Tornado in North Dakota
Every tornado event the National Weather Service has filed in North Dakota, year by year, with the most significant episodes. 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.
The most significant on the map
The most significant tornado episodes in North Dakota.
- Tornadoes
- Tropical storms and surge
- Floods
- Wind
- Hail
- Winter weather
- Heat and drought
- Cold
- Fire, smoke and dust
- Marine and coastal
- Other
The record
- Events
- 1,799
- Deaths
- 29
- Injuries
- 364
- Damage
- $205 million
Every year
The most significant
Ranked by deaths, injuries, damage and size together.
- Tornadoes and Hail in North Dakota, June 20, 1957
- Tornadoes and Hail in North Dakota, July 4, 1978
- Tornadoes in North Dakota, May 29, 1953
- Tornadoes and Flash Flood in North Dakota, June 20 to 21, 2025During the evening of Friday, June 20th into the early morning hours of June 21st, much of the region was affected by severe weather.
- Tornado in North Dakota, July 2, 1955
- Tornadoes and Hail in North Dakota, August 26, 2007A cold front moved across North Dakota on the 26th, with a hot and humid airmass in place ahead of the front. At 6 pm CST, a surface low was located over southern Manitoba (Canada), just north of Pembina, ND.
- Tornadoes in North Dakota, July 1, 1952
- Tornadoes and Hail in North Dakota, June 29, 1975
- Tornado and Hail in North Dakota, July 9 to 10, 2018Severe thunderstorms moved from southeast Saskatchewan into northeast Montana, and then into northwest North Dakota where the environment was rich in low level moisture with enhanced deep and low level shear.
- Tornadoes and Flash Flooding in North Dakota, June 12 to 30, 2000Trees were blown down northeast of Grafton.
- Tornadoes and Hail in North Dakota, June 20 to 21, 2025An outbreak of severe thunderstorms brought extreme winds, very large hail, and multiple tornadoes across much of southern North Dakota from the late afternoon into the nighttime hours.
- Tornadoes and Hail in North Dakota, July 18, 2004A tornado briefly touched down southeast of Emerado.
- Tornadoes and Hail in North Dakota, August 12, 2010A significant severe weather event evolved during the evening hours of Thursday, August 12th, and continued into the early morning hours of Friday, August 13th.
- Tornadoes and Hail in North Dakota, June 6, 1999Twin tornadoes were reported.
- Tornado in North Dakota, August 11, 2002The tornado formed 5 miles north of Medina, over open country, traveling slowly to the north...northeast. One farmstead was totally destroyed and the second farmstead suffered moderate damage.
- Tornadoes and Hail in North Dakota, June 26, 1986
- Tornadoes and Flash Flooding in North Dakota, July 8 to 9, 2019A surface boundary stretching from southwest into north central North Dakota served as the primary focal point for thunderstorm development in an atmosphere of very high instability.
- Tornadoes and Hail in North Dakota, July 1 to 25, 1997lightning struck a barn causing it to catch fire. A nearby farm caught fire as well. Both barns were destroyed.
- Tornadoes and Hail in North Dakota, June 17, 2010Conditions were ripe by the afternoon of the 17th for a major severe weather outbreak. A surface low had moved into east central North Dakota with an occluded front extending to the southeast.
- Tornadoes and Hail in North Dakota, July 8 to 9, 2009In the mid afternoon hours of Wednesday, July 8th, Tornado Watch 563 was issued for all of western and parts of central North Dakota, due to the expected widespread and dangerous development and rapid intensification of thunderstorms near a surface trough along the western North…
- Tornado in North Dakota, July 5, 1955
- Tornadoes and Flash Flooding in North Dakota, August 8, 2001The tornado began northwest of Maddock and travelled along a path intermittently to near Flora and near Oberon. A 40x60 foot metal shed was demolished. About 2 miles northeast of Maddock, a grain bin was pulled from its foundation and thrown about 500 yards.
- Tornado in North Dakota, August 7, 2010By late in the day on the 7th, an east-west lying warm front had set up just north of the South Dakota border, extending eastward into west central Minnesota. South of the warm front, temperatures were in the mid to upper 80s with dew points in the lower 70s.
- Tornadoes in North Dakota, May 5, 1964
- Tornadoes and Hail in North Dakota, July 15, 2007At 3 pm CST on the 15th, a stationary front was located from near Minot (ND) to Jamestown (ND) to near Sisseton (SD). South of the front, mid afternoon temperatures ranged in the mid 80s to lower 90s.
More
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.