Tornadoes · United States · Kansas

Tornadoes in Harper County, Kansas

67 tornadoes have crossed Harper County since 1950, 14th of the 105 counties in Kansas with a tornado on record, an average of one every 1.1 years. They have killed 0 people and injured 1. 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
67
Deaths
0
Injuries
1
F4 and above
1
Worst on record
F4, May 12, 2004

The strongest

  1. F4 Harper tornado, KansasMay 12, 2004F4, 1.2 mi (2 km)
  2. F3, Barber and Harper counties, KansasMay 5, 1964F3, 33.0 mi (53 km)
  3. EF3, Harper and Kingman counties, KansasMay 19, 2012EF3, 9.7 mi (16 km)
  4. EF3, Harper County, KansasMay 19, 2012EF3, 9.7 mi (16 km)
  5. F2, Barber and Harper counties, KansasJune 11, 1967F2, 32.2 mi (52 km)
  6. F2, Harper County, KansasMay 4, 1959F2, 11.2 mi (18 km)
  7. F2, Harper County, KansasMay 29, 2004F2, 8.0 mi (13 km)
  8. EF2, Harper County, KansasMay 25, 2024EF2, 6.7 mi (11 km)
  9. F2, Harper County, KansasMay 12, 2004F2, 2.0 mi (3 km)
  10. F2, Harper County, KansasMay 17, 1959F2, 2.0 mi (3 km)

Every year with a tornado

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

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20251EF0
20241EF2
20192Unrated
20151EF0
20141EF0
20123EF3
20092EF0
20071EF0
20051F0
2004151F4
20031F0
20022F0
20012F0
19991F0
19981F0
19973F0
19921F0
19913F0
19902F1
19861F0
19842F0
19813F1
19751F1
19741F0
19732F1
19701F0
19691F0
19671F2
19651F0
19641F3
19592F2
19571F0
19561F0
19552F1
19541F0
19531F0

Every tornado that crossed Harper County

67 tornadoes, newest first.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
June 17, 20254:25 PM CDTEF0Harper0.110
May 25, 20247:29 PM CDTEF2Harper6.7100
June 23, 20193:37 AM CDTUnratedHarper0.650
June 23, 20193:20 AM CDTUnratedHarper0.850
May 6, 20157:35 PM CDTEF0Harper0.350
December 14, 20145:38 PM CSTEF0Harper6.0100
May 19, 20126:33 PM CDTEF3Harper9.7150
May 19, 20126:16 PM CDTEF3Harper9.7100
April 14, 20128:42 PM CDTEF1Harper22.31,000
March 7, 20097:30 PM CSTEF0Harper0.575
March 7, 20097:21 PM CSTEF0Harper0.575
May 6, 200710:20 AM CDTEF0Harper1.050
March 21, 20053:50 PM CSTF0Harper0.555
May 29, 20048:19 PM CDTF1Harper2.5440$1.2 million
May 29, 20048:00 PM CDTF0Harper0.540
May 29, 20047:43 PM CDTF2Harper8.0500$180,000
May 29, 20047:25 PM CDTF1Harper6.075$50,000
May 29, 20047:17 PM CDTF0Harper0.540
May 12, 20049:45 PM CDTF1Harper3.5100$100,000
May 12, 20049:18 PM CDTF2Harper1.0100$100,000
May 12, 20049:10 PM CDTF2Harper2.0300$140,000
May 12, 20049:05 PM CDTF1Harper1.575$220,000
May 12, 20049:02 PM CDTF0Harper1.275
May 12, 20048:40 PM CDTF4Harper tornado1.25001$280,000
May 12, 20048:32 PM CDTF0Harper1.050
May 12, 20048:14 PM CDTF1Harper4.0125
May 12, 20048:02 PM CDTF2Harper1.8200$140,000
May 12, 20047:53 PM CDTF0Harper0.350
July 9, 20038:09 PM CDTF0Harper1.075$30,000
June 12, 20026:35 PM CDTF0Harper3.0110
May 8, 20024:09 PM CDTF0Harper2.0220
June 5, 20016:19 PM CDTF0Harper1.0110
June 3, 20019:07 PM CDTF0Harper1.0110
April 5, 19994:45 AM CDTF0Harper2.00$30,000
May 24, 19987:10 PM CDTF0Harper1.050$30,000
May 25, 19977:48 PM CDTF0Harper1.050
May 25, 19977:35 PM CDTF0Harper0.550
May 25, 19977:01 PM CDTF0Harper1.050
March 8, 19928:30 PM CSTF0Harper0.210
April 26, 19915:30 PM CDTF0Harper16.050$500 to $5,000
April 26, 19915:20 PM CDTF0Harper1.050$500 to $5,000
April 17, 19915:00 PM CDTF0Harper1.050under $50
May 25, 199010:45 PM CDTF1Harper10.050$500 to $5,000
March 13, 19906:35 PM CSTF1Harper12.050$50,000 to $500,000
May 10, 19863:35 PM CDTF0Harper0.250
April 26, 19847:35 PM CSTF0Harper0.110$500 to $5,000
April 26, 19847:24 PM CSTF0Harper0.110$500 to $5,000
June 30, 19816:30 PM CDTF0Harper0.517
June 30, 19816:13 PM CDTF0Harper0.517
May 17, 19814:15 PM CDTF1Harper7.2100$50,000 to $500,000
June 16, 19755:55 PM CDTF1Harper13.733under $50
April 20, 197410:30 AM CDTF0Harper0.317under $50
October 18, 19733:00 AM CDTF1Harper0.4100$50,000 to $500,000
October 11, 19732:00 AM CDTF1Harper0.5100$5,000 to $50,000
June 10, 19705:06 PM CDTF0Harper0.1100$50 to $500
May 13, 19696:30 PM GMT-5F0Harper0.110
June 11, 19678:35 PM GMT-5F2Barber32.210$50,000 to $500,000
September 5, 19657:15 PM GMT-5F0Harper0.110
May 5, 19649:45 PM GMT-5F3Barber33.0660$5,000 to $50,000
May 17, 19597:45 PM GMT-5F2Harper2.0400
May 4, 19596:45 PM GMT-5F2Harper11.250$500 to $5,000
June 30, 195712:05 AM GMT-5F0Harper0.110
April 2, 19567:10 PM GMT-6F0Harper0.110
May 27, 19559:30 PM GMT-5F1Harper0.110
April 27, 19557:00 PM GMT-5F0Harper0.110
June 14, 19548:00 PM GMT-5F0Harper4.510$500 to $5,000
March 30, 19532:30 PM GMT-6F0Harper16.110

Nearby

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