THE tornado that swept through Indiana, Illinois and Missouri on March 18, 1925 was 219 miles in length and killed 695 people. Known as the Tri-State Tornado, it was the most devastating in U.S. history. The 1,115 tornados of this especially destructive season have killed a total of about 550 people.

Here from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is the Tri-State Tornado website, which has lots of interesting facts. Newspaper accounts quoted at the site include this description from a girl who was in a school at the time:

“Then the wind struck the school. The walls seemed to fall in, all around us. Then the floor at one end of the building gave way. We all slipped or slid in that direction. If it hadn’t been for the seats it would have been like sliding down a cellar door.

I can’t tell you what happened then. I can’t describe it. I can’t bear to think about it. Children all around me were cut and bleeding. They cried and screamed. It was something awful. I had to close my eyes…”

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