Tornadoes · United States

Tornadoes in Utah

142 tornadoes since 1950, an average of 1.9 a year, 39th of the 53 states and territories in the record. They have killed 1 people and injured 98. 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.

The deadliest in Utah

  1. F2, Salt Lake County, UtahAugust 11, 19991 killed, 80 injured

The strongest

  1. F3, Duchesne County, UtahAugust 11, 1993F3, 17.0 mi (27 km)
  2. F2, Emery and Grand counties, UtahMay 4, 1961F2, 9.4 mi (15 km)
  3. F2, Salt Lake County, UtahAugust 11, 1999F2, 4.3 mi (7 km)
  4. F2, Sanpete County, UtahSeptember 8, 2002F2, 2.7 mi (4 km)
  5. F2, Sanpete County, UtahJune 16, 1955F2, 2.7 mi (4 km)
  6. EF2, Duchesne County, UtahJune 19, 2022EF2, 2.1 mi (3 km)
  7. F2, Davis County, UtahJune 3, 1963F2, 2.0 mi (3 km)
  8. F2, Weber County, UtahAugust 14, 1968F2, 1.5 mi (2 km)
  9. EF2, San Juan County, UtahSeptember 13, 2025EF2, 1.1 mi (2 km)
  10. EF2, San Juan County, UtahJuly 12, 2025EF2, 0.1 mi (0 km)
  11. F2, Grand County, UtahJune 10, 1970F2, 0.1 mi (0 km)
  12. F2, Emery County, UtahNovember 2, 1967F2, 0.1 mi (0 km)

The longest paths

  1. F3, Duchesne County, UtahAugust 11, 199317.0 mi (27 km)
  2. F1, Tooele County, UtahJuly 25, 199110.0 mi (16 km)
  3. F2, Emery and Grand counties, UtahMay 4, 19619.4 mi (15 km)
  4. F0, Davis and Morgan counties, UtahJune 5, 19538.0 mi (13 km)
  5. F0, Davis County, UtahAugust 2, 20055.0 mi (8 km)
  6. F0, Beaver County, UtahSeptember 4, 20015.0 mi (8 km)
  7. F2, Salt Lake County, UtahAugust 11, 19994.3 mi (7 km)
  8. F0, Box Elder County, UtahAugust 14, 19684.1 mi (7 km)
  9. F1, Uintah County, UtahSeptember 3, 19994.0 mi (6 km)
  10. F1, Iron and Washington counties, UtahMay 30, 19863.5 mi (6 km)
  11. EF1, Weber County, UtahSeptember 22, 20162.9 mi (5 km)
  12. F2, Sanpete County, UtahSeptember 8, 20022.7 mi (4 km)

The costliest

  1. F2, Salt Lake County, UtahAugust 11, 1999$170 million
  2. EF1, Weber County, UtahSeptember 22, 2016$2.0 million
  3. F2, Sanpete County, UtahSeptember 8, 2002$2.0 million
  4. F1, Uintah County, UtahSeptember 3, 1999$700,000
  5. F1, Weber County, UtahMay 29, 1996$600,000
  6. EF1, Garfield County, UtahSeptember 22, 2016$300,000
  7. F0, Davis County, UtahMay 29, 1996$100,000
  8. EF0, Uintah County, UtahAugust 6, 2009$40,000
  9. F0, Davis County, UtahJune 4, 1998$30,000
  10. EF0, Carbon County, UtahJuly 26, 2010$25,000
  11. EF0, Box Elder County, UtahMay 3, 2009$25,000
  12. F0, Weber County, UtahMay 21, 1998$20,000

The biggest days in Utah

  1. May 31, 19693tornadoes
  2. August 14, 19683tornadoes
  3. September 13, 20252tornadoes
  4. May 28, 20182tornadoes
  5. September 22, 20162tornadoes
  6. August 6, 20092tornadoes
  7. September 12, 20022tornadoes
  8. September 8, 20022tornadoes
  9. August 21, 20012tornadoes
  10. September 8, 20002tornadoes
  11. May 21, 19982tornadoes
  12. May 29, 19962tornadoes

Every year

Every year of the published record, and above it the 2 tornado tracks surveyed in Utah so far in 2026. This year's figures are preliminary and are not in the totals above, which are SPC's published database.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesF4 and above
2026 preliminary2
20255
20242
20221
20214
20182
20172
201635
20152
20131
20121
20111
20102
20094
20071
20062
20054
20031
20024
20015
20003
19993181
199876
19971
199631
19952
199362
19924
19915
199041
19896
19881
19873
19863
19846
19823
19812
19711
197051
19693
196841
19672
19662
19655
19641
19631
19621
19611
19571
19553
19541
19532

Every county in Utah

A tornado is counted once for every county its path crossed, so these add up to more than 142. Each county has a page of its own: every tornado that crossed it, year by year.

CountyTornadoesDeaths
Salt Lake County131
Davis County12
Box Elder County10
Utah County10
Sanpete County9
Uintah County8
Wayne County8
Weber County8
Beaver County7
Emery County7
San Juan County7
Duchesne County5
Grand County5
Iron County5
Tooele County5
Cache County4
Garfield County4
Washington County4
Carbon County2
Daggett County2
Millard County2
Rich County2
Sevier County2
Juab County1
Morgan County1
Piute County1
Wasatch County1

Nearby

Warnings in force in UtahForecast for your townThe live radar over Utah

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.