53
Recorded events
1
Direct deaths
16
Direct injuries
$83.6M
Property damage
Tornado in McPherson County, Kansas: 53 recorded events between 1950 and 2018. The strongest on record measured F5. That places the county #337 nationally and #25 statewide for this hazard.
Decade by decade
Tornado in McPherson County, Kansas: events per decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
The busiest decade for tornado in McPherson County is the 1990s, when 14 of the county's 53 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 McPherson County archive, tornado makes up 5.3% of all recorded severe weather across 8 hazard types. Nationally the county sits at #337 for this hazard and #25 within Kansas, putting it in the 88.5 percentile of all U.S. counties.
Seasonality
Events by month
May is the peak month for tornado in McPherson County with 18 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990-03-13 | EF5 | 22.0 mi | 1,320 yd | Crossed in |
| 1990-03-13 | EF5 | 48.0 mi | 1,320 yd | Crossed in |
| 1950-06-08 | EF4 | 17.1 mi | 700 yd | Crossed in |
| 1992-06-15 | EF4 | 6.0 mi | 73 yd | Touched down here |
| 1973-09-25 | EF3 | 169.7 mi | 100 yd | Crossed in |
| 1990-03-13 | EF3 | 18.0 mi | 200 yd | Crossed in |
| 1990-05-24 | EF3 | 60.0 mi | 400 yd | Crossed in |
| 1992-06-15 | EF2 | 7.0 mi | 73 yd | Touched down here |
| 1974-05-13 | EF2 | 49.8 mi | 100 yd | Crossed in |
| 1973-09-25 | EF2 | 0.1 mi | 10 yd | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest on record
| Date | Location | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 9, 1950 | F4 | 1 | 5 | $250K | |
| Jun 16, 1992 | F4 | 0 | 10 | $25.0M | |
| Jun 13, 1971 | F2 | 0 | 1 | $25K |
Most recent
Latest recorded events
| Date | Location | Magnitude | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|
| May 2, 2018 | MOUNDRIDGE | EF0 | $0 |
| May 12, 2014 | MC PHERSON | EF0 | $0 |
| May 12, 2014 | INMAN | EF0 | $0 |
| May 12, 2014 | INMAN | EF0 | $0 |
| Apr 15, 2012 | MOUNDRIDGE | EF1 | $0 |
| Apr 15, 2012 | MOUNDRIDGE | EF0 | $0 |
| Apr 14, 2012 | MARQUETTE | EF0 | $0 |
| Feb 29, 2012 | MOUNDRIDGE | EF0 | $15K |
| Jul 3, 2011 | MOUNDRIDGE | EF0 | $0 |
| May 12, 2010 | CANTON | EF0 | $0 |
Other hazards here
More from McPherson County
- Hail 432
- Thunderstorm Wind 395
- Flood 44
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Three barns were completely destroyed, a silo was blown into a cornfield, a center-pivot irrigation system was destroyed, and 26 power poles were downed. Additionally, an SUV was thrown into a wheat field. The McPherson Sentinel contributed to this report.
Initial damage occurred 3.5 miles SW of Inman where an old barn collapsed and trees were uprooted. The greatest damage occurred 3-4 miles east of Inman where one house sustained minor roof damage, a circle irrigation system was destroyed, a tin cattleshed was destroyed, and an irrigation pipe was wrapped around trees. As the tornado continued a northeast track along and just east Highway 61, it inflicted more tree damage as well as damaging part of the wheat crop as it passed 2 miles southeast of Groveland before lifting 3 miles southwest of McPherson. Though possessing an overall track of 10 miles from point of entry into McPherson County to dissipation, the tornado skipped, never maintaining ground contact for more than 2 miles at a time with the segments totalling about 5 miles.
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many tornado events are on record in McPherson County, Kansas?
53 tornado events are recorded in McPherson County between 1950 and 2018, causing 1 direct deaths.
What is the strongest tornado recorded in McPherson County?
The strongest tornado on record in McPherson County measured F5.
Where does the tornado data for McPherson 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 McPherson County, Kansas.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/kansas/mcpherson-county/tornado/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.