TORNADO 1 (Ouachita Parish) | Approx. 6:34pm, CDT [April 12]
“This tornado, originating from a supercell thunderstorm, began in the Swartz community near Woodmont Drive. It tracked just east of due north for around two and a half miles over a largely residential area. Direct damage was primarily to trees, although many structures and homes were damaged due to falling trees and tree limbs. Tree damage was near the EF-0 to EF-1 threshold for most of the track with many more tree uproots than trunk snaps (and usually snapping of trunks requires more wind than uproots). However, near the end of the tornado along and north of Highway 139, the level of tree damage indicated a strengthening of the tornado, in particular along Trichel Lane. It is near the end of that road that approximately one hundred tree uproots and trunk snaps occurred, warranting a peak wind estimate of 110 mph, which is a high-end EF-1. Unfortunately, one of these trees destroyed a mobile home and a resident inside was injured, although apparently not critically.” [Survey details provided by National Weather Service in Shreveport]
TORNADO 2 (Bienville Parish) | Approx. 10:23pm, CDT [April 12]
“An EF-1 tornado with maximum estimated winds near 100 mph touched down in a wooded area west of Layfield Road west of castor, and tracked northeast across Highway 4, Highway 792, along and just north of Ayers Road, and across Kepler Road. the tornado lifted just west of Highway 9 and the Bienville community. numerous trees were snapped and uprooted along the path of the tornado, with the maximum winds found just west of Layfield Road and Highway 4 where 10-11 wooden power poles were snapped, with another area of maximum winds found on Kepler Road just north of Ayers Road. the total path length of this tornado was 11.6 miles, with a path width of 525 yards.” [Survey details provided by National Weather Service in Shreveport]
TORNADO 3 (Winn/Caldwell parishes) | Approx. 5:11pm, CDT [April 13]
“An EF-2 tornado with estimated maximum winds near 115 mph touched down in a heavily wooded area just west of Highway 127 southeast of Sikes in northeast Winn Parish, where it snapped and uprooted numerous trees. This tornado tracked northeast across another heavily wooded area northeast of Highway 127, which was inaccessible by vehicle. However, the Ft. Polk doppler radar indicated a tornadic debris signature northeast of Highway 127 near the Caldwell Parish line, with the tornado continuing east-northeast into western Caldwell Parish.
Much of this area remained inaccessible by vehicle, but the tornadic debris signature remained from radar, as the tornado tracked across Childress Road. This is where the strongest winds occurred, where numerous trees were snapped and uprooted, and a couple falling on homes. Remarkably, most of the homes avoided significant damage, as the densely wooded area shielded the higher winds from these homes. The tornado continued northeast across Highway 126 and Wiles Road, where numerous trees were snapped and uprooted. Again, several homes were protected from these trees with little, if any, damage, where the tornado reached its widest point along Wiles Road and as it crossed Highway 4 west of Columbia.
Numerous trees were uprooted in front of a residence opposite of the intersection of Highway 3239, with the tornado continuing northeast and finally lifting northwest of Columbia before reaching Highway 165 between Columbia and Riverton. These storms then transitioned into a damaging straight line wind event as several large tree limbs were snapped along both sides of Highway 165, with additional straight line wind damage noted along Highway 133 in the Hebert community along the Caldwell/Richland parish line. Several trees were uprooted and large limbs were snapped in this location. However, the tree debris here all were lying in a southeasterly direction.” [Survey details provided by National Weather Service in Shreveport]
The National Weather Service also measured a 1-3 mile wide swath of extensive straight line wind damage across parts of Lincoln and Union parishes from late in the evening of April 12. These winds measured between 70-90 mph at times.