Tornadoes · United States · South Carolina

Tornadoes in Spartanburg County, South Carolina

38 tornadoes have crossed Spartanburg County since 1950, 11th of the 46 counties in South Carolina with a tornado on record, an average of one every 2.0 years. They have killed 4 people and injured 140. 1 was 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
38
Deaths
4
Injuries
140
F4 and above
1
Worst on record
F4, May 5, 1989

The deadliest in Spartanburg County

  1. F4, Spartanburg, Cherokee and Rutherford counties, South Carolina and North CarolinaMay 5, 19892 killed, 35 injured
  2. F3, Greenville and Spartanburg counties, South CarolinaMay 10, 19522 killed, 4 injured

The strongest

  1. F4, Spartanburg, Cherokee and Rutherford counties, South Carolina and North CarolinaMay 5, 1989F4, 15.0 mi (24 km)
  2. F3, Greenville, Spartanburg, Cherokee and Cleveland counties, South Carolina and North CarolinaMay 27, 1973F3, 60.2 mi (97 km)
  3. F3, Union and Spartanburg counties, South CarolinaAugust 16, 1994F3, 30.0 mi (48 km)
  4. F3, Greenville and Spartanburg counties, South CarolinaMay 10, 1952F3, 22.7 mi (37 km)
  5. F2, Spartanburg, Cherokee, Cleveland and Gaston counties, South Carolina and North CarolinaMarch 27, 1994F2, 45.4 mi (73 km)
  6. EF2, Laurens and Spartanburg counties, South CarolinaOctober 8, 2017EF2, 22.3 mi (36 km)
  7. F2, Spartanburg County, South CarolinaAugust 17, 1985F2, 9.0 mi (14 km)
  8. EF2, Spartanburg County, South CarolinaOctober 23, 2017EF2, 3.0 mi (5 km)
  9. F2, Spartanburg County, South CarolinaMay 23, 1980F2, 2.5 mi (4 km)
  10. F2, Spartanburg County, South CarolinaApril 4, 1989F2, 2.0 mi (3 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 25 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Spartanburg County. Each year links to every tornado in South Carolina that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20241EF0
20231EF1
20221EF1
20211EF0
20201EF1
201731EF2
20161EF1
20071Unrated
20051F0
20001F0
19981F0
19971F2
19961F1
1994617F3
199034F1
19892235F4
1985139F2
19801F2
19772F1
19761F1
1973140F3
19691F1
19681F1
19643F1
1952124F3

Every tornado that crossed Spartanburg County

38 tornadoes, newest first.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
December 29, 20247:55 AM ESTEF0Spartanburg1.730
March 3, 20237:14 PM ESTEF1Laurens21.350$50,000
May 23, 20227:09 PM EDTEF1Spartanburg5.3200$40,000
April 10, 20216:38 PM EDTEF0Spartanburg1.120
February 6, 202010:21 AM ESTEF1Spartanburg10.1100$10 million
October 23, 20173:12 PM EDTEF2Spartanburg3.03501$1.0 million
October 23, 20172:52 PM EDTEF1Spartanburg12.7100$50,000
October 8, 20174:40 PM EDTEF2Laurens22.3200$300,000
November 30, 20164:41 PM ESTEF1Greenville16.4150$500,000
January 5, 20073:11 PM ESTUnratedSpartanburg0.350$10,000
July 7, 200510:51 AM EDTF0Spartanburg0.250
March 11, 20003:00 PM ESTF0Spartanburg0.120
June 6, 19985:00 PM EDTF0Spartanburg1.030
February 21, 19974:33 PM ESTF2Spartanburg1.073$330,000
July 26, 19964:55 PM EDTF1Spartanburg0.110
October 22, 19946:10 PM EDTF0Spartanburg2.073$500 to $5,000
August 16, 19943:00 PM EDTF1Union30.0150$50,000 to $500,000
August 16, 19942:50 PM EDTF3Union30.0250$50,000 to $500,000
March 27, 19944:40 PM ESTF1Greenville18.050$500 to $5,000
March 27, 19944:30 PM ESTF1Spartanburg33.01004$50,000 to $500,000
March 27, 19942:55 PM CSTF2Spartanburg to NC45.410013$500,000 to $5 million
April 28, 19905:20 PM EDTF1Spartanburg6.0504$50,000 to $500,000
April 28, 19905:10 PM EDTF0Spartanburg2.030$50,000 to $500,000
February 10, 19908:38 AM ESTF1Spartanburg5.050$50 to $500
May 5, 19895:20 PM CDTF4Spartanburg to NC15.0700235$500,000 to $5 million
April 4, 19895:18 PM EDTF2Spartanburg2.073$50,000 to $500,000
August 17, 198512:50 PM EDTF2Spartanburg9.010039$500,000 to $5 million
May 23, 19809:10 PM EDTF2Spartanburg2.5100$50,000 to $500,000
December 5, 19772:35 PM ESTF1Spartanburg0.220$5,000 to $50,000
September 7, 19774:00 PM EDTF1Spartanburg0.377$5,000 to $50,000
June 19, 19766:30 PM EDTF1Spartanburg0.250$50 to $500
May 27, 19736:20 PM CDTF3Greenville to NC60.215040$500,000 to $5 million
May 18, 196911:00 PM GMT-4F1Spartanburg0.150$50,000 to $500,000
March 22, 19686:30 PM GMT-5F1Spartanburg0.513$500 to $5,000
April 28, 19648:30 PM GMT-4F0Spartanburg0.110under $50
April 28, 19647:30 PM GMT-4F0Spartanburg0.110under $50
April 7, 19641:08 PM GMT-5F1Spartanburg0.2100$50 to $500
May 10, 19524:00 PM GMT-4F3Greenville22.78324under $50

Nearby

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