Tornadoes · United States · Kansas

Tornadoes in Shawnee County, Kansas

60 tornadoes have crossed Shawnee County since 1950, 1 of them surveyed so far this year and still preliminary, 22nd of the 105 counties in Kansas with a tornado on record, an average of one every 1.3 years. They have killed 24 people and injured 803. 4 were rated F4 or EF4 and above, 1 at the top of the scale.

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
60
Deaths
24
Injuries
803
F4 and above
4
Worst on record
F5, June 8, 1966

The deadliest in Shawnee County

  1. F5 Topeka tornado, KansasJune 8, 196616 killed, 450 injured
  2. F4, Lyon, Osage and Shawnee counties, KansasJune 8, 19746 killed, 177 injured
  3. F4, Shawnee and Jefferson counties, KansasMay 19, 19601 killed, 92 injured
  4. F3, Shawnee County, KansasMay 6, 19831 killed, 25 injured

The strongest

  1. F5 Topeka tornado, KansasJune 8, 1966F5, 21.1 mi (34 km)
  2. F4, Lyon, Osage and Shawnee counties, KansasJune 8, 1974F4, 37.5 mi (60 km)
  3. F4, Shawnee and Jefferson counties, KansasMay 19, 1960F4, 27.5 mi (44 km)
  4. F4, Wabaunsee and Shawnee counties, KansasMay 19, 1960F4, 20.6 mi (33 km)
  5. F3, Shawnee, Jefferson, Jackson and Atchison counties, KansasJune 11, 1967F3, 43.9 mi (71 km)
  6. F3, Shawnee County, KansasMay 6, 1983F3, 19.0 mi (31 km)
  7. F3, Shawnee and Jefferson counties, KansasMay 11, 1966F3, 9.9 mi (16 km)
  8. F3, Shawnee County, KansasMay 26, 1962F3, 2.0 mi (3 km)
  9. F2, Morris, Wabaunsee and Shawnee counties, KansasMarch 7, 1974F2, 108.4 mi (174 km)
  10. F2, Wabaunsee, Shawnee and Jackson counties, KansasApril 26, 1991F2, 44.0 mi (71 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 38 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Shawnee County. Each year links to every tornado in Kansas that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20261EF0
202442EF2
20191EF0
20171EF0
20163EF0
20151EF1
20141EF0
20121EF0
20112EF0
20101EF0
20081EF0
20042F1
19981F1
19951F0
19933F1
199134F2
199021F1
1988122F2
19871F0
198414F2
19831125F3
198129F2
19801F2
197911F1
19771F1
197426177F4
19711F1
19701F2
19681F2
19671F3
1966216450F5
19641F0
196224F3
196041104F4
19583F2
19571F0
19541F1
19512F1

Every tornado that crossed Shawnee County

60 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
June 8, 202612:02 AM CDTEF0Shawnee2.20
May 19, 202410:08 PM CDTEF0Shawnee0.125
April 30, 20246:34 PM CDTUnratedShawnee0.125
April 16, 20246:06 AM CDTEF1Osage12.8752
March 13, 20248:27 PM CDTEF2Shawnee4.9100
May 21, 20196:10 PM CDTEF0Shawnee12.650
March 6, 20176:13 PM CSTEF0Shawnee5.250
May 26, 20164:06 PM CDTEF0Shawnee1.850
May 26, 20164:00 PM CDTEF0Shawnee0.025
April 26, 20165:42 PM CDTEF0Shawnee0.020
September 10, 20158:16 PM CDTEF1Wabaunsee3.450
June 29, 20149:20 PM CDTEF0Shawnee1.630
September 17, 20123:20 PM CDTEF0Shawnee0.010
May 21, 20116:35 PM CDTEF0Shawnee2.050
May 21, 20116:16 PM CDTEF0Shawnee1.2150
July 4, 20107:05 PM CDTEF0Shawnee0.025$1,000
June 12, 20086:05 PM CDTEF0Shawnee0.325
August 23, 20047:12 PM CDTF0Shawnee0.350
May 24, 20047:25 PM CDTF1Shawnee1.275$100,000
October 4, 19985:45 PM CDTF1Shawnee1.030$10,000
May 17, 19953:21 AM CDTF0Shawnee0.550$50,000 to $500,000
July 9, 199310:55 PM CDTF0Shawnee0.123$5,000 to $50,000
July 9, 199310:40 PM CDTF1Shawnee0.130$5,000 to $50,000
May 6, 19938:08 PM CDTF0Shawnee0.330
April 26, 19918:54 PM CDTF1Shawnee11.0204$5,000 to $50,000
April 26, 19914:35 PM CDTF2Wabaunsee44.0200$50,000 to $500,000
March 1, 19914:35 PM CSTF0Shawnee2.010$50,000 to $500,000
June 7, 19906:10 PM CDTF0Shawnee0.210
March 12, 199011:49 PM CSTF1Shawnee5.01001$50,000 to $500,000
November 15, 19882:06 PM CSTF2Shawnee5.07022$500,000 to $5 million
July 7, 19878:00 PM CDTF0Shawnee0.210
April 26, 19849:25 PM CSTF2Shawnee0.61004$50,000 to $500,000
May 6, 19836:30 PM CDTF3Shawnee19.0150125$5 million to $50 million
July 19, 19819:45 AM CDTF2Shawnee0.31509$50,000 to $500,000
April 13, 19815:35 PM CSTF0Shawnee0.110under $50
May 31, 19804:55 PM CDTF2Shawnee2.0220$50,000 to $500,000
April 11, 19795:00 PM CSTF1Shawnee4.1301$50,000 to $500,000
May 5, 19776:40 PM CDTF1Shawnee1.930$500 to $5,000
June 8, 19747:00 PM CDTF4Lyon37.51,7606177$5 million to $50 million
March 7, 197411:30 PM CDTF2Morris108.4220$50,000 to $500,000
June 6, 197110:25 PM CDTF1Shawnee0.210
November 8, 19705:45 PM CSTF2Shawnee1.0300$5,000 to $50,000
April 16, 19687:00 PM GMT-6F2Wabaunsee38.710$5,000 to $50,000
June 11, 19677:00 PM GMT-5F3Shawnee43.910$50,000 to $500,000
June 8, 19668:00 PM GMT-5F5Topeka tornado21.188016450$50 million to $500 million
May 11, 19663:15 PM GMT-5F3Shawnee9.9660$5,000 to $50,000
June 18, 19647:10 PM GMT-5F0Shawnee0.110
May 28, 19625:40 PM GMT-5F2Osage0.9200$50,000 to $500,000
May 26, 19628:48 PM GMT-5F3Shawnee2.0104$50,000 to $500,000
May 19, 19609:45 PM GMT-5F2Shawnee4.110$500 to $5,000
May 19, 19609:30 PM GMT-5F0Shawnee0.110under $50
May 19, 19606:47 PM GMT-5F4Shawnee27.5880192$500,000 to $5 million
May 19, 19606:30 PM GMT-5F4Wabaunsee20.61012$5 million to $50 million
July 11, 19582:03 AM GMT-5F2Shawnee0.110
July 11, 19581:45 AM GMT-5F2Shawnee0.110
June 12, 19585:30 PM GMT-5F2Wabaunsee4.3200$5,000 to $50,000
June 11, 19578:45 PM GMT-5F0Shawnee0.260
March 18, 19541:10 PM GMT-6F1Shawnee0.110$500 to $5,000
June 15, 19518:15 PM GMT-5F0Shawnee0.5100under $50
May 2, 19518:30 PM GMT-5F1Shawnee0.110$50 to $500

Nearby

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