Tornadoes · United States · Minnesota

Tornadoes in Mower County, Minnesota

37 tornadoes have crossed Mower County since 1950, 1 of them surveyed so far this year and still preliminary, 18th of the 87 counties in Minnesota with a tornado on record, an average of one every 2.1 years. They have killed 0 people and injured 12. 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
37
Deaths
0
Injuries
12
F4 and above
0
Worst on record
F3, June 11, 2004

The strongest

  1. F3, Howard and Mower counties, Iowa and MinnesotaJune 11, 2004F3, 12.0 mi (19 km)
  2. F2, Mower and Fillmore counties, MinnesotaMay 5, 1965F2, 23.6 mi (38 km)
  3. EF2, Mower County, MinnesotaJune 17, 2009EF2, 9.6 mi (15 km)
  4. F2, Mower County, MinnesotaJune 7, 1984F2, 5.0 mi (8 km)
  5. EF2, Mower County, MinnesotaApril 12, 2022EF2, 3.9 mi (6 km)
  6. F2, Mower County, MinnesotaApril 30, 1967F2, 3.8 mi (6 km)
  7. F2, Mower County, MinnesotaJuly 27, 1995F2, 3.5 mi (6 km)
  8. F2, Mower County, MinnesotaAugust 4, 1961F2, 2.0 mi (3 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 22 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Mower County. Each year links to every tornado in Minnesota that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20261EF0
20242EF0
202212EF2
20212EF1
200921EF2
20052F0
20044F3
20012F1
19953F2
19933F0
19912F1
198417F2
19821F0
19801F1
19761F1
19702F1
19681F0
19671F2
19651F2
19641F0
196112F2
19592F1

Every tornado that crossed Mower County

37 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 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
April 17, 20261:46 PM CDTEF0Mower2.8110
August 5, 20248:43 PM CDTEF0Mower2.770$5,000
August 5, 20248:18 PM CDTEF0Mower1.030
April 12, 202210:46 PM CDTEF2Mower3.94752$1.6 million
December 15, 20217:37 PM CSTEF1Mower3.385$210,000
December 15, 20217:09 PM CSTEF0Worth to MN2.650$15,000
June 17, 20098:51 PM CDTEF0Mower0.115$1,000
June 17, 20098:00 PM CDTEF2Mower9.61201$2.0 million
August 18, 200512:50 PM CDTF0Mower0.120$10,000
March 30, 20052:18 PM CSTF0Mower1.030$10,000
June 16, 20043:40 PM CDTF0Mower0.220
June 11, 20047:31 PM CDTF0Mower0.220
June 11, 20046:53 PM CDTF0Mower0.220
June 11, 20045:56 PM CDTF3Howard to MN12.0150$190,000
May 1, 20017:52 PM CDTF0Mower0.350
May 1, 20017:29 PM CDTF1Freeborn6.0250$200,000
July 27, 199511:50 AM CDTF2Mower3.540
April 18, 19952:00 PM CDTF0Mower0.110
April 18, 19951:20 PM CDTF0Mower0.110$50,000 to $500,000
June 8, 19931:55 PM CDTF0Mower0.110
June 8, 19931:55 PM CDTF0Mower0.110
June 8, 19931:55 PM CDTF0Mower0.110
July 7, 199112:20 PM CDTF0Mower0.110
July 7, 199112:10 PM CDTF1Mower0.210
June 7, 19847:36 PM CDTF2Mower5.01007$500,000 to $5 million
May 17, 19825:04 PM CDTF0Mower10.0100$5,000 to $50,000
May 29, 19808:36 PM CDTF1Mower0.110$50,000 to $500,000
June 12, 19766:05 PM CDTF1Mower2.0150$5,000 to $50,000
April 22, 19703:30 PM CSTF1Mower4.350$5,000 to $50,000
April 22, 19703:30 PM CSTF1Mower0.350$5,000 to $50,000
April 20, 196810:35 AM GMT-6F0Mower0.120$500 to $5,000
April 30, 19678:15 PM GMT-5F2Mower3.810$5 million to $50 million
May 5, 196510:04 PM GMT-5F2Mower23.610$5,000 to $50,000
July 9, 19648:00 PM GMT-5F0Mower0.110
August 4, 19616:45 PM GMT-5F2Mower2.06002$50,000 to $500,000
June 25, 19596:15 PM GMT-5F1Mower5.1100$50,000 to $500,000
May 28, 195911:30 AM GMT-5F0Mower0.110$50 to $500

Nearby

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