Tornadoes · United States · Kansas

Tornadoes in Lane County, Kansas

50 tornadoes have crossed Lane County since 1950, 46th 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 5. 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
50
Deaths
0
Injuries
5
F4 and above
0
Worst on record
F3, April 30, 1972

The strongest

  1. F3, Finney, Lane and Ness counties, KansasJune 16, 1962F3, 34.6 mi (56 km)
  2. F3, Lane and Ness counties, KansasApril 30, 1972F3, 13.1 mi (21 km)
  3. F3, Lane County, KansasApril 30, 1972F3, 1.0 mi (2 km)
  4. F2, Wichita, Scott and Lane counties, KansasJune 20, 1951F2, 48.6 mi (78 km)
  5. EF2, Lane and Ness counties, KansasNovember 16, 2015EF2, 16.5 mi (27 km)
  6. F2, Finney and Lane counties, KansasJune 16, 1962F2, 12.2 mi (20 km)
  7. F2, Scott and Lane counties, KansasMay 5, 1964F2, 7.6 mi (12 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 25 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Lane County. Each year links to every tornado in Kansas that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20241Unrated
20231EF0
20191EF0
20168EF0
20156EF2
20131EF0
20111EF1
20101EF0
20092EF0
200810EF1
20041F1
19911F1
19901F0
19871F0
19861F0
19761F1
197222F3
19711F1
19691F1
19651F0
19641F2
19631F0
196233F3
19531F1
19511F2

Every tornado that crossed Lane County

50 tornadoes, newest first.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
May 1, 20248:55 PM CDTUnratedLane0.950
May 4, 20239:09 PM CDTEF0Lane0.01
July 5, 20195:03 PM CDTEF0Lane0.350
May 27, 20166:16 PM CDTEF0Lane1.350
May 27, 20165:42 PM CDTEF0Lane1.950
May 24, 20166:04 PM CDTEF0Lane1.750
May 24, 20165:59 PM CDTEF0Lane0.850
May 24, 20165:49 PM CDTEF0Lane0.115
May 24, 20165:26 PM CDTEF0Lane0.115
May 24, 20165:24 PM CDTEF0Lane0.8125
May 24, 20165:13 PM CDTEF0Lane1.250
November 16, 20155:56 PM CSTEF2Lane16.51,500
May 27, 20155:45 PM CDTEF0Lane5.0125
May 27, 20154:24 PM CDTEF0Lane1.4100
May 27, 20154:21 PM CDTEF0Lane0.875
May 27, 20154:02 PM CDTEF0Lane1.5100
May 27, 20153:03 PM CDTEF0Lane0.350
August 13, 201311:15 AM CDTEF0Lane0.025
October 7, 20119:45 PM CDTEF1Scott5.8200
April 22, 20107:57 PM CDTEF0Lane3.7150
July 31, 20099:25 PM CDTEF0Lane0.740
June 20, 20097:22 PM CDTEF0Lane4.250
May 25, 20082:57 PM CDTEF1Lane3.0100
May 23, 20086:25 PM CDTEF0Hodgeman5.775
May 23, 20085:45 PM CDTEF0Lane1.350
May 23, 20085:35 PM CDTEF1Lane4.4150
May 23, 20085:22 PM CDTEF0Lane1.750
May 23, 20085:15 PM CDTEF0Lane3.275
May 23, 20085:13 PM CDTEF1Lane1.0150$65,000
May 23, 20085:01 PM CDTEF1Lane8.11,220
May 22, 20088:05 PM CDTEF0Lane1.4100
May 22, 20085:32 PM CDTEF0Lane5.4100
May 16, 20047:25 PM CDTF1Lane0.5100$10,000
May 15, 19918:09 PM CDTF1Lane1.050$5,000 to $50,000
June 15, 19905:32 PM CDTF0Lane1.0100
July 7, 19878:45 PM CDTF0Lane1.050$5,000 to $50,000
August 13, 19865:45 PM CDTF0Lane1.030$500 to $5,000
April 23, 19766:20 PM CSTF1Scott16.7440$500 to $5,000
April 30, 19726:20 PM CDTF3Lane1.0502$500 to $5,000
April 30, 19725:00 PM CDTF3Lane13.1300$5,000 to $50,000
May 17, 19718:30 PM CDTF1Lane2.0100$50 to $500
July 9, 19693:45 PM GMT-5F1Lane1.0100
May 25, 19652:45 PM GMT-5F0Lane0.110
May 5, 196411:50 PM GMT-5F2Scott7.610$5,000 to $50,000
September 2, 19634:26 PM GMT-5F0Lane0.110
June 16, 19628:10 PM GMT-5F1Finney9.950$50,000 to $500,000
June 16, 19628:05 PM GMT-5F3Finney34.6503$50,000 to $500,000
June 16, 19628:05 PM GMT-5F2Finney12.250$50 to $500
April 9, 19534:00 PM GMT-6F1Lane0.470
June 20, 195111:00 PM GMT-5F2Wichita48.610$5,000 to $50,000

Nearby

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