page_title: Tornadoes of 2018
section_title: November 30 – December 2
hierarchical_section_title: Tornadoes of 2018 / November / November 30 – December 2
caption_attribution_description: English: The EF3 wedge tornado that caused major damage in Taylorville, Illinois and injured 22 people.
context_page_description: This page documents notable tornadoes and tornado outbreaks worldwide in 2018. Strong and destructive tornadoes form most frequently in the United States, Brazil, Bangladesh and Eastern India, but they can occur almost anywhere under the right conditions. Tornadoes also develop occasionally in southern Canada during the Northern Hemisphere's summer and somewhat regularly at other times of the year across Europe, Asia, Argentina and Australia. Tornadic events are often accompanied with other forms of severe weather, including strong thunderstorms, strong winds, and hail.
  There were 1,169 preliminary reports of tornadoes in the United States in 2018, of which at least 1,123 were confirmed. Worldwide, 17 tornado-related deaths were confirmed; 10 in the United States, four in Brazil, two in Indonesia, and one in Canada. The United States saw near-average numbers of tornadoes, but near-record low numbers of strong tornadoes. 2018 was the only year since reliable record-keeping began in the 1950s in which no officially-rated violent tornadoes occurred in the United States. 2018 also had the lowest number of tornado-related fatalities on record in the United States.
context_section_description: On November 30, the Storm Prediction Center issued an enhanced risk of severe weather for parts of Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, and Arkansas, including a 10% hatched risk for tornadoes. Later that afternoon and evening, several tornadoes occurred in Oklahoma and Arkansas, including a long-tracked EF2 that caused severe damage and five injuries near Tenkiller Ferry Lake in Oklahoma. Another EF2 caused major damage to homes in Van Buren, Arkansas. An EF1 tornado also caused a fatality at a motel in Aurora, Missouri during the very early morning hours of December 1. Following the outbreak the previous day in Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Missouri, a slight risk with a 5% risk of tornadoes was issued for a large portion of Illinois. A geographically concentrated outbreak of tornadoes occurred in central and western Illinois on the first day of meteorological winter, including an EF3 wedge that caused major structural damage to homes and businesses in Taylorville, injuring 22 people. An EF1 caused moderate damage in Beardstown, while EF2 tornadoes tore roofs off homes near Litchfield and Le Roy. Another EF2 touched down in Stonington as well. Additional isolated tornado activity occurred across portions of the Southern United States on December 2, including a large EF3 tornado that struck the Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay, tossing heavy objects and injuring four people. This event was the largest December outbreak in the history of Illinois by number of confirmed tornadoes, with a total count of 29. A total of 49 tornadoes were confirmed overall as a result of this outbreak, which resulted in one fatality and 32 injuries.
caption: The EF3 wedge tornado that caused major damage in Taylorville, Illinois and injured 22 people.
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