Tornadoes · United States · Kansas

2016 tornadoes in Kansas

102 tornadoes touched down in Kansas in 2016, 69 percent above the average of the record for the state. None of them killed anybody. 1 were rated F4 or EF4 and above.

2015 2017 The whole country in 2016

The rating scale

Tracks are drawn in the color of the rating. The Enhanced Fujita scale rates the damage rather than measuring the wind: the speeds are what that damage is taken to imply.

EF065 to 85 mph
Light damage. Surface peeled off some roofs, gutters and siding damaged, branches broken, shallow-rooted trees pushed over.
EF186 to 110 mph
Moderate damage. Roofs badly stripped, mobile homes overturned or badly damaged, exterior doors lost, windows broken.
EF2111 to 135 mph
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.
EF3136 to 165 mph
Severe damage. Whole stories of well-built houses destroyed, large buildings badly damaged, trains overturned, trees debarked, heavy cars lifted and thrown.
EF4166 to 200 mph
Devastating damage. Well-built houses leveled, structures with weak foundations moved some distance, cars thrown and large missiles generated.
EF5over 200 mph
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.
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.

Every tornado in Kansas in 2016

March 30 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
March 30	4:48 PM CDT	EF0	Cowley	0.5	50

April 15 2 tornadoes

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
April 15	8:30 PM CDT	EF1	Morton	1.8	125			$80,000
April 15	8:52 PM CDT	EF0	Morton	3.5	400

April 24 3 tornadoes

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Injuries
April 24	4:12 PM CDT	EF0	Ellsworth	3.5	50
April 24	5:19 PM CDT	EF0	Saline	2.9	50
April 24	6:50 PM CDT	EF1	Republic	12.3	150	2

April 26 4 tornadoes

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)
April 26	3:47 PM CDT	EF0	Geary	0.0	10
April 26	3:58 PM CDT	EF0	Sumner	1.1	50
April 26	5:42 PM CDT	EF0	Shawnee	0.0	20
April 26	7:47 PM CDT	EF0	Smith	0.3	100

May 8 5 tornadoes

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Damage
May 8	5:33 PM CDT	EF0	Gove	8.8	25
May 8	6:00 PM CDT	EF0	Trego	1.9	25
May 8	7:00 PM CDT	EF0	Ellis	0.9	50
May 8	7:08 PM CDT	EF2	Ellis	6.9	440	$2,000
May 8	7:27 PM CDT	EF1	Rooks	2.8	500	$15,000

May 9 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
May 9	6:40 PM CDT	EF0	Clay	0.0	25

May 21 4 tornadoes

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)
May 21	7:05 PM CDT	EF0	Wichita	0.2	25
May 21	7:13 PM CDT	EF0	Wichita	0.4	25
May 21	7:21 PM CDT	EF0	Wichita	0.1	25
May 21	8:15 PM CDT	EF0	Wichita	0.1	25

May 22 4 tornadoes

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)
May 22	7:12 PM CDT	EF1	Kearny	2.8	75
May 22	7:29 PM CDT	EF0	Kearny	4.8	75
May 22	8:10 PM CDT	EF1	Wichita	6.8	900
May 22	9:00 PM CDT	EF1	Scott	6.4	100

May 24 34 tornadoes

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Injuries
May 24	3:56 PM CDT	EF0	Scott	1.0	50
May 24	4:04 PM CDT	EF0	Scott	4.2	200
May 24	4:55 PM CDT	EF0	Scott	0.1	50
May 24	4:55 PM CDT	EF0	Scott	0.7	100
May 24	5:13 PM CDT	EF0	Lane	1.2	50
May 24	5:24 PM CDT	EF0	Lane	0.8	125
May 24	5:26 PM CDT	EF0	Lane	0.1	15
May 24	5:49 PM CDT	EF0	Lane	0.1	15
May 24	5:55 PM CDT	EF3	Ford	14.7	675	1
May 24	5:59 PM CDT	EF0	Ford	0.7	50
May 24	5:59 PM CDT	EF0	Lane	0.8	50
May 24	6:04 PM CDT	EF0	Lane	1.7	50
May 24	6:12 PM CDT	EF3	Hodgeman	11.0	300
May 24	6:14 PM CDT	EF1	Ford	1.4	50
May 24	6:20 PM CDT	EF0	Ford	0.2	50
May 24	6:22 PM CDT	EF2	Ford	5.0	550
May 24	6:28 PM CDT	EF0	Ford	2.7	90
May 24	6:32 PM CDT	EF1	Ford	2.9	50
May 24	6:43 PM CDT	EF1	Ness	2.9	50
May 24	6:52 PM CDT	EF2	Ford	16.7	1,800	1
May 24	6:55 PM CDT	EF0	Ford	0.1	50
May 24	6:56 PM CDT	EF0	Ness	6.2	150
May 24	7:03 PM CDT	EF0	Hodgeman	0.6	150
May 24	7:07 PM CDT	EF3	Ford	1.9	150
May 24	7:11 PM CDT	EF3	Hodgeman	7.7	700
May 24	7:15 PM CDT	EF1	Hodgeman	2.7	50
May 24	7:17 PM CDT	EF0	Ness	1.3	50
May 24	7:25 PM CDT	EF1	Edwards	4.3	100
May 24	7:36 PM CDT	EF0	Hodgeman	3.5	50
May 24	7:49 PM CDT	EF2	Edwards	5.4	150
May 24	7:55 PM CDT	EF0	Hodgeman	0.5	50
May 24	8:00 PM CDT	EF3	Edwards	8.3	1,100
May 24	8:25 PM CDT	EF0	Pratt	2.3	75
May 24	8:38 PM CDT	EF0	Rush	0.2	50

May 25 4 tornadoes

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Injuries
May 25	6:08 PM CDT	EF0	Ottawa	0.5	25
May 25	7:07 PM CDT	EF4	Ottawa	25.1	900	8
May 25	9:27 PM CDT	EF1	Morris	5.3	75
May 25	10:25 PM CDT	EF1	Wabaunsee	3.5	50

May 26 4 tornadoes

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)
May 26	2:03 PM CDT	EF0	Riley	0.0	25
May 26	2:20 PM CDT	EF1	Pottawatomie	5.5	100
May 26	4:00 PM CDT	EF0	Shawnee	0.0	25
May 26	4:06 PM CDT	EF0	Shawnee	1.8	50

May 27 7 tornadoes

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)
May 27	2:51 PM MDT	EF0	Greeley	0.1	25
May 27	3:12 PM MDT	EF0	Greeley	0.1	25
May 27	4:13 PM CDT	EF0	Wichita	0.9	25
May 27	5:26 PM CDT	EF0	Butler	0.1	50
May 27	5:42 PM CDT	EF0	Lane	1.9	50
May 27	6:16 PM CDT	EF0	Lane	1.3	50
May 27	6:21 PM CDT	EF0	Ness	0.8	50

July 2 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
July 2	6:26 PM CDT	EF0	Barton	0.8	50

July 7 4 tornadoes

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Damage
July 7	8:53 PM CDT	EF0	Chase	0.1	50
July 7	9:10 PM CDT	EF3	Greenwood	4.2	1,144	$100,000
July 7	9:41 PM CDT	EF2	Greenwood	3.6	150	$3.8 million
July 7	10:41 PM CDT	EF0	Wilson	0.1	50

July 15 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
July 15	3:48 PM MDT	EF1	Hamilton	7.8	400

July 28 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
July 28	8:16 PM CDT	EF0	Kingman	3.8	75

August 23 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
August 23	7:15 PM CDT	EF0	Cloud	0.1	25

August 29 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
August 29	6:12 PM CDT	EF0	Gray	0.2	50

October 4 2 tornadoes

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
October 4	5:32 PM CDT	EF0	Ottawa	0.1	40
October 4	6:27 PM CDT	EF1	Clay	4.9	75

October 6 9 tornadoes

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Damage
October 6	11:57 AM CDT	EF0	Labette	0.2	50
October 6	12:14 PM CDT	EF0	Labette	0.1	50
October 6	2:26 PM CDT	EF0	Cowley	0.0	50
October 6	2:42 PM CDT	EF1	Cowley	0.1	50	$25,000
October 6	3:08 PM CDT	EF1	Cowley	0.5	75	$20,000
October 6	4:13 PM CDT	EF2	Saline	0.2	60
October 6	4:18 PM CDT	EF1	Clay	10.0	200
October 6	4:19 PM CDT	EF3	Saline	6.5	140
October 6	4:36 PM CDT	EF1	Clay	6.4	300

November 22 1 tornado

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
November 22	3:51 PM CST	EF0	Riley	0.3	25

December 25 8 tornadoes

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Damage
December 25	8:55 AM CST	EF0	Seward	0.7	25
December 25	9:44 AM CST	EF0	Ford	5.8	40
December 25	10:30 AM CST	EF0	Kiowa	3.2	30
December 25	10:51 AM CST	EF0	Kiowa	6.3	30
December 25	10:54 AM CST	EF0	Rush	1.1	30
December 25	10:58 AM CST	EF0	Comanche	1.9	50	$85,000
December 25	11:45 AM CST	EF0	Osborne	1.9	50	$5,000
December 25	1:53 PM CST	EF0	Saline	0.1	40

Nearby

Every tornado in Kansas since 1950 Warnings in force in Kansas The live radar over Kansas

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.