Tornadoes · United States · Missouri

Tornadoes in Vernon County, Missouri

30 tornadoes have crossed Vernon County since 1950, 42nd of the 115 counties in Missouri with a tornado on record, an average of one every 2.5 years. They have killed 3 people and injured 31. None was rated F4 or 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
30
Deaths
3
Injuries
31
F4 and above
0
Worst on record
F3, March 15, 1982

The deadliest in Vernon County

  1. F3, Crawford, Barton, Vernon, Cedar and St. Clair counties, Kansas and MissouriMarch 15, 19822 killed, 8 injured
  2. F2, Vernon, Cedar and St. Clair counties, MissouriMarch 12, 20061 killed, 7 injured

The strongest

  1. F3, Crawford, Barton, Vernon, Cedar and St. Clair counties, Kansas and MissouriMarch 15, 1982F3, 70.0 mi (113 km)
  2. F3, Barton and Vernon counties, MissouriNovember 17, 1958F3, 30.2 mi (49 km)
  3. F3, Vernon County, MissouriMay 17, 1995F3, 14.0 mi (23 km)
  4. F2, Vernon, Cedar and St. Clair counties, MissouriMarch 12, 2006F2, 38.0 mi (61 km)
  5. EF2, Vernon County, MissouriApril 2, 2025EF2, 6.5 mi (10 km)
  6. F2, Vernon County, MissouriMay 31, 1958F2, 6.4 mi (10 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 19 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Vernon County. Each year links to every tornado in Missouri that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20252EF2
20241EF1
20182EF1
20141EF0
20091EF0
200821EF0
20071EF0
2006217F2
20032F0
199519F3
19923F1
19841F0
19822213F3
19811F0
19691F0
19621F1
195831F3
19561F0
19542F1

Every tornado that crossed Vernon County

30 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.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
April 2, 20257:30 AM CDTEF1Vernon16.6200$1.2 million
April 2, 20257:29 AM CDTEF2Vernon6.5200$500,000
April 26, 20246:07 PM CDTEF1Vernon3.495$40,000
August 19, 20185:57 PM CDTEF1Vernon1.0100$25,000
August 19, 20186:05 AM CDTEF0Vernon0.150$5,000
April 27, 20146:15 PM CDTEF0Vernon0.3100
June 10, 20095:41 PM CDTEF0Vernon1.450
June 2, 20081:55 PM CDTEF0Vernon10.63001$175,000
March 31, 200810:33 AM CDTEF0Vernon0.210
April 27, 20076:30 PM CDTEF0Vernon12.925$10,000
May 3, 20063:53 PM CDTF0Bourbon to MO11.050
March 12, 20068:47 PM CSTF2Vernon38.030017$1.6 million
May 6, 20039:20 AM CDTF0Vernon0.220
May 4, 20036:10 PM CDTF0Vernon0.220
May 17, 19959:34 AM CDTF3Vernon14.04009$5 million to $50 million
July 4, 19926:16 PM CDTF1Vernon1.020$50 to $500
February 14, 19925:20 PM CSTF0Vernon0.210$5,000 to $50,000
February 14, 19924:45 PM CSTF1Barton16.023$50,000 to $500,000
April 27, 19841:45 AM CSTF0Vernon0.350
December 1, 19827:13 PM CSTF1Barton29.02005$50,000 to $500,000
March 15, 19827:35 PM CSTF3Crawford to MO70.060028$5 million to $50 million
May 23, 19816:55 PM CDTF0Vernon0.550
April 26, 19699:10 PM GMT-6F0Vernon0.110under $50
October 6, 19629:00 PM GMT-5F1Vernon5.150$50,000 to $500,000
November 17, 195811:30 AM GMT-6F3Barton30.24001$50,000 to $500,000
July 13, 19589:45 PM GMT-5F1Vernon5.233$5,000 to $50,000
May 31, 195810:00 PM GMT-5F2Vernon6.4367$50,000 to $500,000
May 13, 19568:00 PM GMT-5F0Vernon0.210$500 to $5,000
September 4, 19543:00 PM GMT-5F1Vernon1.0200$500 to $5,000
May 31, 19545:20 PM GMT-5F1Vernon0.517$5,000 to $50,000

Nearby

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