Tornadoes and Damaging Winds in Pennsylvania, July 21, 1983

Name: Tornadoes and Damaging Winds in Pennsylvania, July 21, 1983
Start: 1983-07-21T14:08
End: 1983-07-21T18:30
Location: Pennsylvania

July 21, 1983 · 32 events in 20 counties and zones

30 thunderstorm wind, 2 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: $500,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 32

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

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

Tornado, Erie

When: July 21, 2:08 PM CST
Where: Erie County
Rating: F1
Path length: 0.2 mi
Path width: 10 yd
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 42.000, -80.420

Thunderstorm Wind, Erie

When: July 21, 2:30 PM CST
Where: Erie County
Coordinates: 41.980, -80.070

Thunderstorm Wind, McKean

When: July 21, 2:30 PM CST
Where: McKean County
Coordinates: 41.780, -78.620

Thunderstorm Wind, Crawford

When: July 21, 2:37 PM CST
Where: Crawford County
Coordinates: 41.770, -80.220

Thunderstorm Wind, Lycoming

When: July 21, 3:00 PM CST
Where: Lycoming County
Coordinates: 41.250, -77.000

Thunderstorm Wind, Beaver

When: July 21, 3:10 PM CST
Where: Beaver County
Coordinates: 40.650, -80.420

Thunderstorm Wind, Allegheny

When: July 21, 3:34 PM CST
Where: Allegheny County
Measured: 64 kt (74 mph)
Coordinates: 40.500, -80.230

Thunderstorm Wind, Northumberland

When: July 21, 3:45 PM CST
Where: Northumberland County
Coordinates: 41.020, -76.870

Thunderstorm Wind, Allegheny

When: July 21, 3:50 PM CST
Where: Allegheny County
Coordinates: 40.370, -80.130

Thunderstorm Wind, Indiana

When: July 21, 4:00 PM CST
Where: Indiana County
Coordinates: 40.550, -79.150

Thunderstorm Wind, Washington

When: July 21, 4:00 PM CST
Where: Washington County
Coordinates: 40.120, -79.870

Thunderstorm Wind, Blair

When: July 21, 4:00 PM CST
Where: Blair County
Measured: 78 kt (90 mph)
Coordinates: 40.300, -78.320

Thunderstorm Wind, Cambria

When: July 21, 4:15 PM CST
Where: Cambria County
Coordinates: 40.620, -78.720

Thunderstorm Wind, Cambria

When: July 21, 4:15 PM CST
Where: Cambria County
Coordinates: 40.480, -78.550

Thunderstorm Wind, Northumberland

When: July 21, 4:15 PM CST
Where: Northumberland County
Coordinates: 40.870, -76.770

Thunderstorm Wind, Blair

When: July 21, 4:15 PM CST
Where: Blair County
Coordinates: 40.470, -78.350

Thunderstorm Wind, Cambria

When: July 21, 4:15 PM CST
Where: Cambria County
Measured: 56 kt (64 mph)
Coordinates: 40.320, -78.830

Thunderstorm Wind, Blair

When: July 21, 4:20 PM CST
Where: Blair County
Measured: 87 kt (100 mph)
Coordinates: 40.320, -78.330

Thunderstorm Wind, Cambria

When: July 21, 4:30 PM CST
Where: Cambria County
Coordinates: 40.480, -78.730

Thunderstorm Wind, Huntingdon

When: July 21, 4:40 PM CST
Where: Huntingdon County
Coordinates: 40.400, -77.980

Tornado, Mifflin

When: July 21, 4:45 PM CST
Where: Mifflin County
Rating: F1
Path length: 0.2 mi
Path width: 10 yd
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 40.500, -77.320

Thunderstorm Wind, Greene

When: July 21, 4:45 PM CST
Where: Greene County
Measured: 57 kt (66 mph)
Coordinates: 39.830, -80.250

Thunderstorm Wind, Franklin

When: July 21, 5:00 PM CST
Where: Franklin County
Measured: 76 kt (87 mph)
Coordinates: 39.930, -77.670

Thunderstorm Wind, Cambria

When: July 21, 5:00 PM CST
Where: Cambria County
Coordinates: 40.470, -78.580

Thunderstorm Wind, Franklin

When: July 21, 5:15 PM CST
Where: Franklin County
Measured: 87 kt (100 mph)
Coordinates: 39.930, -77.670

Thunderstorm Wind, Dauphin

When: July 21, 5:15 PM CST
Where: Dauphin County
Coordinates: 40.400, -76.770

Thunderstorm Wind, York

When: July 21, 5:20 PM CST
Where: York County
Measured: 87 kt (100 mph)
Coordinates: 39.950, -76.720

Thunderstorm Wind, Bedford

When: July 21, 5:30 PM CST
Where: Bedford County
Coordinates: 40.020, -78.500

Thunderstorm Wind, Franklin

When: July 21, 5:30 PM CST
Where: Franklin County
Coordinates: 39.920, -77.750

Thunderstorm Wind, Fulton

When: July 21, 5:45 PM CST
Where: Fulton County
Coordinates: 39.920, -78.130

Thunderstorm Wind, Adams

When: July 21, 6:30 PM CST
Where: Adams County
Coordinates: 39.870, -77.250

Thunderstorm Wind, York

When: July 21, 6:30 PM CST
Where: York County
Measured: 87 kt (100 mph)
Coordinates: 39.950, -76.720

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

Every storm in Pennsylvania in 1983 Every state in 1983 This day in weather history The tornado archive for Pennsylvania, 1983

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: 10118136, 10118137, 10118138, 10118139, 10118140, 10118141, 10118142, 10118143, 10118144, 10118145, 10118146, 10118147, 10118148, 10118149, 10118150, 10118151, 10118152, 10118153, 10118154, 10118155, 10118156, 10118157, 10118158, 10118159, 10114570, 10114571, 10114572, 10114573, 10114574, 10114575, 10114576, 10114577.