42
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
7
Direct injuries
$39.7M
Property damage
Tornado in Union County, Iowa: 42 recorded events between 1962 and 2025. The strongest on record measured F4. That places the county #567 nationally and #27 statewide for this hazard.
Decade by decade
Tornado in Union County, Iowa: events per decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
The busiest decade for tornado in Union County is the 2000s, when 10 of the county's 42 recorded events were logged. Comparing decades is useful for spotting active periods, but the earliest years are thin because systematic reporting for this hazard began later.
Within the Union County archive, tornado makes up 10.3% of all recorded severe weather across 8 hazard types. Nationally the county sits at #567 for this hazard and #27 within Iowa, putting it in the 80.4 percentile of all U.S. counties.
Seasonality
Events by month
Apr is the peak month for tornado in Union County with 13 recorded events, while Jan is the quietest. Seasonality here is a property of the archive as much as the climate: reports cluster where population and spotter networks are densest.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
| Date | Scale | Path length | Max width | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999-04-08 | EF4 | 56.0 mi | 1,250 yd | Touched down here |
| 1995-05-27 | EF4 | 57.0 mi | 500 yd | Touched down here |
| 2001-04-11 | EF3 | 76.5 mi | 500 yd | Crossed in |
| 1979-03-29 | EF3 | 57.0 mi | 500 yd | Crossed in |
| 2024-04-26 | EF2 | 9.7 mi | 350 yd | Crossed in |
| 2024-04-26 | EF2 | 6.7 mi | 130 yd | Touched down here |
| 2024-04-26 | EF2 | 13.9 mi | 150 yd | Touched down here |
| 2012-04-14 | EF2 | 16.6 mi | 800 yd | Crossed in |
| 1972-06-13 | EF2 | 2.0 mi | 100 yd | Touched down here |
| 1964-04-12 | EF2 | 9.4 mi | 10 yd | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest on record
| Date | Location | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 14, 2012 | CROMWELL | EF2 | 0 | 2 | $5.0M |
| May 28, 1995 | Creston to | F4 | 0 | 2 | $3.0M |
| Mar 30, 1979 | F3 | 0 | 2 | $2.5M | |
| Apr 8, 1999 | CRESTON | F4 | 0 | 1 | $2.0M |
Most recent
Latest recorded events
| Date | Location | Magnitude | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 18, 2025 | KENT | EF1 | $46K |
| May 21, 2024 | SPAULDING | EFU | $0 |
| May 21, 2024 | CROMWELL | EF0 | $1K |
| Apr 27, 2024 | AFTON | EF2 | $500K |
| Apr 27, 2024 | CRESTON ARPT | EF1 | $25K |
| Apr 27, 2024 | AFTON | EF2 | $100K |
| Apr 27, 2024 | CRESTON | EF1 | $50K |
| Apr 26, 2024 | CROMWELL | EF2 | $300K |
| Mar 5, 2022 | CROMWELL | EFU | $0 |
| Oct 9, 2018 | CROMWELL | EF1 | $40K |
Other hazards here
More from Union County
- Thunderstorm Wind 138
- Hail 120
- Heavy Rain 59
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
This tornado continued in from Adams county. NWS storm survey confirmed a strong EF2 tornado. It entered Union county just southwest of Cromwell and tracked east-northeast through the far northwest portion of Creston. The Greater Regional Medical Center and Southwest Community College sustained EF2 damage with the worst occurring to the Green Hills Education Center. The tornado continued tracking northeast and damaged a few farmsteads northeast of Creston.
This tornado formed between the BNSF railroad and Highway 34 west of Afton and took a track very similar to a tornado which occurred earlier in the hour. It produced EF2 damage to several house on either side of Highway 34 as it travelled to the northeast. The tornado crossed Three Mile Lake just upstream of the dam and impacted a structure in the Wildlife Management Building area just a few hundred yards from the one impacted in the earlier tornado. This tornado then moved northeast through rural Union County impacting another farmstead producing EF2 damage. The tornado dissipated in the north central portion of Union County near the intersection of Pheasant Avenue and 130th Street.
This tornado entered Union County from Adams County south of Cromwell. The tornado moved northeast through western Union county remaining in mostly rural locations. It did impact a few farmsteads along the way with mostly tree and outbuilding damage. The tornado moved into the far northwest portions of Creston producing EF2 damage to a multiple story townhouse along with taking down several trees. The tornado weakened quickly after this point with some minor damage observed at the atletic fields of the high school. The tornado then moved into open farmland north of Creston before dissipating.
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many tornado events are on record in Union County, Iowa?
42 tornado events are recorded in Union County between 1962 and 2025, causing 0 direct deaths.
What is the strongest tornado recorded in Union County?
The strongest tornado on record in Union County measured F4.
Where does the tornado data for Union County come from?
All events come from the NOAA/NCEI Storm Events Database, the federal public-domain archive of severe weather reports. Dates are UTC, damage is as reported and not inflation-adjusted, and the most recent entries may still be revised.
Cite this page
“Tornado in Union County, Iowa.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/iowa/union-county/tornado/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.