Tornadoes · United States · Minnesota

Tornadoes in Freeborn County, Minnesota

72 tornadoes have crossed Freeborn County since 1950, 3 of them surveyed so far this year and still preliminary, 3rd of the 87 counties in Minnesota with a tornado on record, an average of one every 1.1 years. They have killed 20 people and injured 115. 4 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
72
Deaths
20
Injuries
115
F4 and above
4
Worst on record
F4, April 30, 1967

The deadliest in Freeborn County

The strongest

Every year with a tornado

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

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20263EF1
20256EF1
20241EF1
20221EF0
20218EF2
20201EF0
20192EF0
20171EF1
20161EF0
20109114EF4
20092EF0
20042F1
20013F2
19985F1
19941F0
19894F1
19861F0
1984312F3
19821F3
19801F1
19741F0
19731F1
19681F0
196751381F4
196611F2
19601F0
19581F1
19573F1
1953163F2
195214F2

Every tornado that crossed Freeborn County

72 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 Minnesota. The 3 at the top are this year's, from the surveying office rather than SPC's published database, and their ratings are marked as preliminary.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
April 13, 20268:05 PM CDTEF1Freeborn2.7140
May 17, 202610:14 PM CDTEF1Freeborn1.20
May 17, 202610:27 PM CDTEF1Freeborn0.40
June 26, 20251:15 PM CDTEF0Freeborn5.275
June 25, 20254:29 PM CDTEF1Freeborn5.225
June 25, 20254:15 PM CDTEF0Freeborn1.725
June 25, 20253:49 PM CDTEF0Freeborn3.325
June 25, 20253:43 PM CDTEF0Freeborn1.525
June 25, 20253:39 PM CDTEF0Faribault1.825
August 5, 20247:50 PM CDTEF1Freeborn6.5150
July 31, 20228:28 PM CDTEF0Freeborn0.525
December 15, 20217:15 PM CSTEF0Freeborn6.7100
December 15, 20217:11 PM CSTEF2Freeborn2.255
December 15, 20217:11 PM CSTEF1Freeborn4.375
December 15, 20217:10 PM CSTEF0Freeborn2.6100
December 15, 20217:10 PM CSTEF1Freeborn6.3100
December 15, 20217:09 PM CSTEF0Worth to MN2.650$15,000
December 15, 20217:03 PM CSTEF1Freeborn1.625
December 15, 20216:58 PM CSTEF1Freeborn3.675
May 26, 20207:25 PM CDTEF0Freeborn0.650
July 1, 20195:05 PM CDTEF0Freeborn0.025
May 27, 201912:07 PM CDTEF0Freeborn0.650
March 6, 20175:38 PM CSTEF1Freeborn11.9300
August 18, 20164:31 PM CDTEF0Freeborn0.150
June 25, 20108:19 PM CDTEF0Freeborn0.930
June 17, 20108:03 PM CDTEF1Freeborn2.2220
June 17, 20107:47 PM CDTEF3Freeborn5.0600
June 17, 20107:42 PM CDTEF1Freeborn4.9220
June 17, 20107:15 PM CDTEF1Freeborn12.6600
June 17, 20107:05 PM CDTEF3Freeborn18.11,320
June 17, 20106:55 PM CDTEF1Freeborn1.1100
June 17, 20106:33 PM CDTEF4Conger–Albert Lea tornado16.91,760114
June 17, 20106:28 PM CDTEF1Faribault0.650
June 21, 20098:32 PM CDTEF0Freeborn1.810
June 17, 20097:30 PM CDTEF0Freeborn1.850$1,000
June 11, 20045:40 PM CDTF0Freeborn0.125
June 11, 20045:26 PM CDTF1Freeborn4.050
May 1, 20017:29 PM CDTF1Freeborn6.0250$200,000
May 1, 20017:15 PM CDTF2Freeborn5.0250$2.0 million
May 1, 20017:02 PM CDTF2Freeborn7.0440$20 million
June 27, 19986:30 PM CDTF1Freeborn1.050
June 26, 19986:53 PM CDTF0Freeborn0.150
June 26, 19986:50 PM CDTF0Freeborn0.150
June 16, 19983:00 PM CDTF0Freeborn0.550
June 15, 19983:45 PM CDTF0Freeborn2.550
June 30, 199410:27 PM CDTF0Freeborn0.120
May 24, 19897:10 PM CDTF1Freeborn0.120
May 24, 19897:03 PM CDTF0Freeborn0.313
May 24, 19896:53 PM CDTF0Freeborn0.110
May 24, 19896:47 PM CDTF0Freeborn0.110
June 22, 19862:15 AM CDTF0Freeborn0.250$50 to $500
June 7, 19847:25 PM CDTF1Freeborn18.080$500,000 to $5 million
June 7, 19847:19 PM CDTF3Freeborn14.010012$5 million to $50 million
June 7, 19847:15 PM CDTF1Freeborn6.080$50,000 to $500,000
May 17, 19824:02 PM CDTF3Freeborn46.0100$50,000 to $500,000
May 29, 19807:12 PM CDTF1Freeborn6.9400$50,000 to $500,000
July 25, 19744:28 PM CDTF0Freeborn0.110$500 to $5,000
June 18, 19738:40 AM CDTF1Freeborn3.660$50,000 to $500,000
May 15, 19685:00 PM GMT-5F0Freeborn0.110
June 14, 196712:30 AM GMT-5F1Faribault35.610$50,000 to $500,000
April 30, 19677:52 PM GMT-5F4Freeborn20.1267622$5 million to $50 million
April 30, 19677:23 PM GMT-5F4Freeborn38.7100535$5 million to $50 million
April 30, 19677:20 PM GMT-5F4Worth to MN7.65001$500,000 to $5 million
April 30, 19677:05 PM GMT-5F3Freeborn18.4100223$5 million to $50 million
October 14, 19661:55 PM GMT-5F2Freeborn2.7101$500 to $5,000
May 19, 19606:33 PM GMT-5F0Freeborn0.110
September 5, 19587:00 PM GMT-5F1Freeborn0.1100$500 to $5,000
July 19, 19577:00 PM GMT-5F0Freeborn0.110under $50
June 25, 19578:00 PM GMT-5F1Freeborn0.110under $50
June 22, 195711:00 AM GMT-5F0Freeborn0.110
May 10, 19536:00 PM GMT-5F2Freeborn6.96763$500 to $5,000
July 27, 19527:25 PM GMT-5F2Freeborn1.51334$5,000 to $50,000

Nearby

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