Tornadoes · United States · Minnesota
Tornadoes in Clearwater County, Minnesota
24 tornadoes have crossed Clearwater County since 1950, 1 of them surveyed so far this year and still preliminary, 56th of the 87 counties in Minnesota with a tornado on record, an average of one every 3.2 years. They have killed 4 people and injured 44. 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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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
- 24
- Deaths
- 4
- Injuries
- 44
- F4 and above
- 0
- Worst on record
- F2, July 5, 1978
The deadliest in Clearwater County
The strongest
Every year with a tornado
The 19 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Clearwater County. Each year links to every tornado in Minnesota that year.
Every tornado that crossed Clearwater County
24 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.
| Date | Time | Rating | Where | Path (mi) | Width (yd) | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| June 23, 2026 | 6:30 PM CDT | Unrated | Clearwater | 2.7 | 0 | |||
| August 26, 2018 | 11:51 PM CDT | EF1 | Clearwater | 25.0 | 200 | |||
| July 22, 2013 | 1:50 AM CDT | EF2 | Mahnomen | 21.1 | 400 | $1.8 million | ||
| July 22, 2013 | 1:33 AM CDT | EF1 | Clearwater | 7.5 | 150 | $150,000 | ||
| June 17, 2010 | 5:29 PM CDT | EF1 | Clearwater | 1.0 | 40 | |||
| June 17, 2010 | 4:41 PM CDT | EF1 | Clearwater | 3.0 | 30 | |||
| June 17, 2010 | 4:32 PM CDT | EF1 | Clearwater | 1.0 | 40 | |||
| June 12, 2008 | 8:50 PM CDT | EF1 | Hubbard | 5.4 | 100 | $500,000 | ||
| June 14, 2007 | 5:18 PM CDT | EF0 | Clearwater | 0.2 | 25 | |||
| June 23, 2005 | 7:35 PM CDT | F1 | Clearwater | 5.0 | 100 | |||
| May 29, 2003 | 11:00 PM CDT | F0 | Clearwater | 0.2 | 50 | $10,000 | ||
| August 11, 2002 | 8:55 PM CDT | F0 | Clearwater | 0.2 | 25 | |||
| August 11, 2002 | 8:45 PM CDT | F0 | Clearwater | 0.2 | 25 | |||
| August 8, 2001 | 10:10 PM CDT | F0 | Clearwater | 0.5 | 25 | |||
| May 15, 2001 | 5:12 PM CDT | F0 | Clearwater | 0.5 | 25 | |||
| July 20, 1998 | 4:45 PM CDT | F0 | Clearwater | 0.2 | 30 | |||
| June 21, 1993 | 8:16 PM CDT | F0 | Clearwater | 0.1 | 10 | |||
| July 18, 1987 | 7:07 PM CDT | F0 | Clearwater | 0.2 | 10 | |||
| August 5, 1981 | 4:30 PM CDT | F2 | Clearwater | 0.8 | 70 | $500 to $5,000 | ||
| July 5, 1979 | 1:32 PM CDT | F0 | Clearwater | 0.1 | 10 | under $50 | ||
| July 5, 1978 | 2:45 AM CDT | F2 | Norman | 57.5 | 400 | 4 | 44 | $5 million to $50 million |
| June 24, 1966 | 9:00 PM GMT-5 | F1 | Clay | 49.8 | 10 | $5,000 to $50,000 | ||
| August 25, 1960 | 7:00 AM GMT-5 | F2 | Clearwater | 0.2 | 40 | $5,000 to $50,000 | ||
| June 9, 1959 | 9:45 PM GMT-5 | F1 | Clearwater | 8.8 | 150 | $50,000 to $500,000 |
Nearby
Warnings in force in Clearwater CountyThe forecast for Clearwater CountyThe live radar over Clearwater CountyEvery county in Minnesota
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.