54
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
3
Direct injuries
$774K
Property damage
Tornado in Howard County, Texas: 54 recorded events between 1954 and 2018. The strongest on record measured F2. That places the county #323 nationally and #65 statewide for this hazard.
Decade by decade
Tornado in Howard County, Texas: events per decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
The busiest decade for tornado in Howard County is the 1980s, when 23 of the county's 54 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 Howard County archive, tornado makes up 8.9% of all recorded severe weather across 7 hazard types. Nationally the county sits at #323 for this hazard and #65 within Texas, putting it in the 89.0 percentile of all U.S. counties.
Seasonality
Events by month
May is the peak month for tornado in Howard County with 19 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016-05-22 | EF3 | 4.0 mi | 500 yd | Touched down here |
| 2014-05-26 | EF2 | 1.0 mi | 400 yd | Touched down here |
| 2009-04-16 | EF2 | 11.3 mi | 450 yd | Touched down here |
| 2005-06-05 | EF2 | 5.0 mi | 1,300 yd | Crossed in |
| 2005-06-05 | EF2 | 4.0 mi | 300 yd | Touched down here |
| 1964-06-20 | EF2 | 0.8 mi | 23 yd | Touched down here |
| 2015-05-05 | EF1 | 8.1 mi | 150 yd | Touched down here |
| 2009-04-16 | EF1 | 7.4 mi | 200 yd | Crossed in |
| 1991-06-21 | EF1 | 0.5 mi | 40 yd | Touched down here |
| 1989-06-01 | EF1 | 2.5 mi | 100 yd | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest on record
| Date | Location | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 23, 1956 | F1 | 0 | 3 | $30 |
Most recent
Latest recorded events
| Date | Location | Magnitude | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 12, 2018 | BIG SPRING | EF0 | $0 |
| May 23, 2016 | SOUTH HAVEN | EF0 | $0 |
| May 22, 2016 | MORITA | EF0 | $0 |
| May 22, 2016 | BIG SPRING | EF3 | $75K |
| May 5, 2015 | LUTHER | EF1 | $5K |
| May 26, 2014 | COAHOMA | EF2 | $45K |
| Apr 17, 2009 | FAIRVIEW | EF2 | $83K |
| Apr 23, 2008 | LUTHER | EF0 | $0 |
| Jun 6, 2005 | LUTHER | F0 | $0 |
| Jun 6, 2005 | LUTHER | F2 | $25K |
Other hazards here
More from Howard County
- Hail 318
- Thunderstorm Wind 144
- Flash Flood 86
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
A thunderstorm moved across Howard County and produced a tornado near Coahoma. A storm spotter reported a rain-wrapped tornado that crossed Interstate 20 near Coahoma. An Ampscot 640 pump jack that weighed 78,000 pounds was overturned. This tornado was rated a high end EF-2 with winds between 111 to 135 mph. It was not possible to determine the track of this tornado due to the abundant rainfall, wet soil, and lack of vegetation so the track is estimated. The path width of the tornado was also estimated. The cost of damage is a rough estimate.
A thunderstorm moved across Howard County and produced a tornado near Luther. The tornado touched down in a rural area north of Big Spring, Texas at 3:23 pm CDT and continued generally east for a distance of 8.12 miles before lifting at approximately 3:50 pm CDT. A couple members of the Howard County Volunteer Fire Department witnessed the tornado. The only damage seen was to a couple of power poles which were snapped near the base. Based on the damage seen by the survey team, the tornado is being rated as an EF-1 with an estimated wind speed of 100 mph. The cost of damage is a rough estimate.
A local television meteorologist and Skywarn storm spotters photographed a brief tornado southwest of Luther around 19:45 CST. The tornado developed along the flanking line of the evolving high precipitation supercell, or beneath a new updraft developing along the storm's southwest flank. No damage was reported.
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many tornado events are on record in Howard County, Texas?
54 tornado events are recorded in Howard County between 1954 and 2018, causing 0 direct deaths.
What is the strongest tornado recorded in Howard County?
The strongest tornado on record in Howard County measured F2.
Where does the tornado data for Howard 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 Howard County, Texas.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/texas/howard-county/tornado/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.