Tornadoes · United States · Kansas

Tornadoes in Ottawa County, Kansas

36 tornadoes have crossed Ottawa County since 1950, 82nd of the 105 counties in Kansas with a tornado on record, an average of one every 2.1 years. They have killed 4 people and injured 68. 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
36
Deaths
4
Injuries
68
F4 and above
1
Worst on record
EF4, May 25, 2016

The deadliest in Ottawa County

  1. F3, Rice, McPherson, Saline, Ottawa and Gage counties, Kansas and NebraskaSeptember 25, 19733 killed, 42 injured
  2. EF2, Ottawa County, KansasMay 5, 20071 killed, 5 injured

The strongest

  1. EF4 Chapman tornado, KansasMay 25, 2016EF4, 25.1 mi (40 km)
  2. F3, Rice, McPherson, Saline, Ottawa and Gage counties, Kansas and NebraskaSeptember 25, 1973F3, 169.7 mi (273 km)
  3. F3, Ottawa, Cloud, Clay and Washington counties, KansasSeptember 25, 1973F3, 69.9 mi (112 km)
  4. EF3, Saline and Ottawa counties, KansasMay 1, 2018EF3, 15.8 mi (25 km)
  5. F3, Ottawa County, KansasJune 15, 1992F3, 3.0 mi (5 km)
  6. EF3, Ottawa County, KansasMay 28, 2013EF3, 2.3 mi (4 km)
  7. F2, Ottawa, Clay, Riley and Pottawatomie counties, KansasOctober 18, 1979F2, 71.4 mi (115 km)
  8. EF2, Ottawa County, KansasMay 5, 2007EF2, 11.0 mi (18 km)
  9. F2, Lincoln and Ottawa counties, KansasMay 8, 1970F2, 9.5 mi (15 km)
  10. F2, Clay and Ottawa counties, KansasMay 4, 1959F2, 3.8 mi (6 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 20 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Ottawa County. Each year links to every tornado in Kansas that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20182EF3
20171EF0
201638EF4
20152EF0
20132EF3
20121EF1
2007315EF2
20063F1
19982F0
19971F0
19952F1
19941F0
19923F3
1979111F2
19732344F3
19711F1
19703F2
19661F0
19591F2
19551F0

Every tornado that crossed Ottawa County

36 tornadoes, newest first.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
May 2, 20184:05 PM CDTEF0Ottawa0.020
May 1, 20187:41 PM CDTEF3Saline15.8880$100,000
April 15, 20177:25 PM CDTEF0Ottawa1.725
October 4, 20165:32 PM CDTEF0Ottawa0.140
May 25, 20167:07 PM CDTEF4Chapman tornado25.19008
May 25, 20166:08 PM CDTEF0Ottawa0.525
May 6, 20158:55 PM CDTEF0Ottawa0.350
May 6, 20158:38 PM CDTEF0Ottawa0.050
May 28, 20135:45 PM CDTEF3Ottawa2.31,000
May 28, 20135:33 PM CDTEF0Ottawa0.025
April 14, 20126:55 PM CDTEF1Saline15.8100$10,000
May 5, 200712:01 AM CDTEF1Ottawa10.1200
May 5, 200711:39 PM CDTEF2Ottawa11.010015
May 5, 200711:32 PM CDTEF0Ottawa0.350
September 21, 20064:55 PM CDTF0Ottawa0.130
September 21, 20064:30 PM CDTF0Ottawa0.130
April 6, 20063:53 PM CDTF1Saline2.6200$70,000
June 8, 19985:23 PM CDTF0Ottawa0.530
June 8, 19984:47 PM CDTF0Ottawa2.030
May 7, 19975:06 PM CDTF0Ottawa5.023$30,000
July 3, 199511:15 PM CDTF1Ottawa0.373$50,000 to $500,000
May 12, 19959:01 PM CDTF0Ottawa3.080
July 1, 19948:55 PM CDTF0Ottawa2.550$500 to $5,000
July 9, 19926:25 PM CDTF1Ottawa1.073$5,000 to $50,000
June 15, 19929:52 PM CDTF3Ottawa3.0800$50,000 to $500,000
June 15, 19929:35 PM CDTF1Ottawa1.050$5,000 to $50,000
October 18, 19794:17 PM CDTF2Ottawa71.440011$500,000 to $5 million
September 25, 19735:20 PM CDTF3Ottawa69.9672$5 million to $50 million
September 25, 19734:05 PM CDTF3Rice to NE169.7100342$5 million to $50 million
June 9, 19719:30 PM CDTF1Ottawa0.2200
May 11, 19707:30 PM CDTF1Saline0.110
May 8, 19708:36 PM CDTF2Lincoln9.5100$5,000 to $50,000
March 2, 19706:15 PM CSTF0Lincoln25.810
September 2, 19665:30 PM GMT-5F0Ottawa1.017
May 4, 19596:49 PM GMT-5F2Clay3.8100$50,000 to $500,000
June 4, 19558:35 PM GMT-5F0Ottawa0.110

Nearby

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