Tornadoes · United States · Kansas

Tornadoes in Rawlins County, Kansas

54 tornadoes have crossed Rawlins County since 1950, 33rd of the 105 counties in Kansas with a tornado on record, an average of one every 1.4 years. They have killed 0 people and injured 4. 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
54
Deaths
0
Injuries
4
F4 and above
0
Worst on record
F3, October 17, 1971

The strongest

  1. F3, Rawlins County, KansasOctober 17, 1971F3, 3.8 mi (6 km)
  2. F3, Rawlins County, KansasMay 20, 1951F3, 0.1 mi (0 km)
  3. F3, Rawlins County, KansasMay 14, 1951F3, 0.1 mi (0 km)
  4. F2, Rawlins County, KansasApril 27, 1958F2, 4.7 mi (8 km)
  5. F2, Rawlins County, KansasAugust 24, 1951F2, 3.3 mi (5 km)
  6. F2, Rawlins County, KansasJuly 5, 1956F2, 0.1 mi (0 km)
  7. F2, Rawlins County, KansasJuly 5, 1956F2, 0.1 mi (0 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 31 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Rawlins County. Each year links to every tornado in Kansas that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20241Unrated
20232Unrated
20213EF1
20191Unrated
20141EF0
20073EF1
20051F0
20031F1
20024F1
20012F0
20001F0
19991F1
19981F0
19965F1
19944F1
19932F1
19922F0
19911F0
19901F0
19841F1
19821F0
19712F3
19681F0
19651F1
19622F1
19581F2
19571F0
19562F2
19531F1
195134F3
19501F1

Every tornado that crossed Rawlins County

54 tornadoes, newest first. 1 of them touched down in a neighboring state and ran in, so the record files it under that state rather than Kansas.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
July 6, 20242:02 PM CDTUnratedRawlins3.375
May 11, 20231:39 PM CDTUnratedRawlins1.875
May 11, 20231:35 PM CDTUnratedRawlins1.2100
May 26, 20215:45 PM CDTUnratedRawlins2.4100
May 26, 20215:29 PM CDTEF1Rawlins3.5450
May 26, 20215:19 PM CDTUnratedRawlins1.9200
August 11, 20198:57 PM CDTUnratedRawlins0.950
April 20, 20145:47 PM CDTEF0Rawlins0.110
April 23, 200711:44 PM CDTEF1Rawlins6.075$26,000
April 23, 200711:15 PM CDTEF1Rawlins12.5100$305,000
April 23, 200711:00 PM CDTEF1Rawlins2.550
May 28, 20053:18 PM CDTF0Rawlins0.325
June 28, 200311:15 PM CDTF1Rawlins0.325
June 19, 20026:45 PM CDTF0Rawlins0.225
June 19, 20026:45 PM CDTF1Rawlins0.225$10,000
June 19, 20026:22 PM CDTF0Rawlins5.0100$10,000
June 19, 20026:10 PM CDTF0Rawlins0.225
July 27, 200112:17 AM CDTF0Rawlins0.550
July 27, 20016:40 PM CDTF0Rawlins0.250
October 31, 20006:15 PM CSTF0Rawlins0.770
July 2, 19998:10 PM CDTF1Rawlins0.7250
May 22, 19988:56 PM CDTF0Rawlins0.230
August 6, 19966:28 PM CDTF1Rawlins3.0100$10,000
July 23, 19962:57 PM CDTF0Rawlins0.220
May 22, 19969:11 PM CDTF0Rawlins1.030
May 22, 19968:55 PM CDTF0Rawlins0.110
May 22, 19968:04 PM CDTF0Rawlins2.0100
June 11, 19948:05 PM CDTF0Rawlins0.250
June 10, 19945:45 PM CDTF0Rawlins1.0100
June 8, 199410:10 PM CDTF0Rawlins1.050
June 8, 19949:36 PM CDTF1Rawlins3.0200
July 23, 199312:20 AM CDTF1Rawlins0.320$5,000 to $50,000
July 1, 19936:42 PM CDTF1Rawlins3.020
August 13, 19929:12 PM CDTF0Rawlins0.110
August 13, 19929:05 PM CDTF0Rawlins0.110
June 7, 19916:10 PM CDTF0Rawlins0.523$500 to $5,000
May 18, 19906:30 PM CDTF0Rawlins3.010$500 to $5,000
June 11, 198411:00 PM CDTF1Rawlins25.0200$50,000 to $500,000
June 24, 19824:00 PM CDTF0Rawlins0.110under $50
October 17, 197110:07 PM CDTF3Rawlins3.8440$5,000 to $50,000
July 3, 19715:45 PM CDTF1Rawlins2.010
June 17, 19687:30 PM GMT-5F0Rawlins0.110
June 3, 19656:50 PM GMT-5F1Rawlins0.1100$500 to $5,000
July 28, 19626:30 PM GMT-5F1Rawlins0.110$500 to $5,000
May 28, 19624:30 PM GMT-5F1Rawlins1.010$500 to $5,000
April 27, 19586:30 PM GMT-5F2Rawlins4.7200$5,000 to $50,000
May 20, 195712:00 PM GMT-5F0Kit Carson to KS70.110$50 to $500
July 5, 19564:30 PM GMT-5F2Rawlins0.110$5,000 to $50,000
July 5, 19564:30 PM GMT-5F2Rawlins0.110
May 27, 19538:53 PM GMT-5F1Decatur0.110$5,000 to $50,000
August 24, 19516:30 PM GMT-5F2Rawlins3.3100$5,000 to $50,000
May 20, 19518:00 PM GMT-5F3Rawlins0.110$50 to $500
May 14, 19518:30 PM GMT-5F3Rawlins0.1104$500 to $5,000
August 6, 19504:00 PM GMT-5F1Rawlins0.110$5,000 to $50,000

Nearby

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