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Can Tornadoes Hit the Same Place Twice?

Tornado damage near Harvest, Alabama, from the March 2, 2012, outbreak.
Tornado damage near Harvest, Alabama, from the March 2, 2012, outbreak.
(Image credit: NWS)

Tornadoes can, and have hit the same place twice. Just ask the folks in Harvest, Ala. After this past weekend, they have now been hit twice in 10 months.

An entire month's worth of tornadoes struck across parts of the country from March 2 into the morning of March 3. The town of Harvest, near Huntsville, was one of the first places hit by a storm system that went on to spawn some 80 twisters, just days after deadly tornadoes struck on Leap Day. No one was killed in Harvest, but across the South and Midwest, nearly 40 people died during the weekend outbreak. West Liberty, Ky., which was destroyed by twisters over the weekend, saw tornadoes during both outbreaks.

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Brett Israel was a staff writer for Live Science with a focus on environmental issues. He holds a bachelor’s degree in biochemistry and molecular biology from The University of Georgia, a master’s degree in journalism from New York University, and has studied doctorate-level biochemistry at Emory University.