Tornadoes · United States · Missouri

Tornadoes in Barry County, Missouri

52 tornadoes have crossed Barry County since 1950, 2 of them surveyed so far this year and still preliminary, 6th of the 115 counties in Missouri with a tornado on record, an average of one every 1.5 years. They have killed 24 people and injured 396. 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
52
Deaths
24
Injuries
396
F4 and above
1
Worst on record
EF4, May 10, 2008

The deadliest in Barry County

  1. EF4 Picher–Neosho tornado, Oklahoma and MissouriMay 10, 200821 killed, 350 injured
  2. F2, McDonald and Barry counties, MissouriNovember 15, 19881 killed, 12 injured
  3. EF2, Barry County, MissouriFebruary 29, 20121 killed, 4 injured
  4. F1, Barry County, MissouriApril 11, 19941 killed

The strongest

  1. EF4 Picher–Neosho tornado, Oklahoma and MissouriMay 10, 2008EF4, 75.5 mi (121 km)
  2. F3, Barry County, MissouriMarch 24, 1954F3, 1.0 mi (2 km)
  3. F2, McDonald and Barry counties, MissouriNovember 15, 1988F2, 28.0 mi (45 km)
  4. F2, Barry and Lawrence counties, MissouriOctober 30, 1979F2, 24.2 mi (39 km)
  5. EF2, Barry County, MissouriJanuary 7, 2008EF2, 12.4 mi (20 km)
  6. F2, Barry County, MissouriNovember 23, 2001F2, 4.0 mi (6 km)
  7. F2, Barry County, MissouriDecember 30, 1972F2, 3.8 mi (6 km)
  8. EF2, Barry County, MissouriFebruary 29, 2012EF2, 1.7 mi (3 km)
  9. F2, Barry County, MissouriApril 12, 1972F2, 0.9 mi (1 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 28 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Barry County. Each year links to every tornado in Missouri that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20262EF0
20251EF1
20241EF1
20211EF1
20194EF1
20182EF1
20175EF1
20161EF1
20151EF1
20141EF0
20131EF1
2012114EF2
20111EF0
20101EF1
20081021350EF4
20061F0
20021F0
200113F2
199513F1
199411F1
19881112F2
197929F2
19761F1
197229F2
19651F1
196114F1
19601F1
195452F3

Every tornado that crossed Barry County

52 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 Missouri. The 2 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
June 13, 202611:48 PM CDTEF0Barry4.8150
June 13, 202611:54 PM CDTEF0Barry6.6350
June 6, 20257:27 AM CDTEF1Barry3.2100$50,000
May 8, 20244:25 PM CDTEF1Lawrence10.8150$155,000
March 17, 20215:30 PM CDTEF1Barry23.775$60,000
April 30, 20196:48 PM CDTEF0Barry1.975$8,000
April 30, 20195:41 PM CDTUnratedBarry0.550
April 30, 20194:25 PM CDTEF0Barry5.0200$35,000
April 30, 20193:42 PM CDTEF1McDonald12.3880$650,000
December 1, 201812:15 AM CSTEF0Barry0.150$90,000
August 19, 20186:42 PM CDTEF1Barry9.4100$95,000
May 19, 20171:04 AM CDTEF0Barry0.1100$50,000
April 26, 20171:22 AM CDTEF1Carroll to MO15.71,500$185,000
April 4, 20177:56 PM CDTEF1Barry1.5200$15,000
March 9, 20177:00 PM CSTEF0Barry0.1100
March 9, 20176:42 PM CSTEF0Barry0.1100$25,000
March 23, 201611:08 PM CDTEF1Stone3.8200
April 2, 201511:25 PM CDTEF1McDonald12.4100$20,000
May 8, 20141:45 PM CDTEF0Barry2.450$10,000
May 20, 20137:50 PM CDTEF1Stone1.4200$50,000
February 29, 201212:42 AM CSTEF2Barry1.740014$575,000
September 18, 20115:30 PM CDTEF0Barry0.010
May 13, 20107:00 AM CDTEF1Barry2.2200$500,000
December 27, 20089:26 AM CSTEF0Barry0.325$5,000
November 6, 20081:44 AM CSTEF1Barry5.8100$40,000
September 2, 20085:15 PM CDTEF0Barry0.375$5,000
May 10, 20086:58 PM CDTEF0Barry3.8800
May 10, 20085:20 PM CDTEF4Picher–Neosho tornado75.51,76021350$61 million
January 8, 20082:31 AM CSTEF1Barry12.1200$2.0 million
January 8, 20082:22 AM CSTEF1Barry4.8100$300,000
January 7, 20089:12 PM CSTEF0Barry0.120
January 7, 20088:15 PM CSTEF1McDonald7.4100$300,000
January 7, 20085:06 PM CSTEF2Barry12.4200$500,000
May 26, 200612:30 PM CDTF0Barry1.0100
December 17, 200210:30 PM CSTF0Barry0.520
November 23, 20018:28 PM CSTF2Barry4.04403$1.0 million
June 8, 19954:04 PM CDTF1Barry12.02503$50,000 to $500,000
April 11, 19946:15 PM CDTF1Barry2.8501$5,000 to $50,000
November 15, 19883:45 PM CSTF2McDonald28.023112
October 30, 19798:12 PM CSTF2Barry24.2509$500,000 to $5 million
October 21, 197912:45 AM CDTF1Barry2.5533$5,000 to $50,000
March 26, 19764:15 PM CSTF1Barry0.530$5,000 to $50,000
December 30, 197212:15 AM CSTF2Barry3.82202$5,000 to $50,000
April 12, 197211:45 PM CSTF2Barry0.91777$500,000 to $5 million
April 5, 19651:30 PM GMT-6F1Barry4.350$5,000 to $50,000
March 12, 19616:00 PM GMT-6F1Stone7.8504$5,000 to $50,000
May 18, 19607:00 AM GMT-5F1Barry0.210$500 to $5,000
April 30, 19542:00 PM GMT-5F1Barry7.350$5,000 to $50,000
March 24, 195411:30 PM GMT-6F3Barry1.03002$5,000 to $50,000
March 24, 195411:00 PM GMT-6F1Barry5.450$500 to $5,000
March 24, 195411:00 PM GMT-6F1Newton11.950$500 to $5,000
March 24, 195410:00 PM GMT-6F1Barry23.950$5,000 to $50,000

Nearby

Warnings in force in Barry CountyThe forecast for Barry CountyThe live radar over Barry CountyEvery county in Missouri

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.