Tornadoes · United States · Kansas

Tornadoes in Labette County, Kansas

43 tornadoes have crossed Labette County since 1950, 64th of the 105 counties in Kansas with a tornado on record, an average of one every 1.8 years. They have killed 2 people and injured 23. 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
43
Deaths
2
Injuries
23
F4 and above
1
Worst on record
F4, September 27, 1959

The deadliest in Labette County

The strongest

Every year with a tornado

The 21 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Labette County. Each year links to every tornado in Kansas that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20191Unrated
20162EF0
20155EF0
20111EF0
20091EF0
20082EF0
2006112F1
20052F0
200371F1
20011F0
20005F3
19961F0
19902F1
19851F0
1982219F3
19661F1
19641F1
19631F1
1959211F4
19581F3
19543F2

Every tornado that crossed Labette County

43 tornadoes, newest first. 2 of them touched down in a neighboring state and ran in, so the record files them under that state rather than Kansas.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
April 30, 20191:18 PM CDTUnratedLabette0.250
October 6, 201612:14 PM CDTEF0Labette0.150
October 6, 201611:57 AM CDTEF0Labette0.250
June 12, 20153:25 PM CDTEF0Labette1.050
April 3, 20152:17 AM CDTEF0Labette0.050
April 2, 20158:10 PM CDTEF0Labette0.050$5,000
April 2, 20157:40 PM CDTEF0Labette0.975
April 2, 20157:24 PM CDTEF0Labette0.050
May 22, 20114:10 PM CDTEF0Labette0.350
May 13, 20099:49 PM CDTEF0Labette0.350
May 10, 20085:19 PM CDTEF0Labette1.060
May 10, 20085:15 PM CDTEF0Labette0.350
April 6, 20067:05 PM CDTF1Craig to KS11.54012$240,000
June 30, 20058:44 PM CDTF0Labette1.0110$10,000
April 21, 20056:34 PM CDTF0Labette0.555
May 8, 20038:52 PM CDTF0Labette0.555
May 4, 20035:40 PM CDTF0Labette0.555
May 4, 20035:25 PM CDTF1Labette12.02201$2.5 million
May 4, 20034:30 PM CDTF0Labette0.555
May 4, 20034:18 PM CDTF0Labette0.555
April 19, 20038:00 PM CDTF0Labette0.5110
March 12, 20038:54 PM CSTF1Labette3.055$30,000
May 29, 20018:50 PM CDTF0Labette1.0110
June 4, 20007:12 PM CDTF0Labette1.0110
June 4, 20007:10 PM CDTF0Labette1.0110
June 4, 20006:59 PM CDTF0Labette1.0110
June 4, 20006:59 PM CDTF0Labette1.0110
April 19, 20008:30 PM CDTF3Montgomery34.0290$71 million
May 26, 19968:36 PM CDTF0Labette6.075
May 20, 19909:00 PM CDTF0Labette0.327
March 14, 199012:45 AM CSTF1Labette2.050$50,000 to $500,000
March 3, 19859:45 PM CSTF0Labette0.110$500 to $5,000
March 15, 19827:40 PM CSTF3Labette30.016716$500,000 to $5 million
March 15, 19827:10 PM CSTF2Crawford17.06003$500,000 to $5 million
May 11, 19666:00 PM GMT-5F1Labette0.110$5,000 to $50,000
April 12, 19645:00 PM GMT-6F1Labette3.6250$5,000 to $50,000
September 11, 19639:00 AM GMT-5F1Labette0.110$50 to $500
September 27, 19597:00 PM GMT-5F2Labette7.2440
September 27, 19597:00 PM GMT-5F4Craig to KS20.444011$5,000 to $50,000
May 31, 19589:25 PM GMT-5F3Labette0.3100$5,000 to $50,000
August 7, 19546:30 PM GMT-5F0Labette1.9400
July 22, 19549:00 PM GMT-5F2Labette11.2440
May 1, 19547:30 PM GMT-5F2Labette5.110

Nearby

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