Belleville OH Tornado:1973

[Jason Harris]

Hello, this is something I've been wondering about for a long time since I found out why my cousin was in a wheelchair. Anyone know anything about this tornado? Any news stories?
I'm wondering if I would be able to actual find my cousin's name among the injured.
--[part of my post from another thread]

I believe it was an F-2 (118-161) in Belleville OH 1973 that (pulled/sucked?) threw my cousin out the mobile home window. She hung onto her baby and survived. But my cousin got paralyzed--paraplegia. I'm not 100% sure that's the right tornado, but I think so. I've been trying to research what exact date it would be without asking my cousin--not something she'd want to be asked.
I figure it's that one because May 10, 1973 is the only tornado listed in Richland county (where Belleville is) that has any injuries ever recorded.
http://www.tornadoproject.com/alltorns/ohtorn2.htm#R
--
Also, here's a description of the storm:
"A third tornado on the 10th followed a skipping path from south of Forest in Hardin County to west of Harpster (Wyandot County). It dipped down again in Bellville (Richland County). There, two homes were demolished and 10 others damaged, along with 4 trailers and 2 barns. It's final touchdown came west of Millersburg (Holmes County) and it moved to just northwest of that city. In all, this storm injured 14 people."

The "skipping" part reminds me of what I heard second hand from my father: he claimed that my cousin described the tornado as coming down the opposite side of the street and going past the house, making everyone feel relieved, but then it suddenly looped back to cross her side of the street and hit the mobile home.

The Willard tornado description actually seems to fit that a bit: 'The funnel then veered south to Route 224 and did a weaving dance along this highway, hitting homes and businesses, sometimes on one side and sometimes on both sides."
But that's not Belleville. It sounds like an odd thing, to have a tornado change direction that way--but then again that was part of the Greensburg path too, wasn't it? that little loop back before it ended?
http://willardlibrary.oplin.org/tornado1.htm
http://sheridan.geog.kent.edu/owon/history/may/may.htm

 

[Simon Timm]

I have read my stories and reports about this particular tornado, though just like you, I can seem to find much about it. You should try emailing a NOAA meteorologist or someone who specializes in documenting these tornadoes.

 

[Randall Marable]

I found this on http://bangladeshtornadoes.org/UScases.html. I don't know if you have seen this already. I am not sure if this storm system is the same system responsible for the tornadoes on May 10, 1973 or is it the one responsible for the May 8, 1973 tornadoes you saw in the state of Ohio. Unfortunately, this is the closest I could come in finding something that may be associated to that 1973 Belleville, OH tornado. Judging from the 500mb maps below, this may be the synoptic pattern which contributed to those May 10th Ohio tornadoes:

 

[Nick Smith]

These maps are from the "Daily Weather Map" series (click to enlarge):

500 mb chart for 7 AM EST on May 10th

Surface chart at 7 AM EST on May 10th


Mansfield surface observations for May 10th:
http://www.wunderground.com/history...tml?req_city=NA&req_state=NA&req_statename=NA

observation highlights:

METAR KMFD 102300Z 18010KT 3SM -TSRA SCT012 BKN023 OVC046 16/15 A2970 RMK TB40 OVHD MOVG E PK WND TORNADO RPTD BY STATE PATROL 10-15 SLP052 P0004 T01610150 5108/

METAR KMFD 110000Z 18009KT 3SM -TSRA SCT012 SCT025 OVC038 16/15 A2972 RMK / T OVHD MVG SE PK WND TORNADO CONFIRMED AT BELLVILLE OHIO 12 S MFD AT 1815 CALM SYNOP CELLS XXXXX FIRST439 MTPP K SLP059 P0020 60010 T01610150 5108/

Port Columbus airport saw a funnel cloud:

SPECI KCMH 110105Z 24008G25KT 5SM TSRA BKN015 BKN035 A2972 RMK T SW MOVG E FQT LTGICCG AB0057 E0101 FUNNEL CLOUD SW MOVG E SLPNO

 

[Jason Harris]

Thanks for the input folks. Interesting timing too: a few weeks after posting this thread I heard from my cousin who was a baby during that tornado, and she had been looking for info as well and found this thread. She said she'd pass on some questions to her mother, so if I hear from her about that--and if she clears it--I can probably post some update later.

 

[Jason Harris]

This was May 10, 1973

Forgot to update this. From my cousin: " it was the one on May 10th 1973 in Belleville, OH."

Thanks for the input folks. Interesting timing too: a few weeks after posting this thread I heard from my cousin who was a baby during that tornado, and she had been looking for info as well and found this thread. She said she'd pass on some questions to her mother, so if I hear from her about that--and if she clears it--I can probably post some update later.

 

[Shawn Schuman]

Here are a few newspaper reports I found, though I don't know if there's anything there of interest to you:

http://news.google.com/newspapers?i...4862,2551566&dq=belleville+ohio+tornado&hl=en

http://news.google.com/newspapers?i...=5845,398332&dq=belleville+ohio+tornado&hl=en

http://news.google.com/newspapers?i...2398,3132381&dq=belleville+ohio+tornado&hl=en

http://news.google.com/newspapers?i...1584,3321164&dq=belleville+ohio+tornado&hl=en

 

[fyrfyter]

NWS Cleveland, OH might have an assessment file from this tornado. This was in the early days of classifying tornadoes. The Fujita Scale was introduced in 1971, and updated in 1973 to include path length and tornado width. You would have to contact them to see what they might be able to provide you with. I think most everything prior to 2000 is a paper record. That is how far back the SPC data goes.

 

[Jason Harris]

Thanks again for the info and links. I ended up writing a work of fiction, "What the Storm Brought": inspired by the Belleville Ohio events, which is in the journal Midwestern Gothic.
There's another story with tornadoes in there too by Wil Gibson: "Harvest the Dirt."
http://midwestgothic.com/2011/01/issue-18-summer-2015/