Remembering the devastation
20 June 1957- a day etched into the history of Fargo which will not be forgotten. In the early evening a devasting tornado struck the north side of Fargo killing 10 , most of which were of a single family. (note: Death tolls have been listed as 10, 12 and 13 from various sources, I will go with a conservative count here.) More were injuried and there was upwards of $20 million in damage.
Today marks the 50th anniversary of this natural disaster. Indeed, the pictures and rememberances of it are not much different from recent tornados that have decimated areas in the United States, however the loss of life, injuries, and level of damage certainly give a more grave portrait. On learning about this storm Ted Fujita collected the storm data and photographs. His published findings in 1960 spawned further study of tornado prediction and advanced the forecasting of such storms. Eventually this information along with other tornadic data lead to the creation of the Fujita Scale in 1971 to rate intensity of a tornado. The 1957 storm was classified as F5, the most intense. The F5 variety of tornado is a relatively rare occurance. The most recent verified one affected Oklahoma in 1999. A possible F5 may have swept through Kansas in 2003.
Today a simple marker will be placed in the neighborhood to remember this tragedy along in addition to numerous other remberances. My co-worker, The Weatherman, will be attending an event at NDSU with other weather and meterological types studying the event and using new models to examine it. Maybe he'll get me a scoop.
I believe the Fargo Forum won a Pulitzer Prize for their coverage in 1957. Here are a few places to view pictures examine for yourself the destruction:
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