Remembering the "Night of the Twisters" (Grand Island, June 3, 1980)

[Tim from Springfield, IL]

This Wednesday will be the 40th anniversary of the "Night of the Twisters" in Grand Island, NE (June 3, 1980).  

The Grand Island Independent newspaper has put together a series of articles (with photos) of reiminiscenses and stories about the outbreak.

https://www.theindependent.com/news/local/night-of-the-twisters-grand-islanders-share-stories-of-1980-tornadoes-as-40th-anniversary-approaches/article_5ee1a9d0-9fb4-11ea-962d-b3ef5871648f.html#14

https://www.theindependent.com/news/local/remembering-the-five-people-killed-that-night/article_730a6ff4-9fb5-11ea-a6db-0735ee6a1a86.html

https://www.theindependent.com/news/local/forty-years-after-the-night-of-the-twisters-south-locust-street-has-come-back-better/article_35375bec-a082-11ea-9d5c-d75cf2660e9d.html

https://www.theindependent.com/news/local/night-of-the-twisters-book-remains-popular-with-grand-island-public-library-patrons/article_469adf8c-a161-11ea-ac0d-23a170d00d89.html

https://www.theindependent.com/news/local/from-the-rubble-grand-island-remembers-the-construction-of-tornado-hill-fundraiser-in-the-works/article_69187a3e-a228-11ea-96e2-2708e0f337c3.html

I also shared this post on the Lakes/Ohio Valley sub, because not as well-known as the GI outbreak is that the tornado threat began right as the calendar changed to June 1980.  With 9 mostly F0 and F1 tornadoes in IN and OH, plus an F2 near Tuscola, IL that injured 7 people around 7AM Sunday, June 1.  The tornado threat increased the next day especially in Iowa, Indiana and Ohio.  Including an F4 along the IA/MO border (from near Lamoni, IA to Powersville, MO), the Crawfordsville, IN F3 (causing 1 death), an F2s in north Indy and in New Palestine, IN.  There was also an F2 near Belvidere, NE, nearly 90 miles southeast of Grand Island.

The storm system moved east into PA the morning of June 3rd and produced the Natrona Heights/Vandergrift/Apollo F4 that injured 140 (but thankfully no deaths).  It also produced the Reedsville, WV F3 that injured 19 in NE WV and far western Maryland.

After the WV/MD tornado, with the exception of one tornado each in VA, NJ and ND, the remaining 7 tornadoes on June 3 all occurred in Grand Island.

Anyone know if the June 2-3, 1980 outbreak from Iowa to Maryland and the Grand Island, NE outbreak were two separate storm systems (or three if you count 6/1/80 in E IL, IN and OH--plus 5/31/80 in Kansas)--or was the same weather system (perhaps a stationary front) responsible for all storms from NE to MD from June 1-3? 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1980_Grand_Island_tornado_outbreak

http://www.tornadohistoryproject.com/tornado/1980/5/31/map

http://www.tornadohistoryproject.com/tornado/1980/6/1/map

http://www.tornadohistoryproject.com/tornado/1980/6/2/map

http://www.tornadohistoryproject.com/tornado/1980/6/3/map