First Alert Weather: 2024 most active year for tornadoes since 2011
Landfalling tropical systems dramatically increased the number of reported tornadoes this year.
sNASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) - It’s been quiet regarding severe weather in the Midstate since spring. In other parts of the country, that has not been the case.
While there have only been 15 tornadoes in Middle Tennessee so far in 2024, there have been over 1,750 total in the country this year.
So, why have there been so many tornadoes this year? A big contributor has been the amount of landfalling tropical systems in the U.S. this year.
With hurricanes Helene, Milton, Beryl and Debby all making landfall, there were lots of tornadoes spawned by those landfalls.
Tropical systems can produce tornadoes, especially on the right-hand side of the storm. You can read a full breakdown of that here.
Once a tropical system makes landfall, the combination of friction from the earth and forward motion can increase the wind shear locally, forming tornadoes.
Hurricane Milton, which made landfall in Florida, spawned more than 125 tornadoes in the state of Florida. With multiple landfalling hurricanes this year, it’s not hard to see why the tornado count would add up quickly.
The 1999 through 2023 average for tornadoes in the U.S. is around 1,300 tornadoes. We have had an above-average year already and there’s still over a month left in the year.
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