Overview
- The National Weather Service, following Tuesday’s severe weather, said preliminary surveys confirm three separate touchdowns near Biola, Atwater and northeast of Clovis.
- Survey teams rated Biola an EF-0 with peak winds near 70 mph and Atwater and the Clovis area EF-1s with peaks near 110 mph and 95 mph, documenting snapped trees and a barn roof torn off.
- Urgent warnings in Fresno and Madera counties told people to take cover, and Clovis Unified held students under shelter-in-place orders, with no fatalities reported in local coverage.
- The tornadoes spun up as a larger storm brought heavy rain, hail and significant Sierra Nevada snow, creating brief flood concerns and tough travel at higher elevations.
- NWS Hanford described the trio as rare for its forecast area, noting only a few days since 1955 have recorded three or more tornadoes there.