Tornadoes · United States · South Carolina

Tornadoes in Calhoun County, South Carolina

27 tornadoes have crossed Calhoun County since 1950, 21st of the 46 counties in South Carolina with a tornado on record, an average of one every 2.8 years. They have killed 4 people and injured 16. 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
27
Deaths
4
Injuries
16
F4 and above
0
Worst on record
EF3, April 13, 2020

The deadliest in Calhoun County

The strongest

Every year with a tornado

The 18 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Calhoun County. Each year links to every tornado in South Carolina that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20242EF1
20231EF0
20221EF1
2020527EF3
20191EF1
20181EF0
20171EF2
201512EF1
20121EF0
20111EF1
20082EF2
200431F2
19952F2
19941F0
1990114F2
197411F1
19711F1
1958111F2

Every tornado that crossed Calhoun County

27 tornadoes, newest first.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
September 26, 20241:52 AM EDTEF1Calhoun13.7710
September 26, 202412:33 AM EDTEF1Orangeburg33.4800
January 4, 202311:02 AM ESTEF0Calhoun0.125
April 5, 20226:20 PM EDTEF1Lexington5.840
September 17, 202012:45 PM EDTEF0Calhoun0.325
September 17, 202012:06 PM EDTEF0Calhoun1.025
September 17, 20207:58 AM EDTUnratedCalhoun6.9150
April 13, 20206:25 AM EDTEF2Orangeburg10.2700
April 13, 20205:43 AM EDTEF3Barnwell35.777027
April 19, 20192:01 PM EDTEF1Orangeburg7.8400
May 28, 20183:06 PM EDTEF0Calhoun0.3150
April 3, 20175:11 PM EDTEF2Calhoun6.7600
April 19, 20155:20 PM EDTEF1Calhoun0.32002$200,000
June 11, 20121:42 PM EDTEF0Calhoun1.250$16,000
April 28, 20117:37 AM EDTEF1Calhoun4.7440$250,000
November 14, 200810:50 PM ESTEF1Calhoun8.1200$510,000
March 15, 20086:10 PM EDTEF2Calhoun24.4440
December 10, 20045:00 AM ESTF2Calhoun0.5601
September 7, 20049:48 AM EDTF0Calhoun0.5100
September 7, 20043:20 AM EDTF0Calhoun0.5100
November 7, 19954:00 PM ESTF2Calhoun1.5250$50,000 to $500,000
November 2, 19954:02 PM ESTF2Calhoun1.0200
June 6, 19943:15 PM EDTF0Calhoun0.110$50 to $500
October 22, 19905:50 PM EDTF2Calhoun0.12014$50,000 to $500,000
March 21, 19748:40 AM EDTF1Calhoun0.5771$50,000 to $500,000
February 22, 19714:20 PM ESTF1Calhoun11.980$5,000 to $50,000
April 22, 19582:20 PM GMT-5F2Calhoun17.710011$5,000 to $50,000

Nearby

Warnings in force in Calhoun CountyThe forecast for Calhoun CountyThe live radar over Calhoun CountyEvery county in South Carolina

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.