Tornadoes · United States · Florida

Tornadoes in Miami-Dade County, Florida

42 tornadoes have crossed Miami-Dade County since 1950, 1 of them surveyed so far this year and still preliminary, 35th of the 67 counties in Florida with a tornado on record, an average of one every 1.8 years. They have killed 1 person and injured 15. None was rated F4 or above.

The rating scale

Tracks are drawn in the color of the rating. The United States rated tornadoes on Ted Fujita’s F scale until 31 January 2007 and on the Enhanced Fujita scale after it. Both run from 0 to 5, and both rate the damage rather than measure the wind: the speeds are what that damage is taken to imply.

  1. F0 / EF040 to 72 mph on the F scale, 65 to 85 mph on the EF scale

    Light damage. Surface peeled off some roofs, gutters and siding damaged, branches broken, shallow-rooted trees pushed over.

  2. F1 / EF173 to 112 mph on the F scale, 86 to 110 mph on the EF scale

    Moderate damage. Roofs badly stripped, mobile homes overturned or badly damaged, exterior doors lost, windows broken.

  3. F2 / EF2113 to 157 mph on the F scale, 111 to 135 mph on the EF scale

    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.

  4. F3 / EF3158 to 206 mph on the F scale, 136 to 165 mph on the EF scale

    Severe damage. Whole stories of well-built houses destroyed, large buildings badly damaged, trains overturned, trees debarked, heavy cars lifted and thrown.

  5. F4 / EF4207 to 260 mph on the F scale, 166 to 200 mph on the EF scale

    Devastating damage. Well-built houses leveled, structures with weak foundations moved some distance, cars thrown and large missiles generated.

  6. F5 / EF5261 to 318 mph on the F scale, over 200 mph on the EF scale

    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.

  7. 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.

Now

Tornadoes
42
Deaths
1
Injuries
15
F4 and above
0
Worst on record
F2, March 27, 2003

The deadliest in Miami-Dade County

  1. F2, Miami-Dade County, FloridaMarch 27, 20031 killed, 14 injured

The strongest

  1. F2, Miami-Dade County, FloridaMarch 27, 2003F2, 6.0 mi (10 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 20 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Miami-Dade County. Each year links to every tornado in Florida that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20261EF0
20243EF1
202311EF0
20223EF0
20202EF1
20191EF0
20182EF0
20173EF1
20161EF1
20141EF0
20121EF0
20111EF0
20091EF0
20083EF1
20074EF1
20061F0
20052F0
20037114F2
20022F1
20012F0

Every tornado that crossed Miami-Dade County

42 tornadoes, newest first. The 1 at the top is this year's, from the surveying office rather than SPC's published database, and its rating is marked as preliminary.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
April 7, 20264:45 PM EDTEF0Miami-Dade0.60
October 9, 20248:45 AM EDTEF0Miami-Dade9.050
October 9, 20244:27 AM EDTEF1Miami-Dade2.975
February 18, 20242:57 PM ESTUnratedMiami-Dade0.630
May 25, 20231:20 PM EDTEF0Miami-Dade0.6751$50,000
September 27, 20226:22 PM EDTEF0Miami-Dade0.150$3,000
September 27, 20226:13 PM EDTEF0Miami-Dade0.150$3,000
September 27, 20223:48 PM EDTUnratedMiami-Dade5.2100
August 19, 20202:20 PM EDTEF0Miami-Dade0.5160
May 24, 20201:30 AM EDTEF1Miami-Dade4.840
January 27, 20197:52 PM ESTEF0Miami-Dade0.4100
July 20, 20184:22 PM EDTEF0Miami-Dade0.220$5,000
May 29, 20188:00 PM EDTEF0Miami-Dade0.325
October 28, 20171:19 PM EDTEF0Miami-Dade0.550
September 9, 20177:01 PM EDTEF0Miami-Dade2.175
January 23, 20173:45 AM ESTEF1Miami-Dade2.8123
February 16, 20167:51 AM ESTEF1Miami-Dade3.8150
May 15, 20142:29 PM EDTEF0Miami-Dade0.330
June 24, 20122:05 PM EDTEF0Miami-Dade0.520$10,000
March 10, 201112:19 PM ESTEF0Miami-Dade3.320$1,000
December 18, 200911:00 AM ESTEF0Miami-Dade1.150
August 31, 20088:00 AM EDTEF0Miami-Dade1.91
August 14, 20082:30 PM EDTEF1Miami-Dade0.415$150,000
June 13, 20082:03 PM EDTEF0Miami-Dade0.010
July 21, 20073:20 PM EDTEF0Miami-Dade0.540
June 18, 20079:20 AM EDTEF0Miami-Dade0.130
June 15, 20077:33 PM EDTEF0Miami-Dade0.120
June 1, 20079:45 PM EDTEF1Miami-Dade3.975$20,000
November 14, 200612:32 PM ESTF0Miami-Dade0.020
September 10, 20059:09 PM EDTF0Miami-Dade3.050
September 10, 20058:59 PM EDTF0Miami-Dade2.050
October 29, 20032:45 AM ESTF0Miami-Dade0.315$20,000
September 5, 20031:00 PM EDTF0Miami-Dade1.020
August 12, 20037:15 AM EDTF0Miami-Dade0.215$10,000
July 12, 20037:17 AM EDTF0Miami-Dade0.110$10,000
March 27, 20035:46 PM ESTF2Miami-Dade6.0600114$8.0 million
March 27, 20035:15 PM ESTF1Broward2.0300$80,000
March 27, 20033:30 PM ESTF0Miami-Dade0.220
May 30, 200210:07 AM EDTF0Miami-Dade0.110
January 2, 20023:40 PM ESTF1Miami-Dade10.050$50,000
November 5, 200110:25 AM ESTF0Miami-Dade0.510$10,000
August 21, 20011:15 PM EDTF0Miami-Dade4.010

Nearby

Warnings in force in Miami-Dade CountyThe forecast for Miami-Dade CountyThe live radar over Miami-Dade CountyEvery county in 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.