Coincidentally, today's Off-script is also themed after natural disasters. The deadliest tornado in U.S. history struck Missouri, Illinois, and Indiana on this day in 1925. The "Tri-State Tornado" started in eastern Missouri before heading northeast, traveling 235 miles before it ended in southern Indiana. It killed at least 695 people over three and a half hours.
Several towns were nearly or completely destroyed and 15,000 homes flattened, due largely to the tornado's massive size, measuring at least three-quarters of a mile in diameter. Its winds moved at 300 miles per hour, while the tornado itself moved at 62 miles per hour on average. While the trauma was widespread, the town of Murphysboro, Ill. was the hardest hit, with 234 lives lost — the most lost in a single community to a tornado in the country's history.
You can learn more about the Tri-State Tornado at this article from the National Weather Service, including an interactive map.
