Tornado record · Original Fujita scale

F4 tornado, Spartanburg County, South Carolina, May 5, 1989

RatingF4

Deaths2

Injuries35

Length15 mi

Width700 yd

See tornadoes near here

Map

Path

The path

Drawn as a straight line from the recorded start point (35.08, -81.93) to the end point (35.25, -81.82), which is all NOAA's record holds. The real track may have curved.

The record

Date: May 5, 1989, 4:20 PM (as recorded, Central Standard Time)
Rating: F4
States: South Carolina, North Carolina
Counties: Spartanburg County, Cherokee County, Rutherford County
Path: 15 miles long, up to 700 yards wide
Casualties: 2 deaths, 35 injuries

Same day

Other tornadoes on May 5, 1989

Tornadoes, newest first
Date	Rating	State	Path length	Width	Deaths	Injuries
May 5, 1989	F4	North Carolina	14 mi	800 yd	4	52
May 5, 1989	F4	North Carolina	13 mi	500 yd	1	6
May 5, 1989	F3	North Carolina	10.5 mi	200 yd	0	30
May 5, 1989	F2	Kentucky	1 mi	40 yd	0	1
May 5, 1989	F2	Georgia, South Carolina	10.5 mi	300 yd	0	15
May 5, 1989	F2	North Carolina	8.7 mi	100 yd	0	0
May 5, 1989	F2	North Carolina	15 mi	73 yd	0	0
May 5, 1989	F2	North Carolina	0.5 mi	100 yd	0	8
May 5, 1989	F2	North Carolina	5.5 mi	100 yd	0	10
May 5, 1989	F1	Louisiana	8 mi	40 yd	0	0
May 5, 1989	F1	Louisiana	0.4 mi	30 yd	0	0
May 5, 1989	F1	Louisiana	0.3 mi	30 yd	0	0
May 5, 1989	F1	Louisiana	0.3 mi	30 yd	0	0
May 5, 1989	F1	Georgia	1 mi	200 yd	0	11
May 5, 1989	F1	South Carolina	2.1 mi	30 yd	0	0
May 5, 1989	F1	North Carolina	0.3 mi	30 yd	0	0
May 5, 1989	F1	North Carolina	2.5 mi	40 yd	0	0
May 5, 1989	F1	North Carolina	4.6 mi	300 yd	0	1
May 5, 1989	F1	Virginia	2 mi	440 yd	0	0
May 5, 1989	F1	Virginia	2 mi	10 yd	0	0

Nearby

Tornado history nearby

Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather database, 1950 to 2025.