PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – Just before 1 p.m. on April 5, 1972, a series of weather phenomena combined to spawn a tornado that first touched down just west of Portland International Airport before crossing the river into Vancouver, Washington.

By the time it was over, the massive storm was on the ground for eight miles, six people were dead, and hundreds more were injured. 50 years later, it remains the deadliest tornado to ever hit the continental United States west of the Rocky Mountains.

These are the stories of the storm, those who survived, and how things might be different today.

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