Tornadoes · United States · Indiana

Tornadoes in Elkhart County, Indiana

36 tornadoes have crossed Elkhart County since 1950, 1 of them surveyed so far this year and still preliminary, 6th of the 92 counties in Indiana with a tornado on record, an average of one every 2.1 years. They have killed 82 people and injured 752. 3 were rated F4 or EF4 and 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
36
Deaths
82
Injuries
752
F4 and above
3
Worst on record
F4, April 11, 1965

The deadliest in Elkhart County

  1. F4 Twin Lakes tornado, IndianaApril 11, 196536 killed, 321 injured
  2. F4 Dunlap tornado, IndianaApril 11, 196531 killed, 252 injured
  3. F3, Starke, Marshall, Saint Joseph and Elkhart counties, IndianaApril 11, 196510 killed, 82 injured
  4. F4 Midway tornado, IndianaApril 11, 19655 killed, 41 injured

The strongest

  1. F4 Twin Lakes tornado, IndianaApril 11, 1965F4, 37.0 mi (60 km)
  2. F4 Midway tornado, IndianaApril 11, 1965F4, 21.6 mi (35 km)
  3. F4 Dunlap tornado, IndianaApril 11, 1965F4, 21.2 mi (34 km)
  4. F3, Saint Joseph and Elkhart counties, IndianaApril 30, 1962F3, 36.5 mi (59 km)
  5. F3, Starke, Marshall, Saint Joseph and Elkhart counties, IndianaApril 11, 1965F3, 35.6 mi (57 km)
  6. EF3, Marshall, Kosciusko and Elkhart counties, IndianaOctober 18, 2007EF3, 20.3 mi (33 km)
  7. F2, Berrien, Cass and Elkhart counties, Michigan and IndianaAugust 25, 1998F2, 26.0 mi (42 km)
  8. F2, Saint Joseph and Elkhart counties, IndianaJune 24, 1958F2, 7.3 mi (12 km)
  9. EF2, Elkhart County, IndianaJune 11, 2026EF2, 6.1 mi (10 km)
  10. F2, Elkhart County, IndianaOctober 16, 1988F2, 6.0 mi (10 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 20 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Elkhart County. Each year links to every tornado in Indiana that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
202611EF2
20241EF1
20161EF0
20111EF0
20105EF1
20071EF3
200123F2
19982F2
19922F0
19881F2
19801F2
19672F2
19661F0
1965782696F4
196412F2
1962249F3
19611F0
19581F2
19562F0
195411F1

Every tornado that crossed Elkhart County

36 tornadoes, newest first. 1 of them touched down in a neighboring state and ran in, so the record files it under that state rather than Indiana. 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
June 11, 202610:42 PM EDTEF2Elkhart6.11001
July 15, 202412:21 AM EDTEF1Elkhart1.2250$500,000
August 20, 20163:19 PM EDTEF0Elkhart0.150
September 27, 201112:56 PM EDTEF0Elkhart0.630$10,000
June 23, 20109:17 PM EDTEF0Elkhart1.950$75,000
June 23, 20109:16 PM EDTEF0Elkhart0.525$10,000
June 23, 20109:15 PM EDTEF1Elkhart3.5100$50,000
June 23, 20109:09 PM EDTEF1Elkhart1.050$500,000
June 23, 20108:59 PM EDTEF1Elkhart11.850$300,000
October 18, 200710:05 PM EDTEF3Marshall20.3880$15 million
October 24, 20014:05 PM ESTF1Saint Joseph5.450$350,000
October 24, 20014:05 PM ESTF2Saint Joseph4.61,3203$2.2 million
August 25, 19981:35 AM ESTF1Elkhart0.5100$300,000
August 25, 19981:00 AM CDTF2Berrien to IN26.0300$2.1 million
August 3, 19921:15 PM ESTF0Elkhart0.110$500 to $5,000
August 3, 19921:00 PM ESTF0Elkhart0.110
October 16, 19884:23 PM ESTF2Elkhart6.040$500,000 to $5 million
July 5, 19806:00 AM ESTF2Elkhart0.110$50,000 to $500,000
October 24, 19676:30 PM GMT-5F1Elkhart0.110$5,000 to $50,000
October 24, 19676:10 PM GMT-5F2Elkhart0.110$500 to $5,000
July 5, 19665:38 PM GMT-5F0Elkhart0.110
August 8, 19651:00 PM GMT-5F1Elkhart0.110$500 to $5,000
June 5, 19658:45 PM GMT-5F0Elkhart0.110
May 26, 19656:30 AM GMT-5F1Elkhart0.110$500 to $5,000
April 11, 19657:10 PM GMT-5F4Twin Lakes tornado37.033336321
April 11, 19656:40 PM GMT-5F4Midway tornado21.6177541$50,000 to $500,000
April 11, 19656:15 PM GMT-5F4Dunlap tornado21.21031252
April 11, 19654:45 PM GMT-6F3Starke35.62501082$5 million to $50 million
April 28, 19642:15 PM GMT-5F2Elkhart4.51002$50 to $500
July 20, 19625:10 PM GMT-5F1Elkhart1.510$50 to $500
April 30, 19623:00 PM GMT-5F3Saint Joseph36.51049$50,000 to $500,000
May 6, 19617:30 PM GMT-5F0Elkhart0.110
June 24, 19586:26 PM GMT-5F2Saint Joseph7.310$5,000 to $50,000
July 20, 195611:00 PM GMT-5F0Elkhart0.110
July 20, 19562:00 PM GMT-5F0Elkhart0.110
June 1, 19547:00 AM GMT-5F1Elkhart0.1101$500 to $5,000

Nearby

Warnings in force in Elkhart CountyThe forecast for Elkhart CountyThe live radar over Elkhart CountyEvery county in Indiana

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.