Tornadoes · United States · Kentucky

Tornadoes in Calloway County, Kentucky

46 tornadoes have crossed Calloway County since 1950, 1 of them surveyed so far this year and still preliminary, 2nd of the 120 counties in Kentucky with a tornado on record, an average of one every 1.7 years. They have killed 6 people and injured 124. 2 were 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
46
Deaths
6
Injuries
124
F4 and above
2
Worst on record
F4, March 4, 1964

The deadliest in Calloway County

  1. F4, Calloway and Marshall counties, KentuckyMarch 4, 19643 killed, 24 injured
  2. F4, Calloway, Marshall, Trigg and Caldwell counties, KentuckyApril 3, 19682 killed, 30 injured
  3. F3, Graves, Calloway, Marshall and Lyon counties, KentuckyNovember 15, 20051 killed, 20 injured

The strongest

  1. F4, Calloway, Marshall, Trigg and Caldwell counties, KentuckyApril 3, 1968F4, 50.6 mi (81 km)
  2. F4, Calloway and Marshall counties, KentuckyMarch 4, 1964F4, 18.5 mi (30 km)
  3. EF3 Dresden–Pembroke tornado, Tennessee and KentuckyDecember 10, 2021EF3, 122.6 mi (197 km)
  4. F3, Graves, Calloway, Marshall and Lyon counties, KentuckyNovember 15, 2005F3, 44.0 mi (71 km)
  5. F2, Calloway County, KentuckyNovember 24, 2001F2, 11.5 mi (19 km)
  6. F2, Calloway County, KentuckyMay 4, 2003F2, 1.8 mi (3 km)
  7. F2, Calloway County, KentuckyMay 26, 2000F2, 1.5 mi (2 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 30 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Calloway County. Each year links to every tornado in Kentucky that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20261EF0
20252EF1
20242EF1
20231EF0
2021238EF3
20182EF1
20172EF1
20162EF0
20132EF0
20121EF1
20113EF0
20101EF0
20093EF0
20081EF1
20071EF1
20051120F3
20041F0
20032F2
200114F2
200044F2
19991F1
19941F1
19821F1
197922F1
197312F1
19711F0
19681230F4
19671F1
19641324F4
19631F1

Every tornado that crossed Calloway County

46 tornadoes, newest first. 2 of them touched down in a neighboring state and ran in, so the record files them under that state rather than Kentucky. 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
March 7, 202610:24 AM CSTEF0Calloway0.985
April 3, 202510:23 PM CDTEF0Calloway8.9100$40,000
April 2, 20259:17 PM CDTEF1Weakley to KY17.1200$980,000
May 26, 20248:35 AM CDTEF1Calloway4.0150$20,000
May 26, 20248:25 AM CDTEF1Calloway22.0100$80,000
April 5, 20232:02 PM CDTEF0Calloway5.450$100,000
December 10, 202110:32 PM CSTEF3Dresden–Pembroke tornado122.62,00038$17 million
December 6, 20213:34 AM CSTEF1Graves9.6500$229,000
February 24, 20187:50 PM CSTEF1Calloway1.4100$550,000
February 24, 20187:37 PM CSTEF1Calloway8.3125$450,000
March 9, 20179:13 PM CSTEF1Calloway5.6150$75,000
February 28, 201710:35 PM CSTEF0Calloway8.830$70,000
July 3, 20166:40 PM CDTEF0Calloway0.4100
March 12, 20169:22 PM CSTEF0Calloway0.350$30,000
December 21, 20135:31 PM CSTEF0Calloway0.350$2,000
January 29, 201311:36 PM CSTEF0Calloway2.1100$25,000
January 22, 201211:03 PM CSTEF1Calloway5.6100$50,000
May 25, 20119:17 PM CDTEF0Calloway0.450$50,000
May 25, 20118:19 PM CDTEF0Calloway0.380$10,000
April 25, 201112:30 AM CDTEF0Calloway0.8175$80,000
May 1, 20103:02 AM CDTEF0Calloway6.075$20,000
July 4, 20096:29 PM CDTEF0Calloway1.050$3,000
April 30, 20097:44 PM CDTEF0Calloway0.740$3,000
April 10, 200911:16 AM CDTEF0Calloway0.375$200,000
February 5, 20086:25 PM CSTEF1Calloway1.4150$35,000
October 18, 20078:07 PM CDTEF1Calloway7.2180$60,000
November 15, 20051:45 PM CSTF3Graves44.0500120$8.6 million
October 18, 20048:14 PM CDTF0Calloway0.250$10,000
August 22, 20038:35 PM CDTF0Calloway4.060
May 4, 200310:30 PM CDTF2Calloway1.860$350,000
November 24, 20016:47 AM CSTF2Calloway11.53004$750,000
May 26, 20006:30 PM CDTF2Calloway1.53004$250,000
May 23, 20007:04 PM CDTF0Calloway0.220$4,000
May 23, 20006:30 PM CDTF1Calloway1.5100$50,000
May 23, 20006:15 PM CDTF0Calloway0.120
July 1, 19997:42 PM CDTF1Calloway9.0400$100,000
June 26, 19944:27 PM CDTF1Calloway1.020$5,000 to $50,000
April 2, 198210:00 PM CSTF1Calloway2.050$50,000 to $500,000
March 23, 19795:00 AM CSTF1Calloway0.5802$50,000 to $500,000
February 23, 19793:15 AM CSTF1Calloway0.530$50,000 to $500,000
November 26, 19736:15 AM CSTF1Calloway0.6102$50,000 to $500,000
February 19, 19711:00 PM CSTF0Calloway15.450$5,000 to $50,000
April 3, 196811:50 PM GMT-6F4Calloway50.6100230$500,000 to $5 million
May 1, 19673:15 PM GMT-5F1Calloway1.050$500 to $5,000
March 4, 196411:30 AM GMT-6F4Calloway18.5250324$50,000 to $500,000
July 13, 19636:10 PM GMT-5F1Calloway1.0400$5,000 to $50,000

Nearby

Warnings in force in Calloway CountyThe forecast for Calloway CountyThe live radar over Calloway CountyEvery county in Kentucky

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.