Tornadoes · United States · Florida

1980 tornadoes in Florida

60 tornadoes touched down in Florida in 1980, 21 percent above the average of the record for the state. They killed 1 people and injured 59.

1979 1981 The whole country in 1980

The rating scale

Tracks are drawn in the color of the rating. The Fujita scale rates the damage rather than measuring the wind: the speeds are what that damage is taken to imply.

F040 to 72 mph
Light damage. Surface peeled off some roofs, gutters and siding damaged, branches broken, shallow-rooted trees pushed over.
F173 to 112 mph
Moderate damage. Roofs badly stripped, mobile homes overturned or badly damaged, exterior doors lost, windows broken.
F2113 to 157 mph
Considerable damage. Roofs torn off well-built houses, frame homes shifted on their foundations, mobile homes destroyed, large trees snapped or uprooted, cars lifted off the ground.
F3158 to 206 mph
Severe damage. Whole stories of well-built houses destroyed, large buildings badly damaged, trains overturned, trees debarked, heavy cars lifted and thrown.
F4207 to 260 mph
Devastating damage. Well-built houses leveled, structures with weak foundations moved some distance, cars thrown and large missiles generated.
F5261 to 318 mph
Incredible damage. Strong frame houses swept off their foundations, car-sized missiles thrown more than 100 meters, steel-reinforced concrete badly damaged, high-rise buildings deformed.
Unrated
The survey recorded a tornado but could not put a number on it, most often because it crossed open country and damaged nothing a rating can be read from.

Every tornado in Florida in 1980

January 23 2 tornadoes

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
January 23	1:30 AM CST	F0	Gulf	0.3	17			$500 to $5,000
January 23	5:30 AM EST	F0	Columbia	0.1	10			$5,000 to $50,000

February 17 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
February 17	6:00 AM EST	F0	Collier	1.0	10			$5,000 to $50,000

February 24 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
February 24	3:00 PM EST	F1	Putnam	1.0	10			$5,000 to $50,000

February 25 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
February 25	4:30 AM EST	F0	Lafayette	0.5	10			$5,000 to $50,000

March 1 2 tornadoes

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
March 1	9:00 PM EST	F3	Broward	7.8	500	1	33	$5 million to $50 million
March 1	9:15 PM EST	F1	Broward	0.5	33			$500,000 to $5 million

March 10 2 tornadoes

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
March 10	10:50 AM EST	F1	Clay	0.5	33			$5,000 to $50,000
March 10	11:45 AM EST	F1	Duval	0.3	20			$5,000 to $50,000

March 28 2 tornadoes

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
March 28	7:00 AM CST	F1	Escambia	0.3	20		1	$5,000 to $50,000
March 28	7:45 AM CST	F1	Santa Rosa	3.3	33			$5,000 to $50,000

April 7 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
April 7	1:15 PM EST	F1	Hendry	0.3	20			$50,000 to $500,000

April 13 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
April 13	2:30 PM CST	F0	Santa Rosa	1.0	10			$500 to $5,000

April 19 2 tornadoes

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
April 19	2:00 PM EST	F0	Palm Beach	0.3	20			$50,000 to $500,000
April 19	5:55 PM EST	F0	Okeechobee	0.3	20			$5,000 to $50,000

April 27 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
April 27	12:15 PM EDT	F2	Monroe	0.5	150		10	$50,000 to $500,000

May 8 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
May 8	4:50 PM EDT	F0	Palm Beach	0.1	10			$500 to $5,000

May 9 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
May 9	4:15 PM EDT	F1	Lee	3.0	30			$5,000 to $50,000

May 16 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
May 16	9:45 PM CDT	F0	Escambia	0.5	10			$500 to $5,000

May 17 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
May 17	11:51 AM CDT	F1	Bay	7.7	20		6	$5,000 to $50,000

May 25 7 tornadoes

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Damage
May 25	9:10 AM EDT	F0	Manatee	0.1	20	$500 to $5,000
May 25	11:05 AM CDT	F1		0.1	30	$5,000 to $50,000
May 25	4:00 PM EDT	F1	Alachua	1.0	30	$500 to $5,000
May 25	4:00 PM EDT	F1	Suwannee	0.5	30	$50,000 to $500,000
May 25	5:30 PM EDT	F1	Marion	1.0	30	$5,000 to $50,000
May 25	9:15 PM EDT	F1	Hendry	0.1	30	$5,000 to $50,000
May 25	9:15 PM EDT	F1	Hendry	0.1	30	$5,000 to $50,000

May 26 2 tornadoes

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
May 26	5:15 AM EDT	F1	Charlotte	4.5	100			$500,000 to $5 million
May 26	5:30 AM EDT	F1	Lee	1.0	50			$50,000 to $500,000

June 10 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
June 10	3:55 PM EDT	F1	Palm Beach	5.6	100		1	$500,000 to $5 million

June 11 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
June 11	10:29 AM CDT	F0		0.1	30			$5,000 to $50,000

June 18 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
June 18	2:30 PM CDT	F0	Escambia	0.1	30			$500 to $5,000

June 19 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
June 19	2:00 PM CDT	F0	Okaloosa	0.1	30			$5,000 to $50,000

June 22 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
June 22	1:00 PM EDT	F1	Putnam	0.5	30			$50,000 to $500,000

June 24 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
June 24	6:30 PM EDT	F0	Seminole	0.1	30			$500 to $5,000

June 25 4 tornadoes

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Injuries	Damage
June 25	3:30 AM CDT	F1	Bay	0.5	50	1	$50,000 to $500,000
June 25	8:00 PM EDT	F1	Suwannee	0.1	20
June 25	8:10 PM EDT	F1	Suwannee	5.2	50		$50,000 to $500,000
June 25	9:05 PM EDT	F1	Suwannee	0.5	20		$500 to $5,000

June 26 2 tornadoes

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
June 26	7:10 AM CDT	F1	Okaloosa	0.1	20			$5,000 to $50,000
June 26	7:50 AM CDT	F0	Okaloosa	0.1	20			$50 to $500

July 6 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
July 6	9:00 PM EDT	F1	Alachua	0.1	20

July 14 2 tornadoes

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
July 14	7:15 PM EDT	F1	Bradford	1.0	20		1	$5,000 to $50,000
July 14	7:55 PM EDT	F0	Putnam	0.1	10

July 15 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
July 15	2:20 PM CDT	F1		0.1	20			$5,000 to $50,000

July 25 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
July 25	3:30 PM EDT	F1	Citrus	0.1	20			$5,000 to $50,000

July 26 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
July 26	5:15 PM EDT	F0	Brevard	0.1	20

August 8 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
August 8	6:15 PM EDT	F1	Charlotte	1.0	30			$50,000 to $500,000

August 13 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
August 13	2:20 PM EDT	F1	Duval	2.0	30			$5,000 to $50,000

August 19 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
August 19	8:00 PM EDT	F1	Hillsborough	0.2	100		6	$50,000 to $500,000

August 21 2 tornadoes

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
August 21	3:05 PM CDT	F1		1.0	30			$5,000 to $50,000
August 21	10:00 PM CDT	F0	Bay	0.1	20			$50 to $500

August 22 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
August 22	9:00 PM EDT	F1	Marion	5.4	50			$50,000 to $500,000

September 2 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
September 2	3:55 PM EDT	F1	Manatee	2.0	30			$5,000 to $50,000

September 9 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
September 9	3:45 PM EDT	F1	Broward	1.0	30			$5,000 to $50,000

September 15 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
September 15	4:15 PM EDT	F1	Hardee	0.5	30			$5,000 to $50,000

October 28 2 tornadoes

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
October 28	3:15 AM CST	F1	Okaloosa	0.5	50			$50,000 to $500,000
October 28	12:30 PM EST	F1	Alachua	1.0	30			$5,000 to $50,000

November 15 2 tornadoes

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
November 15	5:25 AM CST	F0		0.3	17			$500 to $5,000
November 15	7:00 AM EST	F0	Broward	0.3	17			$500 to $5,000

Nearby

Every tornado in Florida since 1950 Warnings in force in Florida The live radar over Florida

What this means

Ratings are the survey's, read off the damage rather than measured; the rating scale is above. Tornado counts rise through the record as reporting improved, so a year in the 1950s is not comparable with one today except for the strongest tornadoes, which were always noticed.

Sources

NOAA Storm Prediction Center tornado database, 1950-2025, the official record kept by NOAA's Storm Prediction Center.