Tornadoes · United States · South Carolina

Tornadoes in Laurens County, South Carolina

25 tornadoes have crossed Laurens County since 1950, 25th of the 46 counties in South Carolina with a tornado on record, an average of one every 3.0 years. They have killed 0 people and injured 52. 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
25
Deaths
0
Injuries
52
F4 and above
0
Worst on record
F3, December 13, 1973

The strongest

  1. F3, Greenwood and Laurens counties, South CarolinaDecember 13, 1973F3, 10.7 mi (17 km)
  2. EF2, Laurens and Spartanburg counties, South CarolinaOctober 8, 2017EF2, 22.3 mi (36 km)
  3. F2, Laurens County, South CarolinaJanuary 13, 2005F2, 12.0 mi (19 km)
  4. F2, Laurens County, South CarolinaMarch 28, 1984F2, 10.0 mi (16 km)
  5. F2, Laurens County, South CarolinaMarch 30, 1960F2, 9.8 mi (16 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 19 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Laurens County. Each year links to every tornado in South Carolina that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20232EF1
20213EF1
20201EF0
20173EF2
20111EF0
20101EF1
20091EF0
20071EF1
20061F0
200511F2
20041F0
20031F0
19981F0
19932F1
19901F0
1984143F2
197715F1
197313F3
19601F2

Every tornado that crossed Laurens County

25 tornadoes, newest first.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
March 3, 20237:14 PM ESTEF1Laurens21.350$50,000
January 12, 20235:39 PM ESTEF1Laurens9.1100
August 17, 20216:18 PM EDTEF1Laurens1.475$20,000
August 17, 20216:07 PM EDTEF0Laurens0.230
March 25, 20214:59 PM EDTEF0Laurens2.125
June 10, 20208:29 PM EDTEF0Laurens0.430$10,000
October 8, 20174:40 PM EDTEF2Laurens22.3200$300,000
October 8, 20174:08 PM EDTEF1Laurens12.0100$20,000
April 3, 20172:49 PM EDTEF0Laurens0.775$20,000
March 19, 20116:15 PM EDTEF0Laurens0.230
November 30, 20109:39 PM ESTEF1Laurens2.0200$50,000
May 4, 20095:40 PM EDTEF0Laurens2.150$20,000
September 14, 20077:44 PM EDTEF1Laurens0.125$10,000
January 17, 20067:40 PM ESTF0Laurens0.120$1,000
January 13, 20057:13 PM ESTF2Laurens12.03501$2.0 million
September 16, 20045:12 PM EDTF0Laurens0.520
July 1, 20031:26 AM EDTF0Laurens3.0200$1,000
April 19, 19982:25 PM EDTF0Laurens5.050$70,000
May 25, 19934:58 PM EDTF0Laurens2.050$50,000 to $500,000
April 15, 19933:26 PM EDTF1Greenwood34.0300$50,000 to $500,000
May 4, 19904:45 PM EDTF0Laurens0.120$500 to $5,000
March 28, 19844:40 PM ESTF2Laurens10.070043$5 million to $50 million
May 8, 19777:40 PM EDTF1Laurens1.5505$50,000 to $500,000
December 13, 19733:10 PM ESTF3Greenwood10.72003$500,000 to $5 million
March 30, 19606:00 PM GMT-5F2Laurens9.850$5,000 to $50,000

Nearby

Warnings in force in Laurens CountyThe forecast for Laurens CountyThe live radar over Laurens 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.