The Tornado outbreak sequence of April 1996 was a series of tornado outbreaks that occurred across a large area of eastern North America over a three-day period between April 19 and April 21, 1996. A total of 118 tornadoes touched down in the Great Lakes, Midwest and Southeast region over the three-day period, killing six people and becoming the most notable outbreaks of the year. The 19th was the most prolific tornado outbreak in Illinois history with 33 tornadoes touching down across the state, breaking the old record of 25 set on August 10, 1974. This outbreak can also be compared to the May 2004 tornado outbreak sequence as it was a very large, deep, and vigorous system. The same system produced tornadoes in Ontario on the 20th and destructive tornadoes in Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Texas on the 21st.

Meteorological synopsis

April 19

The outbreak occurred when the warm front of a deep storm system moved north and east out of Missouri. April 19 started off cool and skies were overcast ahead of the warm front. Meteorologists were trying to figure out if the warm front would move into Illinois that afternoon. As the day wore on, temperatures warmed, dew points rose, and thunderstorms started to explode in Iowa during the mid-afternoon hours. Although there were some doubts on specifics, the potential significance of the outbreak was rather foreseeable, with storm chasers traveling from the Great Plains and the Storm Prediction Center issuing a high risk early on.

Illinois

A total of 33 tornadoes hit Illinois before spreading west and south into Missouri, and Iowa and east and north into Wisconsin, Michigan, and Indiana on Friday, April 19. The town of Decatur was hit by a large F3 tornado, as were the towns of Urbana and Ogden. Major damage and injuries occurred in all three locations, and one person was killed in Ogden.

Indiana

In Indiana, 21 tornadoes were produced as the cold front moved into the area during the evening hours. Temperatures had warmed well into the 70's and lower 80's (20 to 26 °C) before the storms hit. Five people were injured in Morgan County.

April 20

One of Canada's most prolific tornado events struck Ontario. A vigorous branch of the jet stream from the Pacific Ocean combined with rich low-level moisture kept the storm system rolling, spinning off more tornadoes in the Southeast. One tornado hit Carroll County, Mississippi, killing teenager Dexter Forman when a tree fell on his mobile home. Another tornado did massive damage to Berea, Kentucky, but no one was killed.

April 21

The outbreak across the south-central U.S. on the 21st was produced by a different weather system. A final tornado was produced by the first system in southern Quebec, more tornadoes raked through eastern Oklahoma and western Arkansas, killing a father and son in St. Paul and two other children in Fort Smith. Shortly after the outbreak, the local CBS affiliate in Fort Smith, Arkansas, KFSM-TV, produced Sunday's Fury, a video production outlining the sequence of events that surrounded the Fort Smith tornado that day.

Confirmed tornadoes

April 19 event

April 20 event

April 21 event