Portal:Tornadoes

The 1948 Tinker Air Force Base tornadoes were two tornadoes which struck Tinker Air Force Base in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, on March 20 and 25, 1948. Both are estimated to have been equivalent to F3 in intensity on the modern Fujita scale of tornado intensity, which was not devised until 1971. The March 20 tornado was the costliest in Oklahoma history at the time. On March 25, meteorologists at the base noticed the extreme similarity between the weather conditions of that day and March 20, and later in the day issued a "tornado forecast", which was verified when a tornado struck the base that evening. This was the first official tornado forecast, as well as the first successful tornado forecast, in recorded history. (Full article...)

This is a list of the costliest or deadliest hailstorms on record. (Full article...)

This page documents the tornadoes and tornado outbreaks of 1954, primarily in the United States. Most tornadoes form in the U.S., although some events may take place internationally. Tornado statistics for older years like this often appear significantly lower than modern years due to fewer reports or confirmed tornadoes.

The total count of tornadoes and ratings differs from various agencies accordingly. The article, therefore, documents information from the most contemporary official sources alongside assessments from tornado historian Thomas P. Grazulis.

From April 2–7, 2025, a slow-moving weather system and a stationary front caused both a widespread and devastating tornado outbreak and historic, life-threatening flash flooding across much of the Southern and Midwestern United States.

The Storm Prediction Center (SPC) began monitoring the Mississippi Valley and surrounding regions on March 28 for the potential of future severe weather, eventually issuing a rare high risk for April 2, just weeks after a historic tornado outbreak in the same general area. Later that day, a tornado struck Owasso, Oklahoma, causing damage to homes. An EF1 tornado struck Nevada, Missouri, removing roofs from homes and injuring at least one person. An EF2 tornado struck Pilot Grove, Missouri, destroying a manufactured home and tossing cars. The tornado sirens in the town did not sound due to a malfunction, though no one was hurt. A large, multiple-vortex EF3 tornado moved through the city of Lake City in Arkansas, prompting a tornado emergency issuance. An indirect fatality occurred after an EF2 tornado struck Advance and Delta in Missouri, leaving significant damage to homes. In the early morning hours of April 3, an EF3 tornado struck Selmer, Tennessee, killing three people within the city and two others in surrounding McNairy County. Another supercell produced another EF3 tornado near Slayden, Mississippi, prompting the issuance of another tornado emergency. Near La Grange, Tennessee, two fatalities occurred when a tornado destroyed a mobile home.

The slow progression of the weather system also resulted in days of heavy rainfall and caused catastrophic flash flooding across much of the Ohio Valley. A broad swath of 8–12 inches (20–30 cm) of rain fell across the same areas, especially in the state of Kentucky. Multiple major rivers overflowed their banks, causing widespread damage in neighboring towns, with some nearing record crest levels. Due to multiple rounds of severe weather hitting the same areas, storm surveys had to be delayed for several days. In total, 24 people died as a result of the system; eight from tornadoes, along with one indirect death, and 15 from non-tornadic activity, including the flooding. Furthermore, at least 47 have been injured. With a total of 156 confirmed tornadoes, the outbreak received a score of 96 on the Outbreak Intensity Score (OIS), classifying it as a "devastating" outbreak. The tornado outbreak and flooding caused a total of $4.8 billion in damage. (Full article...)

August 14

• 1898 – An F4 tornado destroyed farms between Clear Lake and Gary, South Dakota, killing eight people. Five members of one family, along with two laborers, were killed on one farm. Another farm was completely obliterated.
• 1971 – A tornado moved through Kin Kin, Queensland, Australia, destroying several homes and killing three people. This was the deadliest tornado on record in Australia.

August 15

• 1787 – The largest known tornado outbreak of at the time, the Four-State Tornado Swarm produced tornadoes across Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire. Two people were killed, and ten were injured, by a tornado in Wethersfield, Connecticut, where the "black column whirled with amazing velocity and a most tremendous roar." One tornado moved across parts of three states from near Killingly, Connecticut to Gloucester, Massachusetts, cutting across Rhode Island.
• 2008 – A significant tornado outbreak hit southern Poland. An F3 (T6) tornado killed two people in Rusinowice and Kalina and injured 40 others. About 800 structures were damaged. An strong F3 (T7) tornado caused major damage in Sieroniowice, destroying thick brick walls and injuring 15 people.

August 16

• 1888 – Quebec's deadliest tornado hit Salaberry-de-Valleyfield, killing nine people and injuring fourteen.
• 1994 – A tornado outbreak hit the Southeastern United States with the most tornadoes touching down in South Carolina. An F3 tornado caused major damage in Lexington, South Carolina, injuring 40 people.

• ...that the 2013 Moore tornado that struck Moore and Newcastle, Oklahoma, is the most recent EF5 tornado as of August 2025?
• ...that the 2021 South Moravia tornado, an IF4 tornado with winds between 207–260 mph (333–418 km/h), was the strongest tornado to hit the Czech Republic in modern history?
• ...that five of the six people killed in the 2011 Cullman–Arab tornado were members of the same family?
• ...that Picher, Oklahoma, was hit so hard by a tornado in 2008 that it would become a ghost town in 2015?
• ...that the 2022 Andover tornado injured only three people, despite damaging more than 1,000 buildings?