National Weather Service rules Sunday tornado that hit Sikeston an EF3

Derrick Snyder, lead meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Paducah, Kentucky, left, and Sgt. Tyler Rowe, public information officer for Sikeston Department of Public Safety, look at tornado damage Wednesday, May 29 at Sikeston High School. (Gina Curtis/Standard Democrat)

SIKESTON — The National Weather Service in Paducah, Kentucky, has determined an EF3 tornado struck Sikeston early Sunday, May 26.

Sgt. Tyler Rowe, public information officer with the Sikeston Department of Public Safety, showed NWS officials around Sikeston on Wednesday, May 29 as they surveyed and documented tornado damage. Derrick Snyder, lead meteorologist with the NWS in Paducah, said the storm that passed through Sikeston originated in Oklahoma.

“So the storm made its way all the way across northern Arkansas and then made its way over here,” Snyder said.

Sunday’s tornado was ongoing from 7:15 a.m. to 7:31 a.m.

Snyder and Rowe began surveying damage on Wednesday morning in Sikeston’s southwest city limits and worked their way across town. 

Snyder noted the tornado was not necessarily on the ground the entire time.

“Our goal is to find where the tornado started, where it stopped, the width, and what the tornado is rated based on the severe damage,” Snyder said. 

Snyder said the winds in Sikeston were between 115 mph to 135 mph, meaning strong enough to cause EF- 2 tornado damage. 

“Sort of the things that you see with EF-2 level of damage are things like a wall might collapse on a house, or a roof may be lifted up off a home, or things like wooden power poles being snapped at the base,” Snyder said. 

Snyder said as the day went on and after finding additional damage between Sikeston and Morehouse, Missouri, the damage was determined to be from an EF-3 tornado with a rate of speed of 140 mph.

According to Snyder moving east-northeast, the tornado badly damaged a well-built brick home east of Morehouse, removing its roof and collapsing most of the exterior walls.

Moving into Sikeston, the tornado did extensive and severe tree damage through the south side of the city, the meteorologist said.

Snyder said the tornado turned more northeast as it exited Sikeston, doing damage to trees, power lines and outbuildings before ending in Dielhstadt, Missouri.