August 7th, 2023: Fort Gay, WV

  • Rating: EF-1
  • Beginning Location: 1 mile SSE of Yatesville Lake State Park KY (38.13, -82.68)
  • End Location: 2 miles NE Fort Gay, WV (38.14, -82.56)
  • County: Lawrence (KY), Wayne (WV)
  • Start Time: 3:00 p.m. 
  • End Time: 3:10 p.m. 
  • Estimated Peak Wind: 100 mph
  • Path Length: 6.3 miles
  • Path Width Maximum: 400 yards
  • Fatalities: 0
  • Injuries: 0

Details from NWS storm survey: An EF-1 tornado touched down just east of Yatesville Lake, uprooting or snapping several large trees on Aspen Drive and on Birch Road. Three houses were damaged by fallen trees on Birch Road with one home suffering extensive damage to attached garage as a large tree fell on it. The tornado then tracked eastward skipping along an almost six and half mile track, crossing US 23 and the Big Sandy River just north of Louisa before continuing into West Virginia. A roughly 400 yard wide swath of rather extensive tree damage occurred on the west side of the Big Sandy River near a logging yard and two semi trailers were overturned at that location. The tornado then briefly lifted on the West Virginia side of the river before another area of tree damage was noted and a house was slightly damaged at the intersection of Route 52 and Fort Gay Road. Some additional tree damage was noted further to the east up Fort Gay Road and this is estimated to be the end of the track. Thanks to Lawrence County Emergency Management, Louisa Fire Department and the Fallsburg Fire Department for the assistance and use of drone for this survey.

Photos of Damage

All photos from this storm event are provided by the National Weather Service in Charleston, WV during their storm survey. Tap/click here for many more photos they took during the survey.



Radar Imagery

Panel of storm at time of tornado - click/tap on image for full resolution (Clockwise from top left: Base Reflectivity 0.5 degree, Base Velocity 0.5 degree, NROT 0.5 degree, Correlation Coefficient 0.5 degree)


Panel loop - click/tap on image for full resolution (Clockwise from top left: Base Reflectivity 0.5 degree, Base Velocity 0.5 degree, NROT 0.5 degree, Correlation Coefficient 0.5 degree):


Base Reflectivity Analyzed






These radar grabs, shown at 3:06 p.m. is while the tornado is in progress within a rain-wrapped supercell just northwest of downtown Louisa exiting Lawrence County, Kentucky and entering Wayne County, WV.

Base Velocity Analyzed




Our rain-wrapped tornado is identifiable vaguely on base velocity, but didn't provide the best look at the sudden genesis of a tornado around 3:00 p.m. The tornado can be seen briefly just northwest of Louisa.

Correlation Coefficient Analyzed



Out of each piece of radar data extrapolated, the Correlation Coefficient certainly provides the best evidence of the tornado on radar. You see an abrupt drop in CC value between 3:00 p.m. and 3:03 p.m. just southeast of Fallsburg in Lawrence County, KY. By 3:06 p.m., that CC drop is located only about a mile northwest of downtown Louisa. That tight CC drop continues until right around 3:10 p.m. when the tight nature of the CC values begins to broaden out.

Normalized Rotation Analyzed



Using the summation tool to show the path of Normalized Rotation, we can see an easy path between Webbville and East Lynn where the mesocyclone was certainly rotating, peaking in normalized rotation just south of Fallsburg at 1.05. By the time the tornado was on the ground northwest of Louisa in Wayne County, NR values had dropped to between 0.6 and 0.8. The rotation quickly disintegrates once northeast of Louisa.

Spectrum Width Analyzed



Spectrum Width shown in the top image at 3:06 p.m. shows the scattered variability of particles just northwest of Louisa at the time the tornado was moving through, indicating that the tornado was likely kicking a lot of sticks, branches, leaves and other debris up. Using the summation product for Spectrum Width, we can see easily in each radar scan from central and eastern Lawrence County, KY to western Wayne County, WV where the rotating supercell traversed, as indicated by the high Spectrum Width values (orange and yellow).

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