Tornadoes · United States · Texas

Tornadoes in Ward County, Texas

16 tornadoes have crossed Ward County since 1950, 209th of the 254 counties in Texas with a tornado on record, an average of one every 4.8 years. They have killed 0 people and injured 18. 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.

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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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: 16
Deaths: 0
Injuries: 18
F4 and above: 0
Worst on record: F3, April 19, 1977

The strongest

Every year with a tornado

The 10 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Ward County. Each year links to every tornado in Texas that year.

Year	Tornadoes	Injuries	Strongest
2020	1		EF1
2006	1		F0
2000	1		F0
1992	2		F0
1987	2		F2
1986	1		F0
1977	5	18	F3
1974	1		F1
1961	1		F2
1960	1		F0

Every tornado that crossed Ward County

16 tornadoes, newest first.

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Injuries	Damage
March 13, 2020	8:13 PM CDT	EF1	Ward	0.5	20		$50,000
April 22, 2006	7:20 PM CDT	F0	Ward	0.1	30
March 22, 2000	12:50 AM CST	F0	Ward	1.0	250		$300,000
April 15, 1992	5:35 PM CDT	F0	Ward	0.3	20
April 15, 1992	5:25 PM CDT	F0	Ward	0.2	30
May 25, 1987	7:09 PM CDT	F2	Ward	11.0	100
May 25, 1987	5:52 PM CDT	F0	Ward	1.0	40
October 1, 1986	5:50 PM CDT	F0	Ward	0.2	30
August 24, 1977	1:42 AM CDT	F0	Ward	0.3	20
April 19, 1977	1:10 PM CST	F0	Ward	0.1	10
April 19, 1977	12:25 PM CST	F0	Ward	0.1	10
April 19, 1977	12:25 PM CST	F3	Ward	4.3	200	18	$500,000 to $5 million
April 14, 1977	12:25 PM CST	F0	Ward	0.1	10
May 17, 1974	5:40 PM CDT	F1	Ward	1.5	150		under $50
September 19, 1961	6:00 PM GMT-5	F2	Ward	0.1	10
May 31, 1960	10:30 PM GMT-5	F0	Ward	0.1	10		$500 to $5,000

Nearby

Warnings in force in Ward County The forecast for Ward County The live radar over Ward County Every county in Texas

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.