November 23, 1992 - Tornado Terror for School Kids
The Nov. 23, 1992 tornado injured 21 people during its trek, but the students and driver aboard the school bus that was blown 75 yards by the twister were unharmed.
The Nov. 23, 1992 tornado injured 21 people in its onslaught, but the students and driver aboard the school bus during the twister were unharmed. Photo: Pixabay.
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On Nov. 22, 1992, a deadly severe weather outbreak unfolded across North Carolina. This day saw multiple tornadoes move through, killing two and injuring a total of 25. The second, and final, round of severe storms erupted in the state on Nov. 23.
The storms began early in the morning, with a large supercell initiating around 4 a.m. It spawned a twister, initially rated as an F3, at 4:10 a.m., then moved northeast for 160 miles (almost 260 km) before dissipating, making it a new North Carolina record. The storm then tracked rapidly northeast to near Elizabeth City by 6:30 a.m., only one hour before the school bus incident.
The bus driver and students on the bus, as well as the parents who dropped them off, were unaware that a tornado was approaching. Then, moments before 7:30 am, a bus full of students watched from a ditch while the vehicle was blown 75 yards by a tornado. While the twister injured 21 people during the course of its lifespan, the students and driver aboard the bus were unharmed.
The Nov. 23 storms began early in the morning, with a large supercell initiating around 4 a.m. It spawned a twister, initially rated as an F3, that moved northeast for 160 miles (almost 260 km) before dissipating, making it a new North Carolina record. Photo: National Weather Service (NWS).
The tornado caused F2 and F3 damage along the majority of the path, and was the longest-tracked tornado ever recorded in North Carolina. It was confirmed that two F3 tornadoes struck North Carolina on Nov. 23, resulting in two deaths while injuring an additional 59 people.
On today's podcast, Chris Mei discusses the two days of severe thunderstorms that spawned deadly tornadoes and what happened to the school bus that got caught in one of the twisters on Nov. 23.
This Day In Weather History is a daily podcast by The Weather Network that features unique and informative stories from host Chris Mei.
