Massachusetts, 1972

Tornadoes in Massachusetts, August 9, 1972

August 9, 1972 · 3 events in 3 counties and zones

3 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
1
Injuries
7
Property damage
$53,000
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
3

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

3 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.

Tornado, Hampden

When
August 9, 11:05 AM CST
Where
Hampden County
Rating
F1
Path length
0.5 mi
Path width
77 yd
Property damage
$3,000
Coordinates
42.120, -72.400

Tornado, Norfolk

When
August 9, 1:30 PM CST
Where
Norfolk County
Rating
F1
Path length
4.9 mi
Path width
30 yd
Deaths
1 direct, 0 indirect
Injuries
6 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage
$25,000
Coordinates
42.280, -71.230

Tornado, Worcester

When
August 9, 1:30 PM CST
Where
Worcester County
Rating
F2
Path length
9.7 mi
Path width
10 yd
Injuries
1 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage
$25,000
Coordinates
42.550, -72.130

The people who died

As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.

EventDateAgeSexWhereKind
Tornado, Norfolk1972-08-09Direct

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 Massachusetts in 1972Every state in 1972This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Massachusetts, 1972

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: 10039849, 10039850, 10039851.