Tornadoes · United States · Missouri

Tornadoes in Ozark County, Missouri

35 tornadoes have crossed Ozark County since 1950, 33rd of the 115 counties in Missouri with a tornado on record, an average of one every 2.2 years. They have killed 7 people and injured 61. 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
35
Deaths
7
Injuries
61
F4 and above
1
Worst on record
F4, April 2, 1982

The deadliest in Ozark County

  1. EF3, Baxter, Ozark and Howell counties, Arkansas and MissouriMarch 14, 20253 killed, 4 injured
  2. F4, Ozark and Howell counties, MissouriApril 2, 19822 killed, 28 injured
  3. F2, Howell and Ozark counties, MissouriMarch 12, 19611 killed, 11 injured
  4. EF3, Ozark and Howell counties, MissouriMarch 1, 20071 killed

The strongest

  1. F4, Ozark and Howell counties, MissouriApril 2, 1982F4, 20.0 mi (32 km)
  2. F3, Marion, Ozark and Howell counties, Arkansas and MissouriMay 7, 1961F3, 43.8 mi (70 km)
  3. EF3, Baxter, Ozark and Howell counties, Arkansas and MissouriMarch 14, 2025EF3, 35.5 mi (57 km)
  4. EF3, Ozark and Howell counties, MissouriMarch 1, 2007EF3, 15.0 mi (24 km)
  5. F2, Howell and Ozark counties, MissouriMarch 12, 1961F2, 21.1 mi (34 km)
  6. F2, Douglas and Ozark counties, MissouriDecember 24, 1982F2, 17.0 mi (27 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 25 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Ozark County. Each year links to every tornado in Missouri that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
2025134EF3
20241EF0
20192EF1
20151EF1
20104EF1
20091EF1
20081EF0
200721EF3
20052F1
20031F0
20021F1
19941F0
19931F0
19841F1
19831F0
19823232F4
197912F1
197712F1
19731F1
19681F0
19671F1
19641F1
19613121F3
19591F0
19551F0

Every tornado that crossed Ozark County

35 tornadoes, newest first. 3 of them touched down in a neighboring state and ran in, so the record files them under that state rather than Missouri.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
March 14, 20258:34 PM CDTEF3Baxter to MO35.51,20034$7.0 million
May 26, 20244:19 AM CDTEF0Ozark4.950$5,000
October 21, 20192:13 AM CDTEF1Ozark12.9450$100,000
April 30, 20193:50 PM CDTEF1Taney5.4100$25,000
May 24, 20155:59 PM CDTEF1Ozark4.7200$75,000
April 30, 20106:24 PM CDTEF1Ozark11.11,320$875,000
April 30, 20106:14 PM CDTEF0Ozark0.8100
April 30, 20106:12 PM CDTEF1Ozark3.7440$80,000
April 30, 20105:49 PM CDTEF1Ozark to MO16.0440$40,000
May 8, 20098:48 AM CDTEF1Ozark1.6440$200,000
March 31, 20085:12 PM CDTEF0Ozark0.220$1,000
December 2, 200712:38 PM CSTEF0Ozark0.450
March 1, 20076:24 AM CSTEF3Ozark15.02001$760,000
November 27, 20056:42 PM CSTF1Ozark1.0100
January 12, 20058:56 PM CSTF0Ozark1.0100$50,000
May 5, 200310:50 PM CDTF0Ozark0.220
August 12, 200210:35 PM CDTF1Ozark8.0200$50,000
April 27, 19945:54 PM CDTF0Ozark0.230under $50
March 30, 19936:30 PM CSTF0Ozark0.540$5,000 to $50,000
October 16, 19842:00 PM CDTF1Ozark0.550$5,000 to $50,000
March 26, 19835:55 PM CSTF0Ozark0.550$50 to $500
December 24, 19822:55 PM CSTF2Douglas17.02004$50,000 to $500,000
December 2, 19822:50 PM CSTF1Ozark1.050$50 to $500
April 2, 19826:15 PM CSTF4Ozark20.0500228$5 million to $50 million
April 11, 19793:15 PM CSTF1Ozark2.71002$50,000 to $500,000
March 11, 19771:40 PM CSTF1Ozark7.3402$5,000 to $50,000
May 7, 19732:45 PM CDTF1Ozark5.050$5,000 to $50,000
July 9, 19689:00 PM GMT-5F0Ozark0.350under $50
December 20, 196711:30 PM GMT-6F1Ozark6.450$5,000 to $50,000
June 17, 19644:50 PM GMT-5F1Ozark0.217$500 to $5,000
May 7, 19613:15 AM GMT-5F3Marion to MO43.833310$500,000 to $5 million
March 12, 19617:30 PM GMT-6F1Ozark2.850$50,000 to $500,000
March 12, 19617:00 PM GMT-6F2Howell21.1150111$50,000 to $500,000
May 9, 19595:25 PM GMT-5F0Ozark0.217
July 5, 19554:00 PM GMT-5F0Ozark0.210under $50

Nearby

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