Tornadoes · United States · Minnesota

Tornadoes in Wright County, Minnesota

28 tornadoes have crossed Wright County since 1950, 38th of the 87 counties in Minnesota with a tornado on record, an average of one every 2.7 years. They have killed 1 person and injured 29. 1 was 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
28
Deaths
1
Injuries
29
F4 and above
1
Worst on record
F4, June 19, 1951

The deadliest in Wright County

  1. F4, McLeod, Wright, Hennepin and Anoka counties, MinnesotaJune 19, 19511 killed, 20 injured

The strongest

  1. F4, McLeod, Wright, Hennepin and Anoka counties, MinnesotaJune 19, 1951F4, 52.6 mi (85 km)
  2. F3, Wright County, MinnesotaJune 16, 1992F3, 10.0 mi (16 km)
  3. F3, Wright County, MinnesotaJuly 1, 1997F3, 5.0 mi (8 km)
  4. F2, Wright County, MinnesotaJune 16, 1992F2, 10.0 mi (16 km)
  5. F2, Wright County, MinnesotaJuly 1, 1997F2, 5.0 mi (8 km)
  6. F2, Wright County, MinnesotaJune 14, 1981F2, 2.9 mi (5 km)
  7. F2, Wright County, MinnesotaJuly 1, 1997F2, 2.0 mi (3 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 20 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Wright County. Each year links to every tornado in Minnesota that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20231EF0
20221EF1
20191EF1
20121EF0
20111EF1
20102EF1
20081EF0
20061F0
20022F1
20011F0
19975F3
19951F1
199228F3
19901F0
198121F2
19791F1
19651F0
19611F1
19571F1
19511120F4

Every tornado that crossed Wright County

28 tornadoes, newest first.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
September 29, 20237:48 PM CDTEF0Wright0.725
May 30, 20226:12 PM CDTEF1McLeod18.5400
September 2, 20199:47 PM CDTEF1Wright1.090$250,000
May 1, 20125:40 PM CDTEF0Wright0.025
May 10, 20117:55 PM CDTEF1Wright3.125$500,000
July 17, 20107:48 PM CDTEF0Wright4.250$100,000
June 17, 20106:00 PM CDTEF1Wright5.150
July 11, 20087:25 PM CDTEF0Meeker3.025$200,000
September 16, 20069:02 PM CDTF0Wright0.225$200,000
September 9, 200212:11 AM CDTF1Wright1.175$1.4 million
June 24, 200211:15 PM CDTF1Wright0.350$50,000
June 1, 20011:10 PM CDTF0Wright2.025
July 1, 19977:10 PM CDTF2Wright5.0400
July 1, 19977:10 PM CDTF2Wright2.0550
July 1, 19977:00 PM CDTF1Wright1.0100
July 1, 19976:43 PM CDTF3Wright5.0800
June 28, 19972:38 PM CDTF0Meeker0.250
July 21, 19956:31 PM CDTF1Wright2.0100
June 16, 199211:20 PM CDTF2Wright10.080
June 16, 199211:10 PM CDTF3Wright10.01208
July 25, 19903:29 PM CDTF0Wright0.110
August 5, 19818:30 PM CDTF1Wright0.32001$5,000 to $50,000
June 14, 19818:47 PM CDTF2Wright2.9440$50,000 to $500,000
June 28, 19795:30 PM CDTF1Wright0.230$50,000 to $500,000
July 1, 19657:30 PM GMT-5F0Wright0.110$500 to $5,000
July 20, 19616:50 PM GMT-5F1Wright0.110$500 to $5,000
May 25, 19573:38 PM GMT-5F1Wright0.720$5,000 to $50,000
June 19, 19516:30 PM GMT-5F4McLeod52.6330120$500,000 to $5 million

Nearby

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