49
Recorded events
4
Direct deaths
46
Direct injuries
$21.9M
Property damage
Tornado in Barry County, Missouri: 49 recorded events between 1954 and 2025. The strongest on record measured F3. That places the county #400 nationally and #7 statewide for this hazard.
Decade by decade
Tornado in Barry County, Missouri: events per decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
The busiest decade for tornado in Barry County is the 2010s, when 18 of the county's 49 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 Barry County archive, tornado makes up 4.8% of all recorded severe weather across 9 hazard types. Nationally the county sits at #400 for this hazard and #7 within Missouri, putting it in the 86.5 percentile of all U.S. counties.
Seasonality
Events by month
Apr is the peak month for tornado in Barry County with 11 recorded events, while Jul 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008-05-10 | EF4 | 75.5 mi | 1,760 yd | Crossed in |
| 1954-03-24 | EF3 | 1.0 mi | 300 yd | Touched down here |
| 2012-02-29 | EF2 | 1.7 mi | 400 yd | Touched down here |
| 1988-11-15 | EF2 | 28.0 mi | 23 yd | Crossed in |
| 2008-01-07 | EF2 | 12.4 mi | 200 yd | Touched down here |
| 2001-11-23 | EF2 | 4.0 mi | 440 yd | Touched down here |
| 1979-10-30 | EF2 | 24.2 mi | 50 yd | Touched down here |
| 1972-12-30 | EF2 | 3.8 mi | 220 yd | Touched down here |
| 1972-04-12 | EF2 | 0.9 mi | 177 yd | Touched down here |
| 1994-04-11 | EF1 | 2.8 mi | 50 yd | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest on record
| Date | Location | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 15, 1988 | F2 | 1 | 12 | $2.5M | |
| Feb 29, 2012 | EXETER | EF2 | 1 | 4 | $575K |
| May 10, 2008 | PIONEER | EF2 | 1 | 0 | $10.0M |
| Apr 11, 1994 | Seligman | F1 | 1 | 0 | $50K |
| Oct 31, 1979 | F2 | 0 | 9 | $2.5M | |
| Apr 13, 1972 | F2 | 0 | 7 | $2.5M | |
| Mar 13, 1961 | F1 | 0 | 4 | $25K | |
| Nov 24, 2001 | EXETER | F2 | 0 | 3 | $1.0M |
Most recent
Latest recorded events
| Date | Location | Magnitude | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 6, 2025 | WHEATON | EF1 | $50K |
| May 8, 2024 | MONETT ARPT | EF1 | $55K |
| Mar 17, 2021 | EAGLE ROCK | EF1 | $50K |
| Apr 30, 2019 | CASSVILLE | EF0 | $8K |
| Apr 30, 2019 | SHELL KNOB | EFU | $0 |
| Apr 30, 2019 | EAST PURDY | EF0 | $35K |
| Apr 30, 2019 | WHEATON | EF1 | $600K |
| Dec 1, 2018 | WIGHTMAN | EF0 | $90K |
| Aug 19, 2018 | PLEASANT RIDGE | EF1 | $20K |
| May 19, 2017 | SHELL KNOB | EF0 | $50K |
Other hazards here
More from Barry County
- Hail 351
- Thunderstorm Wind 319
- Flash Flood 184
- Flood 76
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
This tornado is an extension of the Newton County tornado. A National Weather Service storm survey revealed that an EF-2 tornado tracked across much of Barry County and directly impacted the community of Purdy. One man was killed as he was taking shelter in a mobile home. Numerous structures, trees, and power poles were destroyed.
An EF-2 rated tornado with a maximum wind speed of 120 mph tracked across northwestern portions of the city of Cassville. The tornado destroyed four mobile homes and one frame home. Another frame home was significantly damaged. This tornado also flipped over a tractor trailer as it crossed Highway 37. The tornado killed one person in a mobile home. There were four other injuries.
A tornado touched down near the Missouri-Arkansas border and moved northeast towards the community of Seligman. A mobile home roof was damaged just inside the Missouri border north of Gateway, AR, as the storm moved northeast at 35 to 45 mph. The next touchdown was on the south edge of Seligman where a 60-year-old woman was killed in her mobile home. The storm destroyed a total of three mobile homes in the Heritage Heights Mobile Home Park. Several people observed debris rotating within the funnel. Another touchdown was in a deep ravine just east of town and uprooted several large trees laying them in a criss-cross pattern. (F60M)
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many tornado events are on record in Barry County, Missouri?
49 tornado events are recorded in Barry County between 1954 and 2025, causing 4 direct deaths.
What is the strongest tornado recorded in Barry County?
The strongest tornado on record in Barry County measured F3.
Where does the tornado data for Barry 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 Barry County, Missouri.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/missouri/barry-county/tornado/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.