Six tornadoes confirmed in region; homes destroyed; Branchville High fields damaged

The National Weather Service confirmed six tornadoes touched down in The T&D Region, damaging or destroying a total of 46 homes last week.

The six tornadoes – including three weak EF0s, two EF1s and one strong EF3 – touched down in Orangeburg, Bamberg and Calhoun counties between 4:18 p.m. and 6:29 p.m. on Tuesday, April 5.

No deaths or injuries were reported as a result of the tornados in The T&D Region.

In Orangeburg County, a total of 15 homes were damaged by the storms.

One home was destroyed and two homes suffered major damage. The three homes cannot be lived in.

The heaviest-hit area was about five miles north of Branchville on Seacrest Lane and Greywood Drive.

Officials believe the county’s total damage will be well below the trigger needed for any disaster declaration and federal fund opportunities, Orangeburg County Emergency Services Director Billy Staley said.

In Bamberg County, a total of 31 homes were damaged.

Of those, 23 are completely destroyed and uninhabitable.

The Hunters Chapel and Colston communities sustained the most significant damage in the storm.

No damage to homes or structures was reported in Calhoun County.

Here are highlights of each of the tornadoes in chronological order:

• Ehrhardt – Bamberg County: EF1 with peak winds of 110 mph. The storm started four miles north of Jennys at about St. John’s Church Road, traveling over Lizard Road and Hi Ki Pen Road, Jager Road, Lowcountry Highway, Singleton Road, and ending near the intersection of Ehrhardt and Pocketville Road, two miles west of Ehrhardt.

The storm touched down around 4:18 p.m. and was on the ground until 4:27 p.m. It traveled 3.73 miles and was 250 yards wide.

Damage included the destruction of a shed and the uprooting of 12 pecan trees.

• Farrell Crossroads – Bamberg County: EF0 with peak winds of 85 mph.

The storm started seven miles north of Ehrhardt near Drawdy Branch, traveling between Farrells Road and Howells Mill Road, crossing over Bay View Road and Farrells Road about six miles southwest of Branchville before dissipating.

The storm touched down around 4:39 p.m. and was on the ground until 4:41 p.m. It traveled 2.35 miles and was 200 yards wide.

The tornado produced sporadic tree damage, with both softwoods and hardwoods uprooted or snapped.

• Branchville – Orangeburg County: EF0 with peak winds of 80 mph.

The storm started one mile east of Branchville, crossing over Sub Road and Thompson Road before dissipating. The storm touched down around 4:53 p.m. and was on the ground until 4:55 p.m. It traveled 0.99 miles and was 50 yards wide.

The tornado started at the football, baseball and softball fields adjacent to Branchville High School, causing damage there.

The roof was torn off and the walls were damaged to the pump house, which contains irrigation equipment for all athletic fields. The district anticipates having to rebuild the structure and there is also potential damage to the irrigation system.

The visitors’ dugout on the baseball field was damaged when the pump house’s roof was blown into it. The walls are cracked and will likely have to be rebuilt.

There was additional damage to the backstops/fences on both fields and the batting cages.

School district officials do not have a damage estimate, but plan to file with its insurance provider.

The baseball/softball teams will finish their seasons at the Town of Branchville Sports Complex.

There was no damage to the school building itself.

• Bowman – Orangeburg County: EF0 with peak winds of 85 mph.

The storm started one mile south of Bowman near Wayside Drive and traveled over Dairy Avenue before dissipating near Bowman Branch Highway.

The storm touched down around 5:07 p.m. and was on the ground until 5:09 p.m. It traveled 0.76 miles and was 200 yards wide.

The storm damaged a storage barn. It later caused damage to about six acres of a solar farm.

• Allendale, Bamberg, Orangeburg counties: EF3 with peak winds of 160 mph. It was between and EF0 and EF1 strength during much of its life.

The tornado was strongest when it was near Ulmer on Popeye Road and Ebenezer Road.

The storm started one mile northwest of Ulmer, starting near Wells Branch Road, crossing over Bufords Bridge Highway right over the interchange of Bufords Bridge, Carolina Highway, Rivers Bridge Road and Main Highway. The storm traveled over Mizpah Lane before traveling over Popeye Road and Ebenezer Road and then Low Country Highway near Wild Flower Road.

It then proceeded northeast to Alligator Road, Carver Road, Macedonia Church Road, Spider Road, Ehrhardt Road, Gamecock Loop, Al Tom Road, Clear Pond Road, Broxton Bridge Road, Folk Cemetery Road, Hadwin Road and Possum Trail, Stud Road, Hunters Chapel Road, Bethel Road, Goose Bay Road, Heritage Highway, Thornbush Road, South River Road, Hudson Road, Calhoun Street, Downing Road, Greywood Drive, Freedom Road (U.S. 21), Seacrest Lane, Fox Paw Court, Cattle Creek Road, Buckstrand Lane, Prospect Street, Cramer Road, Cinnabar Road, Jamaal Lane, Natureview Court before dissipating.

The storm touched down around 6:03 p.m. and was on the ground until 6:53 p.m. It traveled 34.99 miles and was 500 yards wide.

The tornado downed, debarked and snapped trees and damaged structures.

• Gaston – Lexington and Calhoun County EF1 with peak winds of 105 mph.

The storm started one mile north of Gaston, touching down near North Main Street (U.S. 321), traveling over Goodwin, Ball Park Road, Pine Plain Road, Dixon Road, Savany Hunt Creek Road, Interstate 26 and Old State Road (U.S. 176) before dissipating on Plantation Estates Road before the Congaree River.

The storm touched down about 6:20 p.m. and was on the ground until 6:29 p.m. It traveled 5.89 miles and was 40 yards wide.