Tornadoes · United States · Kansas

Tornadoes in Ellsworth County, Kansas

50 tornadoes have crossed Ellsworth County since 1950, 45th of the 105 counties in Kansas with a tornado on record, an average of one every 1.5 years. They have killed 0 people and injured 7. 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
50
Deaths
0
Injuries
7
F4 and above
1
Worst on record
EF4, April 14, 2012

The strongest

  1. EF4, Rice, Ellsworth, McPherson and Saline counties, KansasApril 14, 2012EF4, 50.3 mi (81 km)
  2. F3, Barton, Rice and Ellsworth counties, KansasMay 24, 1990F3, 26.0 mi (42 km)
  3. F3, Barton, Rice and Ellsworth counties, KansasApril 2, 1956F3, 20.1 mi (32 km)
  4. F3, Ellsworth County, KansasApril 2, 1956F3, 5.4 mi (9 km)
  5. F2, Ellsworth County, KansasApril 30, 1972F2, 1.0 mi (2 km)
  6. F2, Ellsworth County, KansasApril 25, 1954F2, 0.1 mi (0 km)

Every year with a tornado

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

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20251Unrated
20241EF0
20181EF0
20161EF0
20122EF4
20111EF0
20084EF1
20073EF1
20061F0
20023F0
20012F0
20001F1
19992F0
19982F1
19973F0
19941F0
19931F0
199016F3
19851F1
19811F1
19802F1
19752F1
19721F2
19702F1
19651F0
19641F0
19611F1
19571F0
195631F3
19543F2

Every tornado that crossed Ellsworth County

50 tornadoes, newest first.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
April 1, 20259:53 PM CDTUnratedEllsworth0.020
May 19, 20244:20 PM CDTEF0Ellsworth0.210
May 1, 20187:08 PM CDTEF0Ellsworth0.350
April 24, 20164:12 PM CDTEF0Ellsworth3.550
April 14, 201211:16 PM CDTEF1Ellsworth7.6100
April 14, 20125:33 PM CDTEF4Rice50.3400
May 24, 20117:50 PM CDTEF0Ellsworth0.550
June 11, 20088:15 PM CDTEF0Ellsworth0.850$10,000
June 11, 20087:11 PM CDTEF0Ellsworth0.750
June 11, 20086:45 PM CDTEF1Barton10.0100$65,000
May 25, 20086:55 PM CDTEF0Ellsworth0.550
May 5, 20079:42 PM CDTEF1Rice4.575$35,000
May 5, 20077:55 PM CDTEF0Ellsworth0.340
May 5, 20072:06 AM CDTEF0Ellsworth0.540$13,000
August 25, 20067:28 PM CDTF0Ellsworth0.530
June 11, 20025:31 PM CDTF0Ellsworth8.0110
May 11, 20024:34 PM CDTF0Ellsworth1.0110
May 5, 20027:40 PM CDTF0Ellsworth0.5110
April 21, 200110:44 PM CDTF0Ellsworth2.0220$10,000
April 21, 200110:15 PM CDTF0Ellsworth0.555
June 13, 20005:10 PM CDTF1Ellsworth1.0110$10,000
May 31, 19999:40 PM CDTF0Ellsworth2.00$10,000
May 4, 19992:15 PM CDTF0Ellsworth1.00
May 11, 19988:14 PM CDTF1Ellsworth5.0200$10,000
May 11, 19987:11 PM CDTF0Ellsworth1.0100
May 25, 19976:30 PM CDTF0Ellsworth0.550
May 25, 19975:36 PM CDTF0Ellsworth1.0100
May 25, 19975:35 PM CDTF0Ellsworth0.550
June 5, 19946:20 PM CDTF0Ellsworth1.0100
July 4, 19937:47 PM CDTF0Ellsworth0.123$50 to $500
May 24, 19905:10 PM CDTF3Barton26.01,3206$50,000 to $500,000
August 6, 19855:48 PM CDTF1Ellsworth6.0400$50,000 to $500,000
July 3, 19811:42 PM CDTF1Ellsworth0.517
May 29, 19808:35 PM CDTF1Ellsworth0.110$500 to $5,000
May 29, 19808:16 PM CDTF0Ellsworth0.110
September 10, 19758:10 PM CDTF1Ellsworth7.833$50,000 to $500,000
September 10, 19756:45 PM CDTF1Ellsworth0.367$5,000 to $50,000
April 30, 19729:00 PM CDTF2Ellsworth1.030$5,000 to $50,000
May 8, 197010:30 PM CDTF1Ellsworth1.010$5,000 to $50,000
May 8, 19707:30 PM CDTF1Ellsworth0.110
May 25, 19658:00 PM GMT-5F0Ellsworth0.8100
April 13, 19643:10 PM GMT-6F0Ellsworth0.110
July 15, 19616:15 PM GMT-5F1Ellsworth2.710$50 to $500
May 29, 19577:00 PM GMT-5F0Ellsworth0.110
October 29, 19567:00 PM GMT-6F1Ellsworth0.110
April 2, 19568:30 PM GMT-6F3Barton20.13501$5,000 to $50,000
April 2, 19566:45 PM GMT-6F3Ellsworth5.410$5,000 to $50,000
June 15, 19541:30 PM GMT-5F0Ellsworth0.110
June 15, 19541:30 PM GMT-5F0Ellsworth0.110
April 25, 195412:40 AM GMT-6F2Ellsworth0.110

Nearby

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