Tornado and Hail in North Dakota, August 21, 1973

Name: Tornado and Hail in North Dakota, August 21, 1973
Start: 1973-08-21T02:30
End: 1973-08-21T07:33
Location: North Dakota

August 21, 1973 · 13 events in 7 counties and zones

7 thunderstorm wind, 5 hail, 1 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

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: $250,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 13

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

7 thunderstorm wind, 5 hail, 1 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.

Hail, Bottineau

When: August 21, 2:30 AM CST
Where: Bottineau County
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Coordinates: 48.920, -100.670

Thunderstorm Wind, Bottineau

When: August 21, 2:30 AM CST
Where: Bottineau County
Coordinates: 48.920, -100.670

Hail, Bottineau

When: August 21, 3:30 AM CST
Where: Bottineau County
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Coordinates: 48.600, -100.280

Thunderstorm Wind, Bottineau

When: August 21, 3:30 AM CST
Where: Bottineau County
Coordinates: 48.600, -100.280

Thunderstorm Wind, Pierce

When: August 21, 4:10 AM CST
Where: Pierce County
Measured: 62 kt (71 mph)
Coordinates: 48.370, -100.000

Tornado, Pierce

When: August 21, 4:30 AM CST
Where: Pierce County
Rating: F2
Path width: 33 yd
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 48.370, -99.980

Hail, Benson

When: August 21, 4:30 AM CST
Where: Benson County
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Coordinates: 48.170, -99.650

Hail, Pierce

When: August 21, 4:30 AM CST
Where: Pierce County
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Coordinates: 48.370, -99.980

Thunderstorm Wind, Benson

When: August 21, 4:30 AM CST
Where: Benson County
Coordinates: 48.170, -99.650

Hail, Foster

When: August 21, 5:15 AM CST
Where: Foster County
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Coordinates: 47.570, -98.580

Thunderstorm Wind, Griggs

When: August 21, 6:00 AM CST
Where: Griggs County
Coordinates: 47.450, -98.120

Thunderstorm Wind, Barnes

When: August 21, 6:30 AM CST
Where: Barnes County
Coordinates: 46.920, -98.000

Thunderstorm Wind,

When: August 21, 7:33 AM CST
Where: County
Measured: 50 kt (58 mph)
Coordinates: 46.900, -96.800

What these are

Hail: Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.
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.
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

Every storm in North Dakota in 1973 Every state in 1973 This day in weather history The tornado archive for North Dakota, 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: 10084631, 10084632, 10084633, 10084634, 10084635, 10084636, 10084637, 10084638, 10084639, 10084640, 10084641, 10084642, 10084643.