#ef-3

Tornadoes hit New Orleans and NASA Facility

At least 7 tornadoes tore through Louisiana and Mississippi on February 7, killing one, injuring dozens, destroying homes, and even damaging the NASA facility where the new Space Launch System (SLS) rockets and Orion spacecraft are being built. Some of the tornadoes hit New Orleans (NOLA), destroying homes that had to be rebuilt after Hurricane Katrina.

Big storms are not unusual for Louisiana during winter, but the strength of Tuesday’s tornadoes were atypical. It’s the first time an EF-3 tornado has hit NOLA. EF stands for “Enhanced Fujita Scale”, a set of wind estimates used to describe tornadoes. It means that the tornado produced winds ranging from 136 to 165 mph (219 to 266 kph). The EF-3 that cut through NOLA destroyed an estimated 300 buildings with and another 640 seriously damaged. Some of those buildings were homes that had to be rebuilt after Hurricane Katrina devastated much of the city in August of 2005.

Among the damaged are buildings of NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility located in eastern NOLA. NASA estimates that 40 to 50 percent of the buildings were impacted. Michoud’s main manufacturing building has some impressive holes in it from the storm and the first external tank ever mounted to a Space Shuttle for testing was destroyed, but luckily the SLS and Orion spacecraft were unscathed. All 3,500 employees have been accounted for and only minor injuries were reported. The facility is closed while repairs are being made.

Other tornadoes touched down near Baton Rouge and four other communities in southeastern Louisiana, and one more in Mississippi. Damage assessments are on-going.

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