Tornadoes · United States · Kansas

Tornadoes in Clark County, Kansas

41 tornadoes have crossed Clark County since 1950, 70th of the 105 counties in Kansas with a tornado on record, an average of one every 1.9 years. They have killed 0 people and injured 0. 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
41
Deaths
0
Injuries
0
F4 and above
0
Worst on record
EF3, May 17, 2019

The strongest

  1. EF3, Meade, Clark and Ford counties, KansasMay 17, 2019EF3, 29.6 mi (48 km)
  2. EF3, Clark and Kiowa counties, KansasMay 23, 2008EF3, 20.9 mi (34 km)
  3. F2, Clark County, KansasApril 9, 1994F2, 0.8 mi (1 km)
  4. F2, Clark County, KansasJuly 28, 1972F2, 0.5 mi (1 km)
  5. F2, Clark County, KansasJune 17, 1955F2, 0.1 mi (0 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 18 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Clark County. Each year links to every tornado in Kansas that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20192EF3
20171EF1
20122EF1
20088EF3
20075EF1
20067F0
20031F0
20023F0
19991F1
19971F0
19943F2
19851F0
19731F0
19721F2
19651F0
19581F0
19561F1
19551F2

Every tornado that crossed Clark County

41 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 Kansas.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
May 17, 20198:46 PM CDTEF0Clark0.425
May 17, 20198:37 PM CDTEF3Meade29.6600$500,000
May 16, 20175:49 PM CDTEF1Clark4.050
April 30, 20125:38 PM CDTEF0Clark0.475
April 14, 20122:24 PM CDTEF1Clark6.3150
May 23, 200810:12 PM CDTEF1Clark10.0150
May 23, 20089:26 PM CDTEF0Clark4.5100
May 23, 20088:58 PM CDTEF0Harper to KS9.1125$10,000
May 23, 20087:43 PM CDTEF1Clark1.1100
May 23, 20087:42 PM CDTEF1Clark7.1600
May 23, 20087:25 PM CDTEF3Clark20.93,170
May 23, 20087:01 PM CDTEF0Clark2.5100
May 23, 20086:37 PM CDTEF0Clark2.1100
May 4, 20078:50 PM CDTEF1Clark2.375
May 4, 20078:34 PM CDTEF0Clark4.250
May 4, 20078:32 PM CDTEF0Clark6.075
April 23, 20078:10 PM CDTEF1Clark7.8150
April 23, 20078:04 PM CDTEF0Clark1.450
October 26, 20065:36 PM CDTF0Clark0.420
October 26, 20064:52 PM CDTF0Clark0.520
October 26, 20064:42 PM CDTF0Clark0.620
October 26, 20064:31 PM CDTF0Clark0.420
October 26, 20064:31 PM CDTF0Clark0.420
October 26, 20064:20 PM CDTF0Clark0.430
September 15, 20068:17 PM CDTF0Clark0.620
May 15, 200310:36 PM CDTF0Clark1.3100
August 12, 20029:07 PM CDTF0Clark0.230
August 12, 20027:36 PM CDTF0Clark0.130
May 7, 20027:00 PM CDTF0Ford4.9200
May 31, 19997:30 PM CDTF1Clark4.2150
August 20, 19972:47 PM CDTF0Clark0.450
April 9, 19945:52 PM CDTF2Clark0.8200$5,000 to $50,000
April 9, 19945:41 PM CDTF0Clark1.0100
April 9, 19945:24 PM CDTF0Clark0.5100
June 10, 19857:17 PM CDTF0Clark0.210
August 31, 19737:00 PM CDTF0Clark0.110under $50
July 28, 19724:00 AM CDTF2Clark0.550$5,000 to $50,000
May 25, 19654:25 PM GMT-5F0Clark0.5400
June 12, 19584:00 PM GMT-5F0Clark0.110
April 14, 19567:00 PM GMT-6F1Clark0.110
June 17, 19552:00 PM GMT-5F2Clark0.110

Nearby

Warnings in force in Clark CountyThe forecast for Clark CountyThe live radar over Clark CountyEvery county in 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.