Tornadoes · United States · Maryland

Tornadoes in Frederick County, Maryland

38 tornadoes have crossed Frederick County since 1950, 1st of the 24 counties in Maryland with a tornado on record, an average of one every 2.0 years. They have killed 0 people and injured 1. 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
38
Deaths
0
Injuries
1
F4 and above
0
Worst on record
F3, May 22, 1983

The strongest

  1. F3, Carroll and Frederick counties, MarylandMay 22, 1983F3, 2.0 mi (3 km)
  2. F2, Adams, York and Frederick counties, Pennsylvania and MarylandAugust 28, 1978F2, 20.0 mi (32 km)
  3. F2, Frederick County, MarylandSeptember 17, 2004F2, 3.0 mi (5 km)
  4. F2, Frederick County, MarylandJuly 31, 1978F2, 1.5 mi (2 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 24 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Frederick County. Each year links to every tornado in Maryland that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20212EF0
20201EF1
20191EF0
20151EF0
20114EF1
20101EF0
20092EF1
20045F2
20021F0
19991F1
19981F0
19962F1
19952F1
19901F1
19831F3
19821F1
19782F2
19721F1
19662F1
19631F1
19611F1
19601F1
19541F0
195221F1

Every tornado that crossed Frederick County

38 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 Maryland.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
May 3, 20218:35 PM EDTEF0Frederick0.6150$100,000
May 3, 20218:14 PM EDTEF0Frederick0.8200$150,000
February 7, 20207:44 AM ESTEF1Frederick6.7150$340,000
May 30, 20192:48 PM EDTEF0Frederick6.575$22,000
June 20, 20157:39 PM EDTEF0Frederick1.575$5,000
May 17, 20115:35 PM EDTEF0Frederick1.150$20,000
April 16, 20117:47 PM EDTEF1Carroll3.550$30,000
April 16, 20117:38 PM EDTEF1Frederick4.450$50,000
April 16, 20117:37 PM EDTEF1Frederick1.250$50,000
August 12, 20105:03 PM EDTEF0Frederick0.2440$15,000
July 31, 20092:08 PM EDTEF1Frederick2.6350
July 31, 20092:06 PM EDTEF1Frederick2.6125
September 17, 20047:50 PM EDTF2Frederick3.0200$10,000
September 17, 20046:54 PM EDTF1Frederick7.0100$50,000
September 17, 20046:10 PM EDTF1Frederick4.0150$320,000
June 14, 20046:18 PM EDTF1Frederick4.2150$2,000
May 25, 20045:56 PM EDTF0Frederick0.550
June 6, 20025:05 PM EDTF0Frederick2.050$10,000
August 14, 19991:50 PM EDTF1Frederick3.050$800,000
June 16, 19986:35 PM EDTF0Frederick0.550$10,000
July 19, 19962:20 PM CDTF1Frederick to VA6.2200$130,000
June 4, 19968:05 PM EDTF1Frederick1.065$150,000
October 20, 199512:20 AM EDTF1Frederick1.250$5,000 to $50,000
October 20, 199512:12 AM EDTF0Frederick0.673$5,000 to $50,000
May 13, 19901:30 PM EDTF1Frederick0.533$50,000 to $500,000
May 22, 19837:05 PM EDTF3Carroll2.037$5,000 to $50,000
May 30, 19824:30 PM EDTF1Frederick0.217$500 to $5,000
August 28, 19783:30 PM CDTF2Adams to MD20.020$500 to $5,000
July 31, 19788:15 PM EDTF2Frederick1.5100$5,000 to $50,000
March 3, 197212:45 PM ESTF1Frederick1.0100$50,000 to $500,000
June 28, 19664:45 PM GMT-4F1Frederick0.350$5,000 to $50,000
February 13, 19663:00 PM GMT-5F1Frederick0.550$5,000 to $50,000
July 19, 19634:05 PM GMT-4F1Frederick14.4600$5,000 to $50,000
April 16, 19619:00 AM GMT-5F1Frederick0.320$500 to $5,000
November 19, 19602:30 PM GMT-5F1Frederick1.033$500 to $5,000
May 3, 19546:00 PM GMT-5F0Loudoun to MD2.3150$500 to $5,000
April 5, 19523:00 PM GMT-5F1Frederick1.0501$5,000 to $50,000
April 5, 19521:00 PM GMT-5F1Frederick1.050$5,000 to $50,000

Nearby

Warnings in force in Frederick CountyThe forecast for Frederick CountyThe live radar over Frederick CountyEvery county in Maryland

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.