Tornadoes · United States · Indiana

Tornadoes in Johnson County, Indiana

25 tornadoes have crossed Johnson County since 1950, 1 of them surveyed so far this year and still preliminary, 41st of the 92 counties in Indiana with a tornado on record, an average of one every 3.0 years. They have killed 2 people and injured 185. 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
25
Deaths
2
Injuries
185
F4 and above
0
Worst on record
F3, October 11, 1954

The deadliest in Johnson County

  1. F3, Johnson County, IndianaOctober 11, 19542 killed

The strongest

  1. F3, Monroe, Morgan, Johnson and Marion counties, IndianaSeptember 20, 2002F3, 112.0 mi (180 km)
  2. F3, Morgan, Johnson, Marion and Shelby counties, IndianaMarch 10, 1986F3, 35.0 mi (56 km)
  3. F3, Johnson County, IndianaJuly 30, 1992F3, 7.0 mi (11 km)
  4. EF3 Whiteland tornado, IndianaMarch 31, 2023EF3, 5.5 mi (9 km)
  5. F3, Johnson County, IndianaOctober 11, 1954F3, 4.7 mi (8 km)
  6. F2, Monroe and Johnson counties, IndianaMay 27, 1973F2, 34.3 mi (55 km)
  7. F2, Johnson, Shelby and Rush counties, IndianaMay 10, 1969F2, 33.2 mi (53 km)
  8. F2, Johnson and Shelby counties, IndianaMarch 31, 2006F2, 17.0 mi (27 km)
  9. EF2, Brown, Johnson and Shelby counties, IndianaJune 3, 2008EF2, 10.6 mi (17 km)
  10. EF2, Johnson County, IndianaJune 25, 2023EF2, 5.4 mi (9 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 18 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Johnson County. Each year links to every tornado in Indiana that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20261EF1
20233EF3
20221EF0
20152EF1
20102EF0
200814EF2
200611F2
20021127F3
199615F1
19941F0
1992226F3
1986122F3
19801F1
19732F2
19691F2
19671F1
19562F2
195412F3

Every tornado that crossed Johnson County

25 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
June 11, 202611:03 PM EDTEF1Johnson11.9200
June 25, 20234:12 PM EDTEF2Johnson5.4400$1.2 million
March 31, 202311:33 PM EDTEF3Whiteland tornado5.5316$6.7 million
March 31, 202311:27 PM EDTEF0Johnson1.925$800,000
May 21, 20223:48 PM EDTEF0Johnson0.125$40,000
December 23, 20153:42 PM ESTEF1Johnson0.340$25,000
July 12, 20153:38 AM EDTEF0Johnson6.4125$75,000
July 22, 20102:25 PM EDTEF0Johnson0.825$2,000
July 20, 20107:32 PM EDTEF0Johnson2.475$20,000
June 3, 20089:24 PM EDTEF2Brown10.61504$23 million
March 31, 20067:20 PM ESTF2Johnson17.07001$8.0 million
September 20, 200212:59 PM ESTF3Monroe112.0150127$103 million
April 19, 19967:40 PM ESTF1Morgan5.01005$4.0 million
October 31, 19947:37 PM ESTF0Johnson0.150$50,000 to $500,000
July 30, 19928:10 PM ESTF3Johnson7.020025$500,000 to $5 million
July 30, 19928:00 PM ESTF0Johnson0.3501
March 10, 19861:28 PM ESTF3Morgan35.044022$500,000 to $5 million
June 19, 19803:00 PM ESTF1Johnson0.110
July 4, 197310:59 AM ESTF0Johnson0.350$5,000 to $50,000
May 27, 19736:00 PM ESTF2Monroe34.350$50,000 to $500,000
May 10, 19692:40 PM GMT-4F2Johnson33.210$50,000 to $500,000
December 11, 19676:48 PM GMT-5F1Johnson0.110$50,000 to $500,000
February 25, 19566:35 AM GMT-5F1Johnson4.710$50,000 to $500,000
February 25, 19566:25 AM GMT-5F2Johnson0.110$50,000 to $500,000
October 11, 19542:15 PM GMT-6F3Johnson4.71002$50,000 to $500,000

Nearby

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