Iowa, 1953

Tornadoes in Iowa, March 21, 1953

March 21, 1953 · 4 events in 4 counties and zones

4 tornado, as filed by the National Weather Service.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it. Tap one for its entry below.

  • Tornadoes
  • Tropical storms and surge
  • Floods
  • Wind
  • Hail
  • Winter weather
  • Heat and drought
  • Cold
  • Fire, smoke and dust
  • Marine and coastal
  • Other

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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
2
Property damage
$303,000
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
4

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

Event by event

4 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.

Tornado, Woodbury

When
March 21, 12:45 PM CST
Where
Woodbury County
Rating
F1
Path width
33 yd
Injuries
2 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage
$3,000
Coordinates
42.230, -95.680

Tornado, Monona

When
March 21, 1:00 PM CST
Where
Monona County
Rating
F1
Path length
10.9 mi
Path width
600 yd
Property damage
$25,000
Coordinates
42.050, -95.720

Tornado, Emmet

When
March 21, 3:00 PM CST
Where
Emmet County
Rating
F3
Path length
31.8 mi
Path width
400 yd
Property damage
$250,000
Coordinates
43.270, -94.630

Tornado, Tama

When
March 21, 5:00 PM CST
Where
Tama County
Rating
F2
Path length
11.7 mi
Path width
100 yd
Property damage
$25,000
Coordinates
41.880, -92.620

What these are

Tornado
A violently rotating column of air in contact with the ground and extending from a thunderstorm, filed with its path, width and Fujita or Enhanced Fujita rating from the damage survey.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Iowa in 1953Every state in 1953This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Iowa, 1953

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 10017024, 10017025, 10017026, 10017027.