# Tornado outbreak of April 15, 1958

On Tuesday, April 15, 1958, a tornado outbreak produced severe weather over peninsular Florida and part of neighboring Georgia. A total of five tornadoes occurred, a few of which produced F3-level damage; one of these, in Polk County, Florida, was officially assigned an F4 rating, becoming one of only two violent tornadoes recorded in the U.S. state of Florida, but this was disputed and retroactively revised by tornado researcher Thomas P. Grazulis. The only undisputed F4 tornado on record in Florida occurred on April 4, 1966, also in Polk County, near Gibsonia and Galloway. In total, 36 people were injured during the 1958 outbreak, but no deaths were directly related to the tornadoes. However, four airmen flying through a severe thunderstorm in the Tampa Bay area went missing following the crash of their jet and were presumed dead.

## Confirmed tornadoes

Confirmed tornadoes by Fujita rating :
| FU | F0 | F1 | F2 | F3 | F4 | F5 | Total |
| 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
Prior to 1990, there is a likely undercount of tornadoes, particularly E/F0–1, with reports of weaker tornadoes becoming more common as population increased. A sharp increase in the annual average E/F0–1 count by approximately 200 tornadoes was noted upon the implementation of NEXRAD Doppler weather radar in 1990–1991. 1974 marked the first year where significant tornado (E/F2+) counts became homogenous with contemporary values, attributed to the consistent implementation of Fujita scale assessments. Numerous discrepancies on the details of tornadoes in this outbreak exist between sources. The total count of tornadoes and ratings differs from various agencies accordingly. The list below documents information from the most contemporary official sources alongside assessments from tornado historian Thomas P. Grazulis.
Color/symbol key :
| Color / symbol | Description |
| † | Data from Grazulis 1990/1993/2001b |
| ¶ | Data from newspapers |
| ※ | Data from the 1958 Climatological Data National Summary publication |
| ‡ | Data from the NCEI database |
| ♯ | Maximum width of tornado |
| ± | Tornado was rated below F2 intensity by Grazulis but a specific rating is unavailable. |
List of confirmed tornadoes in the tornado outbreak of April 15, 1958 :
| F# | Location | County / Parish | State | Start Coord. | Time (UTC) | Path length | Width | Damage |
| F1 | Mullet Key to near Wimauma※ | Pinellas¶, Manatee¶, Hillsborough | Florida | 27°42′N 82°30′W﻿ / ﻿27.70°N 82.50°W﻿ / 27.70; -82.50﻿ (Sun City (April 15, F1)) | 17:20–? | ≥0.5 mi (0.80 km) | 33 yd (30 m) | ≥$14,000¶ |
| See section on this tornado ||||||||
| F3† | N of Bareah to S of Frostproof¶ | Polk | Florida | 27°40′N 82°37′W﻿ / ﻿27.67°N 82.62°W﻿ / 27.67; -82.62﻿ (Bareah (April 15, F4)) | 17:30–?¶ | 5 mi (8.0 km)† | 300 yd (270 m) | Un­known |
| See section on this tornado ||||||||
| F2† | Northwestern St. Augustine※ | St. Johns | Florida | 29°52′N 81°18′W﻿ / ﻿29.87°N 81.30°W﻿ / 29.87; -81.30﻿ (St. Augustine Beach (April 15, F3)) | 17:20–? | 3 mi (4.8 km)※ | 73 yd (67 m)‡ | $250,000 |
| This tornado destroyed half a dozen homes in Ponce de Leon Heights and Santa Rosa, a pair of subdivisions on the northern outskirts of St. Augustine. In addition, eight to 15 homes received damage, and up to 12 other structures were destroyed or damaged. Nine people were injured. The NCEI incorrectly list the path as being north-northwest of St. Augustine Beach. ||||||||
| F3 | Fort Pierce | St. Lucie | Florida | 27°30′N 80°34′W﻿ / ﻿27.50°N 80.57°W﻿ / 27.50; -80.57﻿ (Fort Pierce (April 15, F3)) | 18:09–? | 13 mi (21 km)※ | 100 yd (91 m)† | $500,000¶ |
| See section on this tornado ||||||||
| F1 | Riddleville | Washington | Georgia | 32°54′N 82°40′W﻿ / ﻿32.90°N 82.67°W﻿ / 32.90; -82.67﻿ (Riddleville (April 15, F1)) | 21:30–? | 0.8 mi (1.3 km) | 200 yd (180 m) | $2,500 |
| This tornado leveled three homes, all of which were unoccupied, as well as a barn. It also damaged two additional homes. ||||||||

### Mullet Key–Piney Point–Gulf City–Ruskin–Sun City–Wimauma, Florida

This tornado affected areas in and near Fort DeSoto, Piney Point, Gulf City, Ruskin, Sun City, and Wimauma. Winds of 83 mph (134 km/h) attended the tornado on Mullet Key, extensively damaging bathhouses and outbuildings. Half of one bathhouse was torn off, an airplane's wing was bent out of shape, a shed was wrecked, and the metal roof of a museum was blown away. At Piney Point nine pumphouses were pulled out of their concrete foundations and blown away. In and near this area, along the Manatee–Hillsborough county line, fragments of a shed were carried 1⁄2 mi (0.80 km), bits of tin were twisted around utility poles and lofted into treetops, and six mature oak trees were prostrated, a few of which fell onto a house, penetrating the roof and ceiling above the living room, and caused glass to shatter. Metal roofing slats were torn off a tractor shed as well. A newly-built barn in Ruskin was shifted 6 ft (2.0 yd) off its foundation, and a 14-year-old girl was injured while reacting to the approach of the tornado. Fencing, signage, and trees were felled. A 1⁄2-mile-long (0.80 km) swath of debris was noted just south of Sun City.
One B-47 bomber, departing from MacDill Air Force Base at around 9:30 a.m. local time, was destroyed when it encountered the parent thunderstorm. The plane unsuccessfully attempted to fly at lower altitudes and avoid it, but instead caught fire 800 ft (240 m) above the Sunshine Skyway Bridge and disintegrated. Its four crew members were not found and presumed dead; two of them had been ranked highly in examinations by the Strategic Air Command for navigation and bombing. Parts of the aircraft were found on the Sunshine Skyway Bridge; other parts, including most of the aircraft, landed in Tampa Bay. Eyewitnesses reported that the aircraft resembled "'a huge ball of fire, like a comet'".

### Bareah–Frostproof, Florida

Short-lived but intense, this tornado destroyed nine small, mostly frame homes, all but one of which were poorly constructed, along with a few barns. A prefabricated home was obliterated except for its slabbed foundation and an attached toilet. A filled, 2,500-US-gallon (9,500 L) water tank was thrown for almost 1 mi (1.6 km), a refrigerator was tossed 100 yd (300 ft), and an automobile was moved for several hundred feet. A horse was carried 125 yd (375 ft) and one of its legs broken. A dog was crushed to death as well. A barbed-wire fence was pulled out of the ground, a large truck tipped onto its side, and an automobile wrecked. A 3-mile-long (4.8 km) stretch consisted of tin roofing twisted around power poles and in trees. Farther along its path the tornado downed utility poles and trees before dissipating. Seven injuries occurred.

### Fort Pierce, Florida

The fourth tornado became the most destructive event of the outbreak, touching down near US 441 west of Fort Pierce in Saint Lucie County. It moved east through the city's business district and moved offshore over the Atlantic Ocean. A total of 28 homes were demolished or received damage in the Fort Pierce area, while 200 additional buildings were destroyed or damaged as well. In addition, nine small residences were destroyed outside the city. Initial estimates placed damages near $5,000,000 (1958 USD), but these estimates were deemed too high by the General Adjustments Bureau. Final estimates placed damages near "over half million" or $0.5 million. Martial law was declared after the tornado struck the city, but it was lifted on April 16. Grapefruit was tossed from the trees, but growers salvaged the majority of the fruit from the ground. Most of the 20 injuries were inflicted by flying glass in the city's downtown business district.