Kansas, 1973

Tornadoes and Damaging Winds in Kansas, May 26, 1973

May 26, 1973 · 5 events in 4 counties and zones

3 tornado, 2 thunderstorm wind, 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

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths
3
Injuries
1
Property damage
$253,000
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
5

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, 2 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Tornado, Sedgwick

When
May 26, 2:25 PM CST
Where
Sedgwick County
Rating
F1
Path length
3.8 mi
Path width
100 yd
Deaths
3 direct, 0 indirect
Coordinates
37.800, -97.870

Tornado, Chautauqua

When
May 26, 3:00 PM CST
Where
Chautauqua County
Rating
F1
Path length
1 mi
Path width
200 yd
Property damage
$3,000
Coordinates
37.000, -96.250

Tornado, Sedgwick

When
May 26, 3:15 PM CST
Where
Sedgwick County
Rating
F3
Path length
4.3 mi
Path width
400 yd
Injuries
1 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage
$250,000
Coordinates
37.720, -97.600

Thunderstorm Wind, Osage

When
May 26, 5:15 PM CST
Where
Osage County
Coordinates
38.830, -95.700

Thunderstorm Wind, Neosho

When
May 26, 6:33 PM CST
Where
Neosho County
Measured
53 kt (61 mph)
Coordinates
37.670, -95.480

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.
Thunderstorm Wind
Winds from a thunderstorm of 50 knots (58 mph) or more, or lower winds that caused damage or casualties. Measured gusts are marked MG, estimated EG.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Kansas in 1973Every state in 1973This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Kansas, 1973

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: 10023587, 10023588, 10023589, 10023590, 10023591.