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'Riegelwood' is an unincorporated town in Columbus County, North Carolina. On November 16, 2006 at 6:37 EST in the morning, an F3 tornado struck a mobile home park and killed 8 people, including 2 children, Danny Jacobs,6 and Miguel Martinez, 13. 20 people were injured. The tornado was a part of a 3 day long tornado outbreak in the south where 4 more other deaths were reported. Riegelwood was one of the hardest hit areas.

On Friday, November 17, 2006 a NOAA National Weather Service storm survey team assessed the tornado damage in Riegelwood in Columbus County, NC. The damage was rated at F3 on the fujita scale for nearly a mile in Riegelwood,
with winds approaching 200 mph. The maximum width of the tornado was 300 yards where the F3 damage occurred. The rest of the 7 mile damage path was narrow, less than a 100 yards wide, and rated at F1 with winds less than 100 mph extending north across Columbus County into western Pender County.

The tornado was responsible for 8 fatalities and 20 injuries that requried medical treatment. The Columbus County sheriff reported 30 homes destroyed in the F3 damage area, and another 3 structures were damaged in Pender County just west of Currie.
A tornado warning had been issued for eastern Columbus County at 629 AM, and prior to that a severe thunderstorm warning was issued for the same area at 621 AM. The tornado struck Riegelwood at approximately 637 AM.

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