Tornadoes · United States · Iowa

Tornadoes in Lyon County, Iowa

45 tornadoes have crossed Lyon County since 1950, 26th of the 99 counties in Iowa with a tornado on record, an average of one every 1.7 years. They have killed 1 person and injured 22. 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
45
Deaths
1
Injuries
22
F4 and above
1
Worst on record
EF4, June 25, 2010

The deadliest in Lyon County

  1. F2, Lyon and Nobles counties, Iowa and MinnesotaApril 26, 19861 killed, 4 injured

The strongest

  1. EF4 Sibley–Little Rock tornado, IowaJune 25, 2010EF4, 13.7 mi (22 km)
  2. F2, Lyon and Nobles counties, Iowa and MinnesotaApril 26, 1986F2, 18.5 mi (30 km)
  3. F2, Lyon County, IowaJuly 6, 1978F2, 14.2 mi (23 km)
  4. EF2, Sioux and Lyon counties, IowaMay 1, 2008EF2, 12.9 mi (21 km)
  5. F2, Lyon and Minnehaha counties, Iowa and South DakotaMay 7, 1993F2, 11.5 mi (19 km)
  6. F2, Osceola and Lyon counties, IowaJune 7, 1993F2, 10.0 mi (16 km)
  7. F2, Lyon County, IowaApril 26, 1986F2, 9.5 mi (15 km)
  8. F2, Lyon County, IowaJune 19, 1954F2, 2.3 mi (4 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 30 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Lyon County. Each year links to every tornado in Iowa that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20252EF1
20241EF1
20222EF1
20191EF1
20142EF0
2010213EF4
20091EF0
20084EF2
20042F1
20031F0
20011F0
20001F1
19981F0
19972F0
19951F0
19942F1
199335F2
19891F0
19871F0
1986214F2
19852F1
19801F0
19782F2
19751F1
19731F1
19631F1
19601F1
19541F2
19521F1
19511F1

Every tornado that crossed Lyon County

45 tornadoes, newest first.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
July 28, 20259:34 PM CDTUnratedLyon0.250
July 28, 20259:29 PM CDTEF1Lyon2.1250
April 16, 20242:58 PM CDTEF1Lyon1.075
May 30, 20222:21 AM CDTEF0Lyon0.560
May 30, 20222:17 AM CDTEF1Lyon1.9100
August 17, 201910:34 PM CDTEF1Lyon7.075$200,000
June 17, 201411:27 PM CDTEF0Lyon0.350
June 16, 20143:43 PM CDTEF0Lyon0.250
June 25, 20109:55 PM CDTEF1Lyon1.2100$20,000
June 25, 20109:53 PM CDTEF4Sibley–Little Rock tornado13.780013$3.5 million
June 21, 20095:29 PM CDTEF0Lyon0.450
June 11, 20085:25 PM CDTEF0Lyon0.850
May 1, 20087:44 PM CDTEF0Lyon0.150
May 1, 20087:30 PM CDTEF0Lyon0.150
May 1, 20086:59 PM CDTEF2Sioux12.9400$510,000
May 9, 20048:15 PM CDTF0Lyon0.550$1,000
April 18, 20044:58 PM CDTF1Lyon4.0100$50,000
June 24, 200311:12 PM CDTF0Lyon0.150
June 12, 20019:12 PM CDTF0Lyon0.150
July 9, 20009:15 PM CDTF1Lyon3.0100$60,000
June 27, 19984:30 PM CDTF0Lyon0.150
July 7, 19975:25 PM CDTF0Lyon0.150
July 7, 19974:55 PM CDTF0Lyon0.150
August 4, 19956:35 PM CDTF0Lyon0.110
June 12, 19946:00 PM CDTF0Lyon0.120$50 to $500
April 25, 19947:01 PM CDTF1Lyon7.040$50,000 to $500,000
July 1, 19937:05 PM CDTF1Lyon0.120$50 to $500
June 7, 19936:41 PM CDTF2Osceola10.01275$5,000 to $50,000
May 7, 19933:57 PM CDTF2Lyon to SD11.5100$50,000 to $500,000
May 23, 19898:25 PM CDTF0Lyon0.113$500 to $5,000
June 7, 19876:18 PM CDTF0Lyon0.113$50 to $500
April 26, 19866:42 PM CSTF2Lyon9.570$500,000 to $5 million
April 26, 19866:30 PM CSTF2Lyon to MN18.512014$500,000 to $5 million
April 21, 19856:14 PM CSTF0Lyon0.110$50,000 to $500,000
April 21, 19856:00 PM CSTF1Lyon1.240$50,000 to $500,000
May 29, 19805:15 PM CDTF0Lyon0.360
July 6, 19788:05 PM CDTF2Lyon14.2200$500,000 to $5 million
June 19, 19785:50 PM CDTF0Lyon0.110
May 20, 19756:45 PM CDTF1Lyon0.110$500 to $5,000
April 19, 19734:00 PM CSTF1Lyon1.050$5,000 to $50,000
July 16, 19639:15 PM GMT-5F1Lyon2.3200$5,000 to $50,000
July 25, 196012:54 AM GMT-5F1Lyon2.0150$50,000 to $500,000
June 19, 195410:00 PM GMT-5F2Lyon2.3880$5,000 to $50,000
July 2, 19526:50 PM GMT-5F1Lyon0.110
June 19, 19515:00 PM GMT-5F1Lyon0.517

Nearby

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