Why was the tri state tornado the worst tornado?

Answer 1

The Tri-State tornado of 1925 is considered the worst tornado in U.S. history mainly because of its death toll of 695, more than twice the runner-up for the U.S. which killed 317.

A number of factors contributed to this. First of all, the tornado was an F5, the strongest category of tornado capable of completely obliterating just about any structure. Second, it had an extraordinarily long damage path long 219 miles (the longest ever recorded), and at times 1 mile wide. This allowed it to devastate communities one after another. Third, the tornado moved very fast, at times 73 mph, leaving people little time to take cover, especially since there was no warning system back then. Finally, the storm that produced the tornado had a very low cloud base, while the tornado itself was very large, so people who saw it did not immediately recognize it as a tornado.