Abstract
Abstract As of January 2025, the United States has gone over 11 years without the occurrence of a tornado rated EF5 on the Enhanced Fujita (EF) scale, constituting the longest “drought” in F5/EF5-rated tornadoes since the beginning of official records (1950). This article places the “drought” of 5-rated tornadoes in the context of a long-term tornado climatology. A key breakpoint exists between how the legacy Fujita (F) scale and the EF scale handle the complete destruction and sweeping away of single-family homes, with standard “well-constructed” homes being swept away constituting F5 damage on the F scale but only EF4 damage on the EF scale. To illustrate this point, adjusting the lower-bound of EF5 on the EF scale from 201 mph to 190 mph or increasing all 190–200-mph EF4s to >200 mph EF5s to account for this breakpoint in the handling of single-family homes would lead to consistent 5-level rating assignments from 1880 through present day. Furthermore, contextual evidence that was used to aid in identifying 5-level damage in the F-scale and early EF-scale eras could assist in identifying top-tier intensity tornadoes. These findings ultimately lead to questions regarding what the highest possible rating of a tornado should represent from both physical and societal perspectives.
Published Version
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