The tornado that touched down in Cowley County was a pretty weak one, emergency management officials said Wednesday.
At times, the twister, which did the most damage along a line just east of Ark City over to Dexter, ranged from 0 to 1 on the Enhanced Fujita scale, a system of rating tornadoes. An EF-0 packs winds from 65 to 85 miles per hour, an EF-1 has winds ranging from 86 to 110, according to emergency management director Brian Stone.
During its time on the ground, the tornado was sometimes a 0 and other times a 1, he said.
A rating is based on an evaluation of storm-damaged areas following an outbreak of severe weather. Stone and officials with the National Weather Services survey damage and make note what type of structures suffer the most damage.
Tornadoes are rated from 0 to 5, with 5 being the most devastating.
Also, it appears the damage along N. Summit, at the credit union and Sonic restaurant, was caused by straight-line winds and not a tornado. Stone said the tornado appears to have touched down once it reached the east side of Ark City near U.S. 166 highway.
