Damage assessment of severe wind events using mobile field mapping and remote sensing: A case study of the Hažlín tornado, Slovakia

An increasing frequency of severe weather events, including damaging winds and tornadoes, poses significant hazards to infrastructure, ecosystems, and society (Fischer et al., 2025). Accurate and rapid surveys of damage caused by severe convective wind events remain challenging, yet they are essential for understanding impacts, refining wind-damage classification schemes, and improving severe weather databases. This study demonstrates an integrated workflow that combines a GIS-based mobile field-mapping application with multi-scale remote sensing data (UAV imagery and high-resolution satellite observations) to document and assess severe wind damage using the new International Fujita Scale (ESSL 2023). The approach is demonstrated through a case study of a tornado and associated severe wind damage near Hažlín in eastern Slovakia. A configurable mobile mapping platform tailored for damage surveys was used by the field team to collect standardized, georeferenced damage observations, damage type and intensity, and photographic documentation. Complementing the field mapping, high-resolution UAV surveys and pre-/post-event satellite imagery supported detailed characterization of vegetation and structural damage patterns at spatial scales unattainable from ground surveys alone. By integrating standardized field observations with remote sensing, the proposed approach improves damage classification accuracy and contributes to severe-wind climatological databases.

 

ESSL: International Fujita (IF) Scale, https://www.essl.org/cms/research-projects/international-fujita-scale/ (last access: 12 January 2025), 2023.

Fischer, J., Groenemeijer, P., Holzer, A., Feldmann, M., Schröer, K., Battaglioli, F., Schielicke, L., Púčik, T., Antonescu, B., Gatzen, C., and TIM Partners: Invited perspectives: Thunderstorm intensification from mountains to plains, Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 2629–2656, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-25-2629-2025, 2025.