Tornado climatology
Tornadoes have been recorded on all continents except Antarctica and are most common in the middle latitudes where conditions are often favorable for convective storm development. The United States has the most tornadoes of any country, as well as the strongest and most violent tornadoes. A large portion of these tornadoes form in an area of the central United States popularly known as Tornado Alley. Other areas of the world that have frequent tornadoes include significant portions of Europe, South Africa, Philippines, Bangladesh, parts of Argentina, Uruguay, and southern and southeast Brazil, northern Mexico, New Zealand, and far eastern Asia.
List of United States tornadoes from January to February 2012
In January and February 2012, the local weather forecast offices of the National Weather Service confirmed 134 tornadoes in the United States, indicating an above-average period of tornadic activity. On average, 64 tornadoes occur in the first two months of the year, with 35 occurring in January and 29 in February. However, in 2012, the count for the two months was 79 and 55, respectively. The first confirmed tornado in January (and 2012) was an EF0 tornado which struck Fort Bend County in Texas at 1445 UTC on January 9. The last tornado of February was an EF0 that affected Blount County in Tennessee at 0030 UTC on March 1, though in terms of Central Time Zone, where the tornado took place, it was still February 29. The period's strongest tornado was ranked as an EF4 and occurred on February 29 in Saline and Gallatin counties in Illinois. Total economic losses in the United States from the first two months of 2012 amounted to over $600 million.