Tornadoes · United States · New Mexico

Tornadoes in Union County, New Mexico

48 tornadoes have crossed Union County since 1950, 6th of the 31 counties in New Mexico with a tornado on record, an average of one every 1.6 years. They have killed 0 people and injured 0. 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
48
Deaths
0
Injuries
0
F4 and above
0
Worst on record
EF2, May 23, 2010

The strongest

  1. EF2, Union and Cimarron counties, New Mexico and OklahomaMay 23, 2010EF2, 22.0 mi (35 km)
  2. EF2, Union County, New MexicoMay 23, 2010EF2, 8.8 mi (14 km)
  3. F2, Union County, New MexicoSeptember 18, 1965F2, 5.1 mi (8 km)
  4. F2, Union County, New MexicoMay 10, 1972F2, 2.5 mi (4 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 23 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Union County. Each year links to every tornado in New Mexico that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20241Unrated
20211EF0
20201EF0
20193EF0
20182EF0
20161EF0
20141EF0
20107EF2
20081EF0
20041F0
20011F0
19967F0
19841F0
19792F1
19771F1
19725F2
19691F0
19673F0
19652F2
19622F1
19612F1
19541F0
19511F0

Every tornado that crossed Union County

48 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 New Mexico.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
May 28, 20243:05 PM MDTUnratedUnion3.550
May 30, 20214:10 PM MDTEF0Union0.450
July 4, 20204:30 PM MDTEF0Union0.030
July 5, 20194:05 PM MDTEF0Union2.150
May 26, 20195:50 PM MDTEF0Union2.650
May 26, 20194:55 PM MDTEF0Union21.775
September 9, 20182:15 PM MDTEF0Union0.250
June 22, 20184:53 PM MDTEF0Union0.640
August 13, 20162:02 PM MDTEF0Union0.050
June 7, 20148:33 AM MDTEF0Union0.120
May 23, 20108:59 PM MDTEF1Union9.3175
May 23, 20108:36 PM MDTEF1Union4.2100$125,000
May 23, 20108:12 PM MDTEF2Union8.8440$325,000
May 23, 20108:10 PM MDTEF1Union5.7175$10,000
May 23, 20107:55 PM MDTEF0Union2.5100
May 23, 20107:52 PM MDTEF0Sherman to NM, OK0.110
May 23, 20108:52 PM CDTEF2Union to OK22.0440$270,000
June 19, 20083:13 PM MDTEF0Union0.110
June 21, 20046:10 PM MDTF0Union0.1100
August 13, 20014:44 PM MDTF0Union0.130
September 2, 19963:15 PM MDTF0Union0.120
July 26, 19965:25 PM MDTF0Union0.120
July 12, 19962:40 PM MDTF0Union0.250
June 3, 19962:32 PM MDTF0Union1.050
June 3, 19962:24 PM MDTF0Union2.0100
May 25, 19964:30 PM MDTF0Union0.550$10,000
May 25, 19963:25 PM MDTF0Union0.250
July 5, 19843:50 PM MDTF0Union0.110
June 7, 19798:17 PM MDTF0Union0.110under $50
May 15, 19793:30 PM MDTF1Union0.110$50 to $500
April 19, 19774:00 PM MSTF1Union0.820
May 10, 19723:20 PM MDTF2Union2.5660$5,000 to $50,000
May 10, 19723:10 PM MDTF1Union3.610$500 to $5,000
May 10, 19723:00 PM MDTF0Union0.110
May 10, 19723:00 PM MDTF0Union0.110
May 10, 19723:00 PM MDTF0Union0.110
June 3, 196911:00 PM GMT-6F0Union0.110under $50
July 3, 19673:30 PM GMT-6F0Union0.110
July 3, 19673:30 PM GMT-6F0Union0.110
July 3, 19673:30 PM GMT-6F0Union0.110
September 18, 19657:00 PM GMT-6F2Union5.1100$5,000 to $50,000
June 3, 19655:05 PM GMT-6F0Union0.110
May 17, 19623:30 PM GMT-7F1Union15.310$5,000 to $50,000
May 17, 19623:30 PM GMT-7F0Union0.110$50 to $500
June 7, 19612:45 PM GMT-7F0Union0.110
June 5, 19611:30 PM GMT-7F1Union5.720under $50
June 29, 19541:30 PM GMT-7F0Union3.8300
August 10, 19512:30 PM GMT-7F0Union12.230under $50

Nearby

Warnings in force in Union CountyThe forecast for Union CountyThe live radar over Union CountyEvery county in New Mexico

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.