PRESS RELEASE
V
ORTEK LLCMOST TORNADO-PRONE SPOT IN MINNESOTA IS NEAR NICOLLET
January 10, 2008 Huntsville, Alabama
As part of an ongoing tornado research project, by means of the Site Assessment of Tornado Threat (SATT) 3.0 software, and based on National Weather Service data from 1950 through 2006, the VorTek staff have determined the most tornado-prone spot in Minnesota, originally identified in May 2003, has moved. The new point is located at latitude 44o 17’ N, longitude 94o 10’ W, which corresponds to a location 1.21 miles northeast of Nicollet, 31.0 yards south of Township Road 99, 281.0 yards east of Township Road 179. During the 57-year period noted, 59 tornado track segments have touched down or passed within 20 miles of this point. This includes twenty-seven F0 tornadoes, eighteen F1, eight F2, three F3, and three F4. If the total land area disturbed by these tornadoes is divided by the land area within the 20-mile circle, on an annual basis the average fraction of land disturbed (or Annual Coverage Fraction) equals 8.3510 x 10-4 or 0.08351%, which is the largest value for any point within Minnesota.
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