The height of the tornado season in the United States is March through August, though tornadoes do form in the South during the off season. More tornadoes occur in May than any other month, but more deaths have been logged during the month of April. One of the worst outbreaks of tornadoes ever recorded ran from April 3 through 4 in 1974. Thirteen states (Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Tennessee, Kentucky, Alabama, Mississippi, West Virginia, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia) saw 148 tornadoes touch down, killing 315 people and injuring almost 5,500. The tornadoes cut through 2,500 miles (4,000 kilometers) of terrain.