Tornadoes · United States · Iowa

Tornadoes in Cass County, Iowa

43 tornadoes have crossed Cass County since 1950, 28th of the 99 counties in Iowa with a tornado on record, an average of one every 1.8 years. They have killed 0 people and injured 13. 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
43
Deaths
0
Injuries
13
F4 and above
1
Worst on record
F4, April 8, 1999

The strongest

  1. F4, Taylor, Adams, Cass and Adair counties, IowaApril 8, 1999F4, 49.0 mi (79 km)
  2. F3, Montgomery and Cass counties, IowaMay 13, 1974F3, 10.9 mi (18 km)
  3. F3, Cass County, IowaApril 20, 1964F3, 6.1 mi (10 km)
  4. EF2, Cass and Audubon counties, IowaDecember 15, 2021EF2, 27.1 mi (44 km)
  5. F2, Cass County, IowaJune 7, 1984F2, 23.0 mi (37 km)
  6. F2, Cass and Audubon counties, IowaJune 13, 1976F2, 20.0 mi (32 km)
  7. EF2, Cass County, IowaMay 6, 2007EF2, 7.4 mi (12 km)
  8. F2, Cass and Pottawattamie counties, IowaMay 12, 1970F2, 5.9 mi (9 km)
  9. F2, Cass County, IowaMay 29, 1956F2, 3.3 mi (5 km)
  10. F2, Cass County, IowaAugust 27, 1964F2, 1.0 mi (2 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 27 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Cass County. Each year links to every tornado in Iowa that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20245EF1
20232EF0
20212EF2
20192EF1
20111EF1
20093EF0
20081EF0
20071EF2
20041F1
20001F0
199913F4
19981F1
19921F0
19902F1
19871F1
198531F1
198418F2
19812F1
19801F1
19792F1
19761F2
19741F3
19701F2
19651F2
196431F3
19631F2
19561F2

Every tornado that crossed Cass County

43 tornadoes, newest first.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
June 28, 20248:42 PM CDTUnratedCass0.320
June 28, 20248:40 PM CDTUnratedCass0.430
June 28, 20247:55 PM CDTEF0Cass2.450$1,000
June 28, 20247:44 PM CDTUnratedCass0.940
April 16, 20249:58 AM CDTEF1Cass0.930$25,000
July 12, 20236:39 AM CDTEF0Cass2.175$5,000
July 12, 20236:38 AM CDTEF0Cass1.550
December 15, 20215:00 PM CSTEF1Cass11.480$100,000
December 15, 20214:49 PM CSTEF2Cass27.1100$350,000
July 16, 20193:38 PM CDTUnratedCass1.430
May 22, 20191:04 AM CDTEF1Cass1.150$15,000
March 22, 20115:30 PM CDTEF1Cass2.8250$150,000
June 7, 20095:17 PM CDTEF0Cass0.225
March 23, 20098:23 PM CDTEF0Cass1.035$20,000
March 23, 20098:10 PM CDTEF0Cass3.550$250,000
June 5, 20088:12 PM CDTEF0Cass1.550
May 6, 20072:40 AM CDTEF2Cass7.4830$1.0 million
May 8, 20049:25 PM CDTF1Cass7.050$100,000
May 18, 200010:58 AM CDTF0Cass1.030$1,000
April 8, 19992:54 PM CDTF4Taylor49.01,0003$2.7 million
May 21, 19989:20 PM CDTF1Cass0.540$70,000
July 15, 19926:41 PM CDTF0Cass0.113$50 to $500
June 12, 19903:30 PM CDTF0Cass0.217$500 to $5,000
June 12, 19903:20 PM CDTF1Cass1.030$50,000 to $500,000
May 31, 19873:38 PM CDTF1Cass8.020$500 to $5,000
June 23, 19855:12 PM CDTF1Cass1.5501$50,000 to $500,000
June 23, 19855:06 PM CDTF0Cass0.117
June 23, 19854:49 PM CDTF0Cass0.117
June 7, 19844:43 PM CDTF2Cass23.01508$500,000 to $5 million
May 23, 19814:30 PM CDTF0Cass0.110
March 29, 19819:20 AM CSTF1Cass0.120$5,000 to $50,000
July 4, 198010:30 PM CDTF1Cass1.360$5,000 to $50,000
July 27, 19797:30 PM CDTF1Cass1.060$5,000 to $50,000
March 18, 197911:00 PM CSTF1Cass0.330$50 to $500
June 13, 19763:45 PM CDTF2Cass20.0100$5,000 to $50,000
May 13, 19745:30 PM CDTF3Montgomery10.920$50,000 to $500,000
May 12, 19708:30 PM CDTF2Cass5.9400$50,000 to $500,000
May 25, 196510:40 PM GMT-5F2Cass0.1200$5,000 to $50,000
August 27, 19649:00 PM GMT-5F2Cass1.050$5,000 to $50,000
April 20, 196410:30 PM GMT-6F3Cass6.13501$5,000 to $50,000
April 12, 19645:30 PM GMT-6F1Cass0.2200$5,000 to $50,000
April 18, 19635:00 PM GMT-6F2Cass0.1200$5,000 to $50,000
May 29, 195612:00 AM GMT-5F2Cass3.350$50 to $500

Nearby

Warnings in force in Cass CountyThe forecast for Cass CountyThe live radar over Cass CountyEvery county in Iowa

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.