Tornadoes · United States · Oklahoma

Tornadoes in Cherokee County, Oklahoma

51 tornadoes have crossed Cherokee County since 1950, 2 of them surveyed so far this year and still preliminary, 54th of the 77 counties in Oklahoma with a tornado on record, an average of one every 1.5 years. They have killed 3 people and injured 21. 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
51
Deaths
3
Injuries
21
F4 and above
0
Worst on record
F3, June 1, 1999

The deadliest in Cherokee County

  1. F3, Cherokee County, OklahomaJune 1, 19992 killed, 5 injured
  2. EF2, Mayes and Cherokee counties, OklahomaAugust 10, 20111 killed, 2 injured

The strongest

  1. F3, Wagoner, Muskogee and Cherokee counties, OklahomaMay 5, 1971F3, 37.0 mi (60 km)
  2. F3, Cherokee and Delaware counties, OklahomaMarch 12, 2006F3, 29.0 mi (47 km)
  3. F3, Cherokee County, OklahomaJune 1, 1999F3, 2.0 mi (3 km)
  4. F3, Cherokee County, OklahomaMay 10, 1964F3, 2.0 mi (3 km)
  5. EF2, Sequoyah, Cherokee and Adair counties, OklahomaNovember 30, 2018EF2, 47.0 mi (76 km)
  6. EF2, Cherokee, Adair, Washington and Benton counties, Oklahoma and ArkansasNovember 4, 2024EF2, 32.9 mi (53 km)
  7. EF2, Cherokee and Delaware counties, OklahomaMay 20, 2019EF2, 21.0 mi (34 km)
  8. F2, Cherokee County, OklahomaApril 17, 1995F2, 7.0 mi (11 km)
  9. F2, Cherokee County, OklahomaApril 11, 1966F2, 6.5 mi (10 km)
  10. EF2, Mayes and Cherokee counties, OklahomaAugust 10, 2011EF2, 5.0 mi (8 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 28 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Cherokee County. Each year links to every tornado in Oklahoma that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20262EF1
20258EF1
20242EF2
20221Unrated
20201EF1
201921EF2
201815EF2
20172EF1
20161EF1
20151EF1
20121EF1
2011412EF2
20102EF1
20082EF0
200618F3
1999325F3
19954F2
19931F0
19851F0
19841F1
19821F0
19732F1
19721F1
19711F3
19661F2
19641F3
19602F2
19561F1

Every tornado that crossed Cherokee County

51 tornadoes, newest first. The 2 at the top are this year's, from the surveying office rather than SPC's published database, and their ratings are marked as preliminary.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
April 14, 202611:24 PM CDTEF1Cherokee7.71,100
April 14, 202611:38 PM CDTEF1Cherokee to AR24.2800
June 18, 20251:04 AM CDTEF1Cherokee7.71,000$50,000
June 17, 202512:56 AM CDTEF1Cherokee6.9600$50,000
June 17, 202512:53 AM CDTEF1Cherokee1.8700$10,000
June 7, 20255:13 AM CDTEF1Cherokee9.32,000$10,000
June 6, 20255:56 AM CDTEF1Mayes4.8300$75,000
May 19, 20256:47 PM CDTEF1Cherokee10.41,300
May 19, 20256:44 PM CDTEF1Cherokee12.31,100$50,000
May 19, 20255:03 PM CDTEF1Cherokee2.6600$20,000
November 4, 20243:21 PM CSTEF2Cherokee to AR32.91,200$280,000
April 28, 20241:23 AM CDTEF1Cherokee4.3350
May 2, 20229:03 PM CDTUnratedCherokee0.175
January 10, 20202:49 PM CSTEF1Cherokee5.8250$50,000
October 20, 201911:39 PM CDTEF1Cherokee2.9600
May 20, 201910:29 PM CDTEF2Cherokee21.02,7001$950,000
November 30, 20189:43 PM CSTEF2Sequoyah47.01,1005$2.0 million
May 18, 201711:01 PM CDTEF1Cherokee5.8800
May 18, 201710:45 PM CDTEF1Muskogee16.6650
April 26, 201611:46 PM CDTEF1Cherokee7.2700$150,000
July 9, 20155:08 PM CDTEF1Cherokee5.5220
April 15, 20129:22 AM CDTEF1Cherokee14.5500$75,000
August 10, 20113:32 AM CDTEF2Mayes5.040012
May 22, 20117:50 PM CDTEF0Cherokee0.150
May 22, 20117:27 PM CDTEF1Cherokee3.0250$70,000
April 22, 20117:18 PM CDTEF1Cherokee1.0200
May 13, 20105:51 AM CDTEF1Cherokee4.0200
May 13, 20105:37 AM CDTEF1Cherokee4.0200$10,000
June 6, 20083:47 PM CDTEF0Cherokee0.175
January 7, 200810:28 PM CSTEF0Cherokee1.8500$25,000
March 12, 20069:09 PM CSTF3Cherokee29.04408$3.0 million
June 1, 19995:35 PM CDTF3Cherokee2.035025$1.5 million
May 4, 19992:00 AM CDTF1Cherokee3.0100$40,000
April 22, 19997:40 PM CDTF0Cherokee0.350
October 26, 19957:43 PM CDTF0Cherokee0.130
October 26, 19957:16 PM CDTF0Cherokee2.073$50,000 to $500,000
April 17, 199511:35 PM CDTF2Cherokee7.0200$50,000 to $500,000
April 17, 199511:32 PM CDTF1Cherokee0.250$5,000 to $50,000
October 8, 19937:36 PM CDTF0Cherokee0.130
April 30, 198512:55 PM CDTF0Cherokee0.110$5,000 to $50,000
March 15, 19844:03 PM CSTF1Cherokee0.350$50,000 to $500,000
April 16, 19824:20 PM CSTF0Cherokee0.110
June 2, 19733:55 PM CDTF1Cherokee0.5100under $50
May 1, 19732:45 PM CDTF1Cherokee0.110$5,000 to $50,000
April 13, 19721:00 AM CSTF1Cherokee40.850$5,000 to $50,000
May 5, 19716:43 PM CDTF3Wagoner37.0600$50,000 to $500,000
April 11, 19668:00 PM GMT-6F2Cherokee6.520$50,000 to $500,000
May 10, 196411:15 PM GMT-5F3Cherokee2.0440$5,000 to $50,000
November 15, 19602:20 PM GMT-6F2Cherokee1.050$5,000 to $50,000
May 5, 19609:40 PM GMT-5F1Cherokee4.610$5,000 to $50,000
February 24, 195611:30 PM GMT-6F1Cherokee0.110$5,000 to $50,000

Nearby

Warnings in force in Cherokee CountyThe forecast for Cherokee CountyThe live radar over Cherokee CountyEvery county in Oklahoma

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.