Tornadoes · United States · Kansas

Tornadoes in Nemaha County, Kansas

44 tornadoes have crossed Nemaha County since 1950, 1 of them surveyed so far this year and still preliminary, 59th of the 105 counties in Kansas with a tornado on record, an average of one every 1.7 years. They have killed 2 people and injured 3. 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
44
Deaths
2
Injuries
3
F4 and above
0
Worst on record
EF3, May 21, 2019

The deadliest in Nemaha County

  1. EF2, Pottawatomie, Jackson and Nemaha counties, KansasJune 11, 20082 killed

The strongest

  1. EF3, Nemaha County, KansasJune 3, 2014EF3, 6.3 mi (10 km)
  2. EF3, Nemaha County, KansasMay 21, 2019EF3, 5.9 mi (9 km)
  3. EF3, Nemaha County, KansasMay 28, 2013EF3, 4.4 mi (7 km)
  4. F2, Nemaha County, KansasMay 6, 1993F2, 23.0 mi (37 km)
  5. EF2, Pottawatomie, Jackson and Nemaha counties, KansasJune 11, 2008EF2, 17.3 mi (28 km)
  6. F2, Marshall and Nemaha counties, KansasApril 28, 1963F2, 15.4 mi (25 km)
  7. F2, Nemaha County, KansasJune 13, 1998F2, 1.0 mi (2 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 22 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Nemaha County. Each year links to every tornado in Kansas that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20261EF1
20243EF1
20193EF3
201412EF3
20133EF3
20092EF1
200812EF2
20071EF0
20061F1
20051F0
20002F0
199921F1
199811F2
19972F1
19962F1
19932F2
19751F1
19641F0
19631F2
19611F0
19601F0
19521F1

Every tornado that crossed Nemaha County

44 tornadoes, newest first. The 1 at the top is this year's, from the surveying office rather than SPC's published database, and its rating is marked as preliminary.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
May 18, 20264:46 PM CDTEF1Nemaha4.2100
April 30, 20245:02 PM CDTEF1Nemaha3.275
April 27, 20242:45 PM CDTEF0Nemaha0.675
April 27, 20242:31 PM CDTEF0Nemaha1.020
May 24, 20194:19 AM CDTEF1Nemaha5.950
May 21, 20197:20 PM CDTEF3Nemaha5.9300
May 21, 20197:06 PM CDTEF0Nemaha3.050
June 3, 201410:30 PM CDTEF3Nemaha6.35002
May 28, 20134:45 PM CDTEF1Nemaha0.050
May 28, 20134:20 PM CDTEF1Nemaha0.050
May 28, 20134:16 PM CDTEF3Nemaha4.4900
July 28, 20091:20 PM CDTEF0Nemaha0.025
March 23, 20096:33 PM CDTEF1Nemaha11.050
June 11, 200811:46 PM CDTEF2Pottawatomie17.33002
May 26, 20076:50 PM CDTEF0Nemaha0.150
March 30, 20064:04 PM CSTF1Brown3.0100$350,000
April 21, 20053:48 PM CDTF0Nemaha0.125
April 25, 20002:30 PM CDTF0Nemaha0.110
April 25, 20002:22 PM CDTF0Nemaha0.110
April 5, 19992:12 PM CDTF1Nemaha10.0100$350,000
April 5, 19991:49 PM CDTF1Nemaha1.0801$100,000
June 20, 19985:47 PM CDTF0Nemaha0.230
June 20, 19985:24 PM CDTF0Nemaha0.530
June 13, 199810:22 PM CDTF2Nemaha1.0100$3.5 million
June 13, 199810:00 PM CDTF0Nemaha0.130
June 13, 19988:44 PM CDTF0Nemaha0.130
June 13, 19988:43 PM CDTF0Nemaha1.0100
June 13, 19988:40 PM CDTF0Nemaha2.050
June 13, 19988:35 PM CDTF0Nemaha1.550
June 13, 19988:30 PM CDTF0Nemaha0.130
June 13, 19988:19 PM CDTF1Nemaha4.0450
June 13, 19988:00 PM CDTF0Nemaha0.130
July 27, 19975:45 PM CDTF1Nemaha1.350$10,000
July 1, 19975:15 AM CDTF1Nemaha2.023$20,000
July 20, 19965:03 PM CDTF0Nemaha0.150
May 9, 19969:32 PM CDTF1Nemaha0.575$100,000
July 23, 19939:51 PM CDTF0Nemaha0.130
May 6, 19935:47 PM CDTF2Nemaha23.0440$500,000 to $5 million
December 13, 197511:05 PM CSTF1Nemaha16.8300$50,000 to $500,000
June 22, 19644:10 PM GMT-5F0Nemaha0.110
April 28, 19635:10 PM GMT-5F2Marshall15.4100$50 to $500
July 20, 19618:35 PM GMT-5F0Nemaha0.110
June 1, 19605:45 PM GMT-5F0Nemaha3.3100$5,000 to $50,000
November 17, 195212:01 AM GMT-6F1Nemaha0.110

Nearby

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