Tornadoes · United States · Nebraska

Tornadoes in Webster County, Nebraska

38 tornadoes have crossed Webster County since 1950, 36th of the 93 counties in Nebraska with a tornado on record, an average of one every 2.0 years. They have killed 0 people and injured 10. 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
38
Deaths
0
Injuries
10
F4 and above
2
Worst on record
F4, March 13, 1990

The strongest

  1. F4, Webster, Nuckolls, Clay and Fillmore counties, NebraskaMarch 13, 1990F4, 131.0 mi (211 km)
  2. F4, Phillips, Smith, Franklin and Webster counties, Kansas and NebraskaMay 10, 1985F4, 56.0 mi (90 km)
  3. F3, Webster, Adams, Clay and Hamilton counties, NebraskaMay 7, 1993F3, 75.0 mi (121 km)
  4. F2, Webster and Adams counties, NebraskaMay 25, 1965F2, 39.3 mi (63 km)
  5. F2, Webster, Nuckolls and Clay counties, NebraskaApril 11, 1991F2, 21.0 mi (34 km)
  6. F2, Webster County, NebraskaSeptember 18, 1986F2, 2.0 mi (3 km)
  7. F2, Webster County, NebraskaApril 7, 1978F2, 0.2 mi (0 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 21 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Webster County. Each year links to every tornado in Nebraska that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20243EF0
20212EF1
20161EF1
20141EF0
20042F1
20021F0
20011F0
19961F0
19932F3
19913F2
199038F4
19872F1
19863F2
198522F4
19841F1
19783F2
19772F0
19672F1
19651F2
19571F0
19531F1

Every tornado that crossed Webster County

38 tornadoes, newest first. 1 of them touched down in a neighboring state and ran in, so the record files it under that state rather than Nebraska.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
May 6, 20244:19 PM CDTEF0Webster7.040$20,000
May 3, 202410:51 PM CDTEF0Webster5.880$100,000
April 16, 20242:28 AM CDTEF0Webster0.830
December 15, 20211:44 PM CSTEF1Webster14.8180$400,000
December 15, 20211:29 PM CSTEF0Franklin13.4100$700,000
November 27, 20164:32 PM CSTEF1Webster3.860$150,000
June 14, 20148:25 PM CDTEF0Webster0.325
June 10, 20049:49 PM CDTF1Webster12.0300$500,000
May 22, 20046:46 PM CDTF0Webster3.5125$250,000
May 5, 20026:10 PM CDTF0Webster0.125
April 11, 20011:12 AM CDTF0Webster3.025$1,000
May 22, 199611:15 PM CDTF0Webster0.210
May 7, 19937:50 PM CDTF3Webster75.02,633$5 million to $50 million
May 7, 19936:50 PM CDTF1Webster7.0200$500,000 to $5 million
June 1, 19911:45 PM CDTF0Webster1.030$500 to $5,000
June 1, 19911:00 PM CDTF1Webster1.040$5,000 to $50,000
April 11, 19917:25 PM CDTF2Webster21.073$50,000 to $500,000
June 18, 19906:53 PM CDTF1Webster0.7100$500 to $5,000
June 16, 19906:45 PM CDTF0Webster0.740
March 13, 19905:05 PM CSTF4Webster131.04408$5 million to $50 million
August 2, 198712:10 AM CDTF1Webster0.240$5,000 to $50,000
March 14, 19874:55 PM CSTF1Webster1.040$500 to $5,000
September 18, 19869:15 PM CDTF2Webster2.050$50,000 to $500,000
September 5, 19869:00 PM CDTF1Webster0.250under $50
September 5, 19868:30 PM CDTF1Webster0.250under $50
June 23, 19856:10 PM CDTF0Webster0.240
May 10, 19857:00 PM CDTF4Phillips to NE56.01,0002$500,000 to $5 million
June 9, 19842:00 AM CDTF1Webster0.110$500 to $5,000
July 17, 19789:30 PM CDTF1Webster0.220$5,000 to $50,000
April 7, 19785:40 PM CSTF2Webster0.210$50 to $500
April 7, 19785:25 PM CSTF1Webster0.520$5,000 to $50,000
June 12, 19777:35 PM CDTF0Webster0.110$5,000 to $50,000
May 16, 19777:35 PM CDTF0Webster0.110
June 11, 19675:00 PM GMT-5F1Webster0.110$500 to $5,000
June 11, 19674:35 PM GMT-5F0Webster0.110
May 25, 19656:20 PM GMT-5F2Webster39.310$5,000 to $50,000
May 20, 19573:15 PM GMT-5F0Webster0.110under $50
June 19, 19534:00 PM GMT-5F1Webster1.510$500 to $5,000

Nearby

Warnings in force in Webster CountyThe forecast for Webster CountyThe live radar over Webster CountyEvery county in Nebraska

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.