Tornadoes · United States

Tornadoes in Vermont

49 tornadoes since 1950, an average of 0.6 a year, 47th of the 53 states and territories in the record. They have killed 0 people and injured 12. 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 strongest

  1. F2, Franklin County, VermontJune 13, 1961F2, 7.9 mi (13 km)
  2. F2, Sullivan and Windsor counties, Vermont and New HampshireJuly 9, 1962F2, 7.7 mi (12 km)
  3. F2, Windsor County, VermontJuly 9, 1962F2, 7.6 mi (12 km)
  4. F2, Franklin County, VermontJuly 4, 1963F2, 5.9 mi (9 km)
  5. F2, Franklin County, VermontAugust 3, 1970F2, 4.5 mi (7 km)
  6. F2, Franklin County, VermontJune 18, 1957F2, 3.0 mi (5 km)
  7. F2, Lamoille County, VermontJune 24, 1960F2, 2.0 mi (3 km)
  8. F2, Franklin County, VermontMay 20, 1962F2, 1.8 mi (3 km)
  9. F2, Windsor County, VermontAugust 11, 1966F2, 1.0 mi (2 km)
  10. F2, Windsor County, VermontOctober 24, 1955F2, 1.0 mi (2 km)
  11. F2, Bennington County, VermontMay 29, 1969F2, 0.5 mi (1 km)
  12. F2, Chittenden County, VermontAugust 8, 1983F2, 0.2 mi (0 km)

The longest paths

  1. F1, Bennington County, VermontJuly 21, 200325.0 mi (40 km)
  2. EF0, Rutland County, VermontJuly 13, 202311.8 mi (19 km)
  3. F1, Orleans County, VermontMay 20, 19629.4 mi (15 km)
  4. F2, Franklin County, VermontJune 13, 19617.9 mi (13 km)
  5. F2, Sullivan and Windsor counties, Vermont and New HampshireJuly 9, 19627.7 mi (12 km)
  6. F2, Windsor County, VermontJuly 9, 19627.6 mi (12 km)
  7. F2, Franklin County, VermontJuly 4, 19635.9 mi (9 km)
  8. F2, Franklin County, VermontAugust 3, 19704.5 mi (7 km)
  9. F1, Orleans and Essex counties, VermontSeptember 3, 19934.0 mi (6 km)
  10. F1, Orange County, VermontAugust 9, 19723.6 mi (6 km)
  11. F2, Franklin County, VermontJune 18, 19573.0 mi (5 km)
  12. EF0, Orange County, VermontJuly 16, 20092.7 mi (4 km)

The costliest

  1. F1, Bennington County, VermontJuly 21, 2003$150,000
  2. EF1, Orange County, VermontMay 9, 2009$125,000
  3. EF1, Lamoille County, VermontJuly 18, 2008$100,000
  4. EF1, Addison County, VermontMarch 26, 2021$75,000
  5. F2, Windham County, VermontJune 5, 2002$70,000
  6. EF0, Rutland County, VermontJuly 13, 2023$50,000
  7. EF0, Orange County, VermontJuly 16, 2009$50,000
  8. EF0, Lamoille County, VermontJuly 18, 2008$50,000
  9. F1, Bennington County, VermontJune 5, 2002$30,000
  10. EF0, Caledonia County, VermontAugust 3, 2010$25,000
  11. EF1, Orleans County, VermontJune 5, 2010$25,000
  12. EF1, Addison County, VermontJuly 18, 2022$10,000

The biggest days in Vermont

  1. May 20, 19623tornadoes
  2. July 18, 20222tornadoes
  3. July 18, 20082tornadoes
  4. July 21, 20032tornadoes
  5. June 5, 20022tornadoes
  6. July 9, 19622tornadoes
  7. June 24, 19602tornadoes
  8. July 13, 20231tornadoes
  9. March 26, 20211tornadoes
  10. August 21, 20191tornadoes
  11. May 29, 20121tornadoes
  12. July 26, 20111tornadoes

Every year

Every year of the published record, and above it the 3 tornado tracks surveyed in Vermont 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 preliminary3
20231
20222
202112
20191
20121
20111
20102
20092
20082
20032
20022
19931
19891
19882
19871
19861
19831
19821
19732
19722
197017
196911
19661
196511
19631
196251
19613
19602
19572
19552
19531

Every county in Vermont

A tornado is counted once for every county its path crossed, so these add up to more than 49. Each county has a page of its own: every tornado that crossed it, year by year.

CountyTornadoesDeaths
Franklin County8
Chittenden County6
Orleans County6
Bennington County5
Windham County5
Addison County4
Essex County4
Windsor County4
Lamoille County3
Orange County3
Rutland County2
Coos County1
Sullivan County1
Caledonia County1

Nearby

Warnings in force in VermontForecast for your townThe live radar over Vermont

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.