Tornadoes · United States · Iowa

Tornadoes in Tama County, Iowa

47 tornadoes have crossed Tama County since 1950, 22nd of the 99 counties in Iowa with a tornado on record, an average of one every 1.6 years. They have killed 1 person and injured 16. 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
47
Deaths
1
Injuries
16
F4 and above
0
Worst on record
F3, April 23, 1961

The deadliest in Tama County

  1. F3, Marshall, Tama, Benton and Linn counties, IowaApril 23, 19611 killed, 12 injured

The strongest

  1. F3, Marshall, Tama, Benton and Linn counties, IowaApril 23, 1961F3, 87.7 mi (141 km)
  2. F3, Tama, Black Hawk and Bremer counties, IowaNovember 9, 1975F3, 39.4 mi (63 km)
  3. F3, Poweshiek, Tama and Benton counties, IowaApril 19, 1966F3, 27.1 mi (44 km)
  4. F3, Tama County, IowaMay 4, 1977F3, 17.8 mi (29 km)
  5. F3, Tama County, IowaMay 31, 1971F3, 9.4 mi (15 km)
  6. EF2, Jasper, Poweshiek and Tama counties, IowaMarch 5, 2022EF2, 17.3 mi (28 km)
  7. F2, Tama County, IowaMarch 21, 1953F2, 11.7 mi (19 km)
  8. EF2, Tama County, IowaMarch 5, 2022EF2, 8.5 mi (14 km)
  9. F2, Grundy and Tama counties, IowaMay 10, 2001F2, 8.0 mi (13 km)
  10. EF2, Tama County, IowaJune 30, 2014EF2, 3.7 mi (6 km)

Every year with a tornado

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

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20222EF2
20211EF1
20201Unrated
20181EF0
20143EF2
20111EF0
20062F0
20051F0
20041F0
20031F0
20021F0
20014F2
20001F0
19982F0
19912F0
19891F0
19832F1
19795F1
19772F3
19752F3
19731F1
19711F3
196614F3
19651F2
19641F1
19611112F3
19591F2
19581F2
19561F2
19532F2

Every tornado that crossed Tama County

47 tornadoes, newest first.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
March 5, 20226:33 PM CSTEF2Tama8.5200$200,000
March 5, 20226:04 PM CSTEF2Jasper17.3500$506,000
July 14, 20217:05 PM CDTEF1Tama5.7590$25,000
August 10, 202012:01 PM CDTUnratedTama1.540
October 9, 20184:20 PM CDTEF0Poweshiek2.330
July 6, 20148:12 PM CDTEF1Tama9.7225$25,000
July 6, 20148:08 PM CDTEF0Grundy1.520
June 30, 20142:02 PM CDTEF2Tama3.7150$150,000
June 21, 20111:15 AM CDTEF0Tama0.830$75,000
July 17, 20064:50 PM CDTF0Tama0.230$1,000
April 13, 20067:10 PM CDTF0Tama0.130
August 19, 20057:53 PM CDTF0Tama0.230
May 22, 20049:15 PM CDTF0Tama0.330
May 10, 20036:27 PM CDTF0Tama0.125
June 26, 20024:14 PM CDTF0Tama0.020
May 10, 20015:43 PM CDTF0Tama0.225$1,000
May 10, 20015:40 PM CDTF0Tama0.225$1,000
May 10, 20015:15 PM CDTF2Grundy8.0875$70,000
April 8, 200110:50 PM CDTF0Tama0.120
June 13, 20007:37 PM CDTF0Tama0.220$10,000
August 8, 19983:55 PM CDTF0Tama0.130
June 27, 199812:20 AM CDTF0Tama0.130
September 12, 19914:20 PM CDTF0Tama0.213$50 to $500
June 10, 19915:40 PM CDTF0Tama0.213$500 to $5,000
September 1, 19892:30 AM CDTF0Tama0.220$5,000 to $50,000
June 29, 19832:55 PM CDTF1Tama0.220$50,000 to $500,000
June 29, 19832:45 PM CDTF1Tama0.120$50,000 to $500,000
June 5, 19797:20 PM CDTF1Tama2.077$50,000 to $500,000
June 5, 19797:15 PM CDTF1Tama2.077$50,000 to $500,000
June 5, 19797:10 PM CDTF1Tama2.077$50,000 to $500,000
June 5, 19797:05 PM CDTF1Tama2.077$50,000 to $500,000
June 5, 19797:05 PM CDTF1Tama2.077$50,000 to $500,000
May 4, 197711:15 PM CDTF1Tama1.020$5,000 to $50,000
May 4, 197710:00 PM CDTF3Tama17.830$50,000 to $500,000
November 9, 19755:45 PM CSTF1Tama0.110$50,000 to $500,000
November 9, 19754:30 PM CSTF3Tama39.410$500,000 to $5 million
September 21, 19738:30 PM CDTF1Tama2.0100$5,000 to $50,000
May 31, 19718:30 PM CDTF3Tama9.4600$50,000 to $500,000
April 19, 19666:00 PM GMT-6F3Poweshiek27.14004$50,000 to $500,000
June 27, 19659:15 PM GMT-5F2Tama0.1200$500 to $5,000
June 22, 19648:15 PM GMT-5F1Tama2.0300$50,000 to $500,000
April 23, 196110:15 AM GMT-6F3Marshall87.7800112$500,000 to $5 million
May 9, 19598:10 PM GMT-5F2Tama0.167$5,000 to $50,000
July 14, 19588:50 PM GMT-5F2Tama0.1200$5,000 to $50,000
April 26, 195610:30 PM GMT-6F2Tama2.3440$500 to $5,000
May 10, 19535:30 PM GMT-5F2Tama0.110$5,000 to $50,000
March 21, 19535:00 PM GMT-6F2Tama11.7100$5,000 to $50,000

Nearby

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