North Dakota, 1994

Tornado and Damaging Winds in North Dakota, May 3, 1994

May 3, 1994 · 3 events in 1 county or zone

2 thunderstorm wind, 1 tornado, as filed by the National Weather Service.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 2 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. 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
3
Property damage
$600,000
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

2 thunderstorm wind, 1 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.

Tornado, Steele

When
May 3, 3:10 PM CST
Where
Steele County, Near Mint Hill to Finley
Rating
F0
Path length
0.5 mi
Path width
20 yd
Property damage
$50,000
Coordinates
47.620, -97.800

A woman taped several minutes of a multiple vortex tornado that passed south of her farm. As the tornado went out of view of the video, she and her two children took cover in their mobile home. At the end of the tape, as the tornado moved out of view, the video showed a microburst to the west of the farm. This is what did most of the damage. After the microburst, she looked up and saw blue sky. She and the children were in the limbs of a tree with mobile home debris covering her legs. They were treated for scratches and bruises. The woman and one child were kept overnight at the hospital for observation. Some of the damage included destruction of the mobile home and other farm buildings as well as farm machinery and trees. The path and length of the tornado were estimated.

Thunderstorm Wind, Steele

When
May 3, 3:15 PM CST
Where
Steele County, Finley
Injuries
3 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage
$500,000
Coordinates
47.456, -97.725 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

A woman taped several minutes of a multiple vortex tornado that passed south of her farm. As the tornado went out of view of the video, she and her two children took cover in their mobile home. At the end of the tape, as the tornado moved out of view, the video showed a microburst to the west of the farm. This is what did most of the damage. After the microburst, she looked up and saw blue sky. She and the children were in the limbs of a tree with mobile home debris covering her legs. They were treated for scratches and bruises. The woman and one child were kept overnight at the hospital for observation. Some of the damage included destruction of the mobile home and other farm buildings as well as farm machinery and trees. The path and length of the tornado were estimated.

Thunderstorm Wind, Steele

When
May 3, 5:05 PM CST
Where
Steele County, Guelph
Property damage
$50,000
Coordinates
47.456, -97.725 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

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 North Dakota in 1994Every state in 1994This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for North Dakota, 1994Warnings in North Dakota, May 1994

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: 10338043, 10338044, 10338045.