Tornadoes · United States · Missouri

Tornadoes in Pemiscot County, Missouri

39 tornadoes have crossed Pemiscot County since 1950, 25th of the 115 counties in Missouri with a tornado on record, an average of one every 1.9 years. They have killed 30 people and injured 304. 2 were 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
39
Deaths
30
Injuries
304
F4 and above
2
Worst on record
F4, March 21, 1952

The deadliest in Pemiscot County

  1. F4, Pemiscot County, MissouriMarch 21, 195217 killed, 100 injured
  2. EF4 Monette–Braggadocio tornado, Arkansas, Missouri and TennesseeDecember 10, 20218 killed, 14 injured
  3. F2, Pemiscot County, MissouriOctober 18, 20043 killed, 7 injured
  4. F3, Randolph, Greene, Dunklin and Pemiscot counties, Arkansas and MissouriApril 2, 20062 killed, 177 injured

The strongest

  1. EF4 Monette–Braggadocio tornado, Arkansas, Missouri and TennesseeDecember 10, 2021EF4, 81.2 mi (131 km)
  2. F4, Pemiscot County, MissouriMarch 21, 1952F4, 6.5 mi (10 km)
  3. F3, Randolph, Greene, Dunklin and Pemiscot counties, Arkansas and MissouriApril 2, 2006F3, 77.0 mi (124 km)
  4. F2, Craighead, Mississippi, Dunklin, Pemiscot and New Madrid counties, Arkansas and MissouriMarch 20, 1955F2, 89.4 mi (144 km)
  5. EF2, Dunklin and Pemiscot counties, MissouriMarch 14, 2025EF2, 19.4 mi (31 km)
  6. F2, Pemiscot County, MissouriFebruary 13, 1952F2, 6.8 mi (11 km)
  7. F2, Pemiscot County, MissouriApril 19, 1973F2, 2.5 mi (4 km)
  8. F2, Pemiscot County, MissouriOctober 18, 2004F2, 0.5 mi (1 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 27 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Pemiscot County. Each year links to every tornado in Missouri that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20251EF2
20212814EF4
20201EF0
20191EF0
201425EF1
20122EF0
20091EF0
200632177F3
2004137F2
20032F0
20021F0
19991F0
19981F0
19961F1
19951F0
19942F0
19931F1
19892F1
19864F1
19731F2
19701F1
19671F1
19631F1
19621F1
19571F1
195511F2
1952217100F4

Every tornado that crossed Pemiscot County

39 tornadoes, newest first. 4 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, 202512:56 AM CDTEF2Dunklin19.4550$550,000
December 10, 20217:07 PM CSTEF4Monette–Braggadocio tornado81.21,800814$14 million
May 4, 20212:55 AM CDTEF0Pemiscot2.790$50,000
September 1, 20204:14 PM CDTEF0Pemiscot2.150
May 2, 20196:11 PM CDTEF0Pemiscot2.8150$5,000
February 20, 20144:41 PM CSTEF1Pemiscot0.025$10,000
February 20, 20144:39 PM CSTEF1Pemiscot0.2705$75,000
April 5, 201211:51 AM CDTEF0Pemiscot0.250
April 5, 201211:49 AM CDTEF0Pemiscot0.250
May 24, 20095:25 PM CDTEF0Dyer to MO5.225
April 25, 20067:10 PM CDTF0Pemiscot7.030$10,000
April 25, 20067:08 PM CDTF1Pemiscot15.0100$60,000
April 2, 20065:37 PM CDTF3Randolph to MO77.08802177$86 million
October 18, 20047:55 PM CDTF2Pemiscot0.512537$300,000
May 8, 200311:40 AM CDTF0Pemiscot1.075$10,000
May 4, 20037:50 PM CDTF0Pemiscot6.0440$1,000
April 24, 20028:00 PM CDTF0Pemiscot0.325$10,000
January 21, 199910:10 PM CSTF0Pemiscot0.110
July 30, 19983:15 AM CDTF0Pemiscot0.130
January 18, 19968:05 AM CSTF1Pemiscot2.050$50,000
April 19, 199511:08 PM CDTF0Pemiscot5.050$500 to $5,000
April 27, 19942:12 PM CDTF0Pemiscot0.340
April 15, 199411:08 AM CDTF0Pemiscot1.030
May 3, 19931:58 PM CDTF1Pemiscot1.550$5,000 to $50,000
June 11, 19896:00 PM CDTF1Pemiscot0.223
June 11, 19895:45 PM CDTF0Pemiscot0.223
June 9, 19864:45 PM CDTF1Pemiscot0.550
June 9, 19864:05 PM CDTF1Pemiscot0.250
June 9, 19863:50 PM CDTF1Pemiscot0.573
June 9, 19863:30 PM CDTF1Pemiscot0.550$500 to $5,000
April 19, 19731:00 PM CSTF2Pemiscot2.510$5,000 to $50,000
March 25, 19707:20 PM CSTF1Pemiscot18.9100$5,000 to $50,000
May 12, 19679:30 PM GMT-5F1Pemiscot0.117$500 to $5,000
April 29, 19636:30 PM GMT-5F1Pemiscot0.533$500 to $5,000
February 8, 196211:15 PM GMT-6F1Pemiscot0.217$500 to $5,000
May 21, 195712:45 AM GMT-5F1Dunklin23.733$5,000 to $50,000
March 20, 19553:30 PM GMT-6F2Craighead to MO89.42501$50,000 to $500,000
March 21, 19528:00 PM GMT-6F4Pemiscot6.588017100$500,000 to $5 million
February 13, 19525:10 PM GMT-6F2Pemiscot6.8100$500 to $5,000

Nearby

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