A widespread, destructive, and deadly tornado outbreak sequence affected the Southeastern United States from April 28 to May 2, 1953, producing 24 tornadoes, including five violent F4 tornadoes. The deadliest event of the sequence was an F4 tornado family that ravaged Robins Air Force Base in Warner Robins, Georgia, on April 30, killing at least 18 people and injuring 300 or more others. On May 1, a pair of F4 tornadoes also struck Alabama, causing a combined nine deaths and 15 injuries. Additionally, another violent tornado struck rural Tennessee after midnight on May 2, killing four people and injuring eight. Additionally, two intense tornadoes impacted Greater San Antonio, Texas, on April 28, killing three people and injuring 20 altogether. In all, 36 people were killed, 361 others were injured, and total damages reached $26.713 million (1953 USD).^{[nb 1][nb 2][nb 3]} There were additional casualties from non-tornadic events as well, including a washout which caused a train derailment that injured 10.

Several low-pressure systems moved across North America from the end of April to the beginning of May. The first one dropped a cold front southward out of Canada. Another low came south-southeastward out of Wyoming, and moved into Northeastern New Mexico on April 29 with a cold front that moved across Oklahoma and Texas while a third low over South Texas produced a warm front and a small trough across that region. The second low absorbed the third one turned back north and occluded on April 30 while a low pressure trough produced a dryline and warm front, which was attached to a cold front on its eastern side, over the Southeast. A fourth and fifth low moved one right behind the other out of Nevada eastward into the region at the beginning of May. A sixth one formed over Iowa on May 1 and moved eastward into Illinois with a cold front dropping southwestward all the way into Texas. Atmospheric conditions were continually favorable in all of these cases for the development of severe weather and tornadoes throughout the period.^[11][12][13]

• Note: The Climatological Data National Summary reported some additional tornadoes that were not counted toward the final total:

April 28

• A brief tornado was spotted aloft southwest of Greensburg, Kansas.^[11]

April 29

• Several buildings were damaged by a tornado in Lake Charles, Louisiana that just barely missed the Weather Bureau office at the Lake Charles Airport.^[11]
• Two tornadoes were spotted near Dighton, Kansas:
  • Tornado moved northeastward southwest of Dighton, causing no damage.^[14]
  • Tornado moved northeastward northeast of Dighton, "shaving wheat stubble" from the ground.^[14]

April 30

• A possible tornado caused damage in Beaver Rain, Georgia near the town of Norcross.^[11]
• Another possible tornado caused heavy damage in Baldwin County, Georgia while attendant rains caused additional damage.^[11]

May 2

• A wind damage report in Sumter, South Carolina was noted to have possibly been a tornado. This event also caused a fatality.^[11]

On April 28, the same storm that produced the Woodward, Oklahoma F0 tornado produced heavy wind damage on the south side of town with gust clocked at 80 miles per hour (130 km/h). On April 29, severe thunderstorms with torrential rainfall and high winds struck all of Louisiana. Rainfall peaked at 10 inches (250 mm) in Leesville while New Orleans saw heavy wind damage as trees, signs, and power and telephone lines were blown down. Several towns also saw homes, streets, and other properties flooded and several highways were closed. A washout caused five cars of the Southern Belle passenger train to derail near Montgomery, injuring 10. Three fatalities were also reported throughout the state and 1,000 people were evacuated from their homes in Alexandria due to flooding. This same line of storms moved through all of Mississippi, where similar impacts took place. One person was killed at Byhalta while two others were injured in Natchez by a landslide. 60 miles per hour (97 km/h) winds caused widespread tree and powerline damage and 50 families were evacuated from Jackson due to flooding. In Vicksburg, the site of a massive F5 tornado in December later that year, 7.25 inches (184 mm) of rain fell in only eight hours, leaving much of the region flooded out. Winds and heavy rain also caused damage in other parts of Mississippi, St. Louis, Missouri, which recorded up to 82 miles per hour (132 km/h), central and northern Illinois, and Alabama into April 30. Heavy rainfall and winds in Columbia, South Carolina led to several indirect injuries due to vehicle accidents while strong winds in Franklin, Indiana ripped a roof off of a packing plant and slammed it against a dwelling, injuring two of its occupants. A squall line moved throughout the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic at the beginning of May, bringing more damage due to wind, hail, heavy rain, and flooding across the region.^[11]

The town of Warner Robins suffered catastrophic damage from the F4 tornado as numerous structures were flattened.^[49] At the time of the event, the city had 12 sirens, but none were located on Georgia/Robins AFB itself. Additionally, the radar technology at the time did not have the ability to detect the tornado. As a result, no formal tornado warning was issued and many people were caught off guard by its arrival.^[50] The Warner Robins F4 tornado was also one of the first tornadoes to ever be filmed. It was rumored that airman named Vince Rupert, an amateur cinematographer, was the one who captured it before being killed by flying debris. However, this information was proven to be just a myth as it actually filmed by Sgt. Lewis Prochniak, a Minnesota native and amateur film enthusiast. He took cover with his family just as the tornado was moving over his house and was not injured.^[51][52]

• List of North American tornadoes and tornado outbreaks
• May 1960 tornado outbreak sequence
• 1999 Oklahoma tornado outbreak