Tornadoes · United States · North Dakota

Tornadoes in Richland County, North Dakota

63 tornadoes have crossed Richland County since 1950, 4th of the 53 counties in North Dakota with a tornado on record, an average of one every 1.2 years. They have killed 2 people and injured 30. 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
63
Deaths
2
Injuries
30
F4 and above
2
Worst on record
F4, July 2, 1955

The deadliest in Richland County

The strongest

Every year with a tornado

The 41 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Richland County. Each year links to every tornado in North Dakota that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20252EF1
20242EF1
20231Unrated
20221EF1
20211EF0
20192EF1
20153EF1
20133EF1
20112EF2
20103EF4
20091EF1
20081EF0
20064F1
20054F1
20031F0
20021F0
20011F1
19991F0
19971F0
19961F1
19921F0
19912F1
19892F0
19881F0
19871F0
19861F0
19801F0
19791F1
19772F1
19761F0
19741F1
19731F3
19701F0
19661F1
1964211F3
19602F2
19592F1
19561F0
19551219F4
19531F2
19521F3

Every tornado that crossed Richland County

63 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 North Dakota.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
September 18, 20253:40 PM CDTUnratedRichland0.210
August 21, 20255:29 PM CDTEF1Richland1.830
July 13, 20247:15 PM CDTEF1Richland4.580
May 24, 20242:52 PM CDTUnratedRichland0.510
June 7, 20237:44 PM CDTUnratedRichland0.010
May 12, 20227:10 PM CDTEF1Richland3.4150
October 9, 20216:40 PM CDTEF0Richland0.110
July 9, 20195:30 PM CDTEF0Richland0.250
July 9, 20195:19 PM CDTEF1Richland1.5100
June 27, 20158:59 PM CDTEF0Richland2.4300
June 27, 20158:44 PM CDTEF1Richland0.8100
June 27, 20158:22 PM CDTEF1Richland2.075
August 6, 20134:26 PM CDTEF1Richland3.0150
August 6, 20134:13 PM CDTEF0Richland0.5100
June 4, 20137:16 PM CDTEF0Richland0.120
July 10, 20115:53 PM CDTEF1Richland2.9200$30,000
May 30, 20118:46 PM CDTEF2Richland4.3600$550,000
August 12, 20108:34 PM CDTEF0Sargent1.925
August 7, 20106:25 PM CDTEF0Wilkin to ND0.225
August 7, 20106:25 PM CDTEF4Wilkin to MN5.0600
June 18, 20096:04 PM CDTEF1Richland7.0300
July 10, 20088:26 AM CDTEF0Richland0.130$10,000
August 5, 20068:33 PM CDTF0Richland5.025
August 5, 20067:33 PM CDTF1Cass3.050
August 5, 20067:10 PM CDTF0Ransom3.025
June 5, 20068:41 PM CDTF0Richland2.025
June 29, 20054:40 PM CDTF0Richland2.050
June 20, 20059:44 AM CDTF1Richland7.0100
June 11, 20052:15 PM CDTF0Richland0.250
May 20, 20056:05 PM CDTF0Cass0.750
June 7, 20036:20 PM CDTF0Richland0.125
June 19, 20024:20 PM CDTF0Richland0.225$2,000
July 17, 20018:10 PM CDTF1Richland2.025$100,000
July 27, 19995:00 PM CDTF0Richland0.50
June 28, 199711:25 AM CDTF0Richland0.523
May 17, 19966:25 PM CDTF1Richland2.0100$50,000
June 22, 19929:10 PM CDTF0Richland0.110$500 to $5,000
July 11, 19919:55 PM CDTF1Richland2.950
July 11, 19919:20 PM CDTF0Richland0.110
May 29, 198910:42 AM CDTF0Richland0.213$5,000 to $50,000
May 29, 198910:30 AM CDTF0Richland0.213$5,000 to $50,000
July 28, 19887:00 PM CDTF0Richland0.213$5,000 to $50,000
August 15, 19873:45 PM CDTF0Richland0.213
July 17, 198612:45 PM CDTF0Richland0.213$5,000 to $50,000
August 6, 19804:18 PM CDTF0Richland0.110
June 28, 19792:25 PM CDTF1Richland3.3100$50 to $500
August 26, 19775:30 PM CDTF1Richland0.110$5,000 to $50,000
June 26, 197711:30 PM CDTF0Richland0.110
June 28, 19766:45 PM CDTF0Richland0.110
July 13, 19743:25 PM CDTF1Richland0.110$5,000 to $50,000
July 1, 19738:30 PM CDTF3Richland0.110$50,000 to $500,000
June 11, 19708:50 PM CDTF0Richland0.110
July 26, 19661:50 PM GMT-5F1Richland0.110$5,000 to $50,000
June 8, 19647:30 PM GMT-5F2Richland26.910$50,000 to $500,000
May 5, 19646:30 PM GMT-5F3Wilkin to MN5.244011$500 to $5,000
August 25, 19609:00 PM GMT-5F2Richland0.110$5,000 to $50,000
June 30, 19608:00 PM GMT-5F0Richland0.110
July 9, 19594:00 PM GMT-5F1Richland0.110$5,000 to $50,000
June 10, 19594:00 PM GMT-5F0Richland0.110
July 12, 19562:30 PM GMT-5F0Richland0.110
July 2, 19557:00 PM GMT-5F4Richland9.1150219$50,000 to $500,000
May 29, 19537:00 PM GMT-5F2Richland0.110$500 to $5,000
July 1, 19523:00 PM GMT-5F3Richland0.510$5,000 to $50,000

Nearby

Warnings in force in Richland CountyThe forecast for Richland CountyThe live radar over Richland CountyEvery county in North Dakota

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.