states

The twister was so named for inflicting the most damage in the Sayler Park area of Cincinnatti, Ohio. Before doing that, the tornado plowed through Indiana and Kentucky before crossing the Ohio River. Despite the massive strength of the storm, only three people were killed. By comparison, the Tri-State tornado killed nearly 700, the worst single tornado in U.S. history.

7. At one point during the Super Outbreak, weather forecasters in Indiana, swamped with numerous tornado sightings, did something that had not been done before. What was it?

Answer: Issued a tornado warning for the entire state

At the peak of the outbreak, 15 tornadoes were on the ground at the same time. It was the first time such a warning was issued.

8. Which Alabama town was hit twice during the Super Outbreak?

Answer: Tanner

Tanner lies near Huntsville and northeast of Guin, which was also devastated in the outbreak. The first roared through Tanner at about 6:30 pm local time, the second about an hour later. Many emergency workers rushed to save who they could, knowing the second storm was approaching. One victim of the first storm was reportedly taken to a nearby church, where the second storm killed him.

In all, about 50 people died and over a thousand buildings were destroyed in the two storms.

9. A number of tornado myths were brought into question following the Super Outbreak. One was that a tornado will not form at the convergence of major rivers. Was that myth busted?

Answer: Yes

Cairo, Illinois, where the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers meet, was hit by a twister during the Super Outbreak.

10. Another myth about tornadoes is that they don't climb up or down steep hills. Was that myth busted during the Super Outbreak?

Answer: Yes

Not only busted, but busted in several places. The deadly Guin, Alabama tornado rode up and down the over 1,600 ft (488 meter) high Monte Sano Mountain. Further east, one Virginia tornado formed in the Blue Ridge Mountains, crossed a 3,000 foot (915 meter) ridge, moved to the bottom of a canyon, then back up to the pinnacle of Rich Nob.

11. One area of the Super Outbreak that building engineers were able to focus on was the amount of damage certain structures received in the storms. What type of building seemed to get most of the attention from the twisters?

Answer: Schools

24 schools were hit in Indiana alone, three in the town of Monticello. Seven of the 12 schools in Xenia were also slammed, as was nearby Wilberforce University. Because the storms fired up so late in the day, thankfully, most of the classrooms were already empty.

12. The one lone Canadian tornado in the Super Outbreak struck near what city?

Answer: Windsor

There have been two killer tornadoes and a near miss reported in the Windsor area, south of Detroit, Michigan. The first one in 1946 killed 17 people, making it the third worst twister in Canadian history. Nine people died in the Super Outbreak, most found inside a skating rink that formerly housed the downtown Windsor Curling Club.

The city caught a break in the Southeast Michigan Outbreak of 1997, but still reported some damage.

13. One major outcome of the Super Outbreak was the rapid expansion of what service?

Answer: Weather radio stations

At the time of the Super Outbreak, only about 30 percent of the U.S. had weather radio transmitting stations. Most of the participating radio and TV stations quickly became backlogged by the numerous warnings that came out in rapid order. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) immediately began a push to get 70 percent coverage in the country.

By the late 1970s, the 50 or 60 weather stations grew to about 400.

14. What was one of the biggest discoveries about tornadoes from the Super Outbreak?

Answer: The existence of the 'suction vortex'

Meteorologists pondered for years why a tornado would destroy one house, but leave its neighbor intact. Dr. Ted Fujita theorized as far back as 1965 that there were smaller 'vortices' inside the main funnel that picked up only some debris. Films and observations from numerous tornadoes in the Super Outbreak confirmed this hypothesis.

15. One miraculous event in the Super Outbreak prompted the National Weather Service to issue a tornado warning for Louiville, Kentucky nearly 40 minutes before the storm hit the town. How was that achieved?

Answer: The chief forecaster saw the tornado while being interviewed

Russell Conger was talking to a reporter over the phone when he was alerted to the storm outside. Conger looked up just in time to see the tornado touch down near the Louisville airport, adjacent to the weather service office. The twister went on to wreck the Kentucky State Fair and Exposition Center and about 900 other buildings, but only two people died from injuries in the storm.

Source: Author Oddball

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor bloomsby before going online.
Any errors found in FunTrivia content are routinely corrected through our feedback system.

Experts say it could only happen once every 500 years, but on April 3-4, 1974, everything came together to create one of the worst tornado outbreaks in U.S, history. Here's a look at what happened and what was learned.

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