Tornadoes · United States · Iowa

Tornadoes in Plymouth County, Iowa

54 tornadoes have crossed Plymouth County since 1950, 1 of them surveyed so far this year and still preliminary, 12th of the 99 counties in Iowa with a tornado on record, an average of one every 1.4 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
54
Deaths
0
Injuries
13
F4 and above
1
Worst on record
EF4, October 4, 2013

The strongest

  1. EF4 Pierson tornado, Iowa and South DakotaOctober 4, 2013EF4, 24.7 mi (40 km)
  2. F3, Plymouth, Woodbury, Cherokee and O'Brien counties, IowaMay 5, 1964F3, 67.0 mi (108 km)
  3. F3, Plymouth County, IowaJune 7, 1965F3, 11.5 mi (19 km)
  4. F3, Plymouth County, IowaMay 8, 1964F3, 9.3 mi (15 km)
  5. F3, Plymouth County, IowaJune 14, 1967F3, 6.2 mi (10 km)
  6. F2, Plymouth County, IowaJuly 5, 1978F2, 20.8 mi (33 km)
  7. F2, Plymouth County, IowaJune 12, 1994F2, 17.5 mi (28 km)
  8. F2, Plymouth County, IowaJune 7, 1953F2, 11.3 mi (18 km)
  9. F2, Cherokee and Plymouth counties, IowaAugust 7, 1991F2, 8.0 mi (13 km)
  10. F2, Plymouth County, IowaSeptember 7, 1964F2, 7.9 mi (13 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 36 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Plymouth County. Each year links to every tornado in Iowa that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20261Unrated
20243EF1
20211EF1
20161EF0
20151EF0
20134EF4
20111EF0
20051F0
20011F0
19991F0
19981F0
19973F0
19961F0
19942F2
19912F2
19891F0
19861F0
19851F1
19841F1
19802F1
19791F1
19781F2
19772F1
19751F1
19731F1
19721F0
19701F2
19681F1
196723F3
19652F3
196457F3
196322F2
195811F1
19541F2
19531F2
19511F1

Every tornado that crossed Plymouth County

54 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 Iowa. 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
May 17, 20268:07 PM CDTUnratedPlymouth0.70
April 16, 20242:00 PM CDTEF1Plymouth1.325
April 16, 20241:48 PM CDTUnratedPlymouth0.010
April 16, 20241:46 PM CDTUnratedPlymouth0.010
December 15, 20214:39 PM CSTEF1Plymouth3.775$50,000
May 28, 20165:52 PM CDTEF0Plymouth0.125
October 23, 20154:10 PM CDTEF0Plymouth0.150$1,000
October 4, 20136:55 PM CDTEF0Plymouth1.350
October 4, 20136:50 PM CDTEF1Plymouth1.1100
October 4, 20136:35 PM CDTEF1Union to IA6.5800$200,000
October 4, 20136:35 PM CDTEF4Pierson tornado24.72,600$2.0 million
June 20, 20119:40 PM CDTEF0Plymouth0.9100$20,000
June 4, 20059:50 PM CDTF0Plymouth1.050
August 17, 20015:34 PM CDTF0Plymouth0.15
June 5, 19995:15 PM CDTF0Plymouth0.150
June 23, 19988:30 PM CDTF0Plymouth0.150
July 27, 199711:36 AM CDTF0Plymouth0.550
July 7, 19977:19 PM CDTF0Plymouth1.050
July 7, 19976:40 PM CDTF0Plymouth0.150
July 1, 19965:40 PM CDTF0Plymouth0.150
June 20, 19945:05 PM CDTF0Plymouth0.123$50 to $500
June 12, 19948:30 PM CDTF2Plymouth17.5370$500,000 to $5 million
August 7, 19915:55 PM CDTF2Cherokee8.080$5,000 to $50,000
August 7, 19915:14 PM CDTF2Plymouth1.563$50,000 to $500,000
April 27, 19897:45 PM CDTF0Plymouth0.430under $50
May 8, 19865:05 PM CDTF0Plymouth0.110$5,000 to $50,000
August 4, 19856:30 PM CDTF1Plymouth2.010$5,000 to $50,000
June 7, 19843:45 PM CDTF1Woodbury7.0100$50,000 to $500,000
July 19, 19807:00 PM CDTF1Plymouth0.440$50,000 to $500,000
June 6, 198012:05 AM CDTF1Plymouth4.140$500,000 to $5 million
May 26, 19791:15 PM CDTF1Plymouth3.620$50 to $500
July 5, 19785:20 PM CDTF2Plymouth20.830$500,000 to $5 million
July 10, 197712:15 AM CDTF1Plymouth0.510$50 to $500
July 7, 197711:10 PM CDTF1Plymouth1.010$50 to $500
June 3, 197512:10 AM CDTF1Plymouth0.110$500 to $5,000
October 9, 197310:00 PM CDTF1Plymouth4.7200$5,000 to $50,000
September 6, 19726:00 PM CDTF0Plymouth0.117
July 14, 19705:02 PM CDTF2Plymouth1.0100$5,000 to $50,000
June 22, 196811:32 PM GMT-5F1Plymouth0.550
June 14, 196710:45 PM GMT-5F2Plymouth1.0100$5,000 to $50,000
June 14, 196710:10 PM GMT-5F3Plymouth6.25003$50,000 to $500,000
June 7, 19658:00 PM GMT-5F3Plymouth11.5100$5,000 to $50,000
May 15, 196512:15 PM GMT-5F0Plymouth0.110
September 7, 19646:30 PM GMT-5F2Plymouth7.9200$50,000 to $500,000
September 7, 19646:00 PM GMT-5F2Plymouth2.0250$50,000 to $500,000
June 13, 19645:00 PM GMT-5F0Plymouth0.5100$5,000 to $50,000
May 8, 196412:45 PM GMT-5F3Plymouth9.3200$5,000 to $50,000
May 5, 19647:00 PM GMT-5F3Plymouth67.03007$500,000 to $5 million
June 9, 19635:45 PM GMT-5F2Plymouth2.0102$5,000 to $50,000
March 16, 196312:15 PM GMT-6F2Plymouth2.0200$5,000 to $50,000
April 5, 195810:00 AM GMT-6F1Woodbury37.01001$5,000 to $50,000
May 27, 19549:00 PM GMT-5F2Plymouth2.3200$5,000 to $50,000
June 7, 19537:15 PM GMT-5F2Plymouth11.3200
August 26, 195112:59 AM GMT-5F1Plymouth5.6140

Nearby

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