2012 Crittenden tornado

In the afternoon hours of March 2, 2012, a short-lived yet fatal tornado impacted the Metro Cincinnati region, devastating the towns of Crittenden, Piner, and Morning View, Kentucky. This tornado was the second EF4-rated tornado to occur during a large and violent tornado outbreak sequence that took place in the Ohio Valley during March 2-3, 2012, and was directly responsible for 4 of the 41 direct fatalities from this outbreak sequence.^[1] The Crittenden tornado originated from a parent supercell that had dropped a fatal and long-tracked EF4 tornado only hours earlier, most commonly known as the Henryville, Indiana tornado or New Pekin-Henryville tornado.^[2] The highest-rated damage caused by the tornado was a streak of EF4 damage just to the east of Interstate 75, encompassing KY-25 and Bagby Rd.^[3] Some of the homes in this corridor were rated 175 MPH, tying the Crittenden tornado with the Henryville tornado for the highest-rated tornado of the outbreak.^{[2] [4]}

The tornado tracked 9.85 miles through Grant County and Kenton County, Kentucky, destroying multiple homes (particularly north of Crittenden) at violent intensity, debarking shrubbery, tossing vehicles, and carrying debris extreme distances; in addition to 4 fatalities, the tornado also injured 8.^{[4] [5]} The Crittenden tornado dissipated just nine minutes after forming and was the last tornado in the state of Kentucky to receive an EF4 rating until the 2021 Western Kentucky tornado, an extremely long-tracked and fatal tornado, which killed 57 and injured at least 519 along a 165.6 mi (266.5 km) path.^[6]

Main article: Tornado outbreak of March 2-3, 2012 § Meteorological synopsis

After the Henryville tornado dissipated near Bedford, Kentucky, the parent supercell that had dropped this tornado quickly continued east. It then dropped another destructive EF4 tornado; initially touching down in Grant County, Kentucky at 4:23 p.m. EST, this tornado, known as the Crittenden tornado, quickly moved east-northeast at a pace exceeding 60 MPH.^[4] On the western half of Interstate 75, multiple homes were damaged in the Harvesters Subdivision — mainly along the end of Barley Circle — where winds were estimated up to 145 MPH. In the Harvesters Subdivision, multiple apartments were also significantly damaged, displacing numerous tenants.^[9] Immediately after exiting this subdivision, the tornado entered Kenton County at 4:24 p.m. EST, where it overtook Interstate 75 north of Crittenden.^[4] At this time, the tornado appeared as a large, amorphous, and rainwrapped funnel, with witnesses driving south on the Interstate recording a video of the tornado.^[10]

After crossing I-75, a corridor of EF4 damage began along KY-25, where multiple homes were swept, with their debris scattered from their foundations. Of the five homes that were completely swept along KY-25, two were noted by surveyors to have featured bolting and strapping to their foundations.^[4] North of Lexington Pike, the tornado reached its maximum intensity, as two more brick homes, both bolted to their foundations, were swept. At least two vehicles were carried from their original places, with one being carried 1,800 ft (550 m). Trees were stripped of all vestiges and lost all branches, with some even showing near-full debarking. This swath of EF4 damage continued to Bagby Rd.^[4] All four deaths from the Crittenden tornado were in this EF4 corridor — two being in permanent homes, one being from a woman in a vehicle that was thrown off of I-75, and another being from a man in a vehicle and/or towed trailer.^[1]

Continuing towards Piner, the tornado caused EF3 damage to several properties. At this point in its life, the tornado had assumed a very well-defined hook echo on radar, with a bounded weak echo region (signifying a strong updraft) being noted.^[3] A very tight and intense velocity couplet was also present on radar. Multiple single and double-wide mobile homes were destroyed in the Piner area, with the brick and siding structures being left at these sites. Many of these homes had fully collapsed exterior walls and fully removed roof structures. At least two homes were fully removed from their foundations.^[3] Extreme contextual damage continued, as vehicles were thrown up to 0.25 mi (0.40 km) from their original locations.^{[4] [5]}

Damage near Morning View was consistent with EF1 to EF2 intensity as the tornado continued east, where multiple permanent homes and mobile homes sustained moderate damage. The tornado dissipated at 4:32 p.m. EST south of Morning View, just before crossing the Campbell County line.^[4] In addition to the tornado, non-tornadic winds in the rear flank downdraft (RFD) of the supercell exceeded 100 MPH, causing damage of their own. Numerous barns and outbuildings were completely destroyed, and acres of trees were laid flat by these straight-line winds.^[3]

• 2012 Henryville tornado — A fatal and long-tracked EF4 tornado from the same parent system as the Crittenden tornado
• 2012 East Bernstadt tornado — Another devastating, short-lived, and fatal Kentucky tornado from the same tornado outbreak sequence
• 2012 West Liberty tornado — Yet another devastating and fatal Kentucky tornado from the same outbreak sequence, which primarily affected the town of West Liberty, Kentucky
• 2021 Western Kentucky tornado — The next tornado in the state of Kentucky, following the Crittenden tornado, to be classified as an EF4
• Tornado outbreak of March 2-3, 2012
• Tornadoes of 2012