Tornadoes · United States · Indiana

Tornadoes in Jay County, Indiana

20 tornadoes have crossed Jay County since 1950, 3 of them surveyed so far this year and still preliminary, 57th of the 92 counties in Indiana with a tornado on record, an average of one every 3.8 years. They have killed 1 person and injured 15. 1 was 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
20
Deaths
1
Injuries
15
F4 and above
1
Worst on record
F4, April 3, 1974

The deadliest in Jay County

  1. F4, Henry, Delaware, Randolph and Jay counties, IndianaApril 3, 19741 killed, 12 injured

The strongest

  1. F4, Henry, Delaware, Randolph and Jay counties, IndianaApril 3, 1974F4, 18.0 mi (29 km)
  2. EF2, Blackford, Delaware, Jay and Mercer counties, Indiana and OhioNovember 5, 2017EF2, 38.7 mi (62 km)
  3. F2, Jay County, IndianaApril 8, 1980F2, 7.9 mi (13 km)
  4. EF2, Jay County, IndianaJune 18, 2021EF2, 5.4 mi (9 km)
  5. F2, Jay County, IndianaJuly 28, 1961F2, 0.1 mi (0 km)
  6. F2, Jay County, IndianaApril 5, 1957F2, 0.1 mi (0 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 15 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Jay County. Each year links to every tornado in Indiana that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20263EF0
20242EF1
20232EF0
20211EF2
201711EF2
20111EF1
20031F1
19981F1
19942F1
19921F1
19801F2
19741112F4
19731F1
196112F2
19571F2

Every tornado that crossed Jay County

20 tornadoes, newest first. The 3 at the top are this year's, from the surveying office rather than SPC's published database, and their ratings are marked as preliminary.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
March 11, 20269:16 AM EDTEF0Jay3.9200
June 11, 202611:00 PM EDTEF0Jay1.175
August 11, 20267:58 AM EDTEF0Jay0.615
September 22, 20247:45 PM EDTEF1Jay2.775$500,000
September 22, 20247:42 PM EDTUnratedJay0.250
March 31, 202312:20 AM EDTEF0Jay2.4100
March 31, 202312:19 AM EDTEF0Jay1.5175
June 18, 20213:50 PM EDTEF2Jay5.4500
November 5, 20171:24 PM ESTEF2Blackford to OH38.76001$11 million
April 19, 201111:16 PM EDTEF1Jay6.950
August 1, 20036:50 PM ESTF1Delaware1.250$20,000
June 11, 19989:40 PM ESTF1Jay2.050$300,000
June 23, 19942:30 PM ESTF0Jay0.130
June 23, 19941:55 PM ESTF1Jay0.5110$50,000 to $500,000
November 22, 19926:00 PM ESTF1Jay0.210$5,000 to $50,000
April 8, 19802:50 PM ESTF2Jay7.987$50,000 to $500,000
April 3, 19743:35 PM ESTF4Henry18.01,400112$5 million to $50 million
June 3, 19738:57 PM ESTF1Jay0.110$5,000 to $50,000
July 28, 19617:30 PM GMT-5F2Jay0.1102$5,000 to $50,000
April 5, 19572:15 PM GMT-5F2Jay0.110$500 to $5,000

Nearby

Warnings in force in Jay CountyThe forecast for Jay CountyThe live radar over Jay 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.