Tornadoes · United States · Missouri

Tornadoes in Caldwell County, Missouri

11 tornadoes have crossed Caldwell County since 1950, 109th of the 115 counties in Missouri with a tornado on record, an average of one every 6.9 years. They have killed 1 person and injured 4. 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
11
Deaths
1
Injuries
4
F4 and above
1
Worst on record
F4, April 23, 1975

The deadliest in Caldwell County

The strongest

Every year with a tornado

The 10 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Caldwell County. Each year links to every tornado in Missouri that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20211EF1
20181EF0
20151EF1
20091EF0
19911F0
1975213F4
19741F1
19711F1
19671F0
195511F3

Every tornado that crossed Caldwell County

11 tornadoes, newest first.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
October 24, 20213:27 PM CDTEF1Clinton4.640$10,000
October 9, 20182:58 PM CDTEF0Ray4.050
May 16, 201511:51 PM CDTEF1Caldwell2.8100
June 7, 200910:44 PM CDTEF0Caldwell0.125
April 28, 19918:54 PM CDTF0Caldwell0.250
December 14, 19753:30 AM CSTF1Caldwell0.720$500 to $5,000
April 23, 19753:40 PM CDTF4Caldwell11.440013$500,000 to $5 million
March 8, 19742:30 AM CDTF1Caldwell27.4100$5,000 to $50,000
November 1, 19715:30 PM CSTF1Clinton1.027$5,000 to $50,000
January 24, 196712:50 PM GMT-6F0Caldwell2.0100$5,000 to $50,000
March 14, 19555:10 PM GMT-6F3Clinton9.82501$50,000 to $500,000

Nearby

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