66
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
7
Direct injuries
$5.1M
Property damage
Tornado in Ellis County, Kansas: 66 recorded events between 1951 and 2021. The strongest on record measured F3. That places the county #190 nationally and #14 statewide for this hazard.
Decade by decade
Tornado in Ellis County, Kansas: events per decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
The busiest decade for tornado in Ellis County is the 2000s, when 17 of the county's 66 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 Ellis County archive, tornado makes up 6.4% of all recorded severe weather across 8 hazard types. Nationally the county sits at #190 for this hazard and #14 within Kansas, putting it in the 93.6 percentile of all U.S. counties.
Seasonality
Events by month
May is the peak month for tornado in Ellis County with 33 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998-10-16 | EF3 | 26.0 mi | 1,300 yd | Crossed in |
| 1990-04-25 | EF3 | 37.0 mi | 500 yd | Crossed in |
| 1980-10-16 | EF3 | 0.1 mi | 10 yd | Touched down here |
| 1968-05-13 | EF3 | 140.4 mi | 320 yd | Crossed in |
| 1964-08-31 | EF3 | 8.3 mi | 10 yd | Touched down here |
| 1954-10-11 | EF3 | 8.6 mi | 10 yd | Touched down here |
| 2016-05-08 | EF2 | 6.9 mi | 440 yd | Touched down here |
| 2002-05-05 | EF2 | 15.0 mi | 880 yd | Crossed in |
| 2001-04-10 | EF2 | 40.1 mi | 400 yd | Crossed in |
| 1974-06-05 | EF2 | 17.7 mi | 70 yd | Crossed in |
Significant events
Deadliest on record
| Date | Location | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 6, 1998 | SCHOENCHEN | F1 | 0 | 2 | $50K |
| Apr 11, 1979 | F1 | 0 | 2 | $250K | |
| May 24, 2008 | ELLIS | EF1 | 0 | 1 | $0 |
| Oct 16, 1998 | YOCEMENTO | F3 | 0 | 1 | $1.2M |
| May 26, 1955 | F1 | 0 | 1 | $3K |
Most recent
Latest recorded events
| Date | Location | Magnitude | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|
| May 26, 2021 | HAYS PHILIP RANCH AR | EF0 | $0 |
| May 26, 2021 | HAYS PHILIP RANCH AR | EFU | $0 |
| May 28, 2019 | YOCEMENTO | EFU | $0 |
| May 28, 2019 | PFEIFER | EF0 | $0 |
| May 9, 2016 | TURKVILLE | EF2 | $0 |
| May 9, 2016 | ELLIS | EF0 | $0 |
| Apr 24, 2015 | EMMERAM | EF0 | $0 |
| Apr 24, 2015 | EMMERAM | EF0 | $0 |
| Apr 24, 2015 | EMMERAM | EF0 | $0 |
| May 18, 2013 | ANTONINO | EF0 | $0 |
Other hazards here
More from Ellis County
- Hail 539
- Thunderstorm Wind 306
- Heavy Rain 59
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Tornado that began in eastern Trego county, steadily moved northeast before dissipating north of Hays. The tornado hit several farms in rural Ellis county and slammed into sparsely populated Yocemento. After leaving Yocemento, the tornado tore through a feedyard and on across other parts of rural Ellis county. Fortunately, the tornado stayed just west and north of populated Hays where a high school football game was in progress. The tornado damaged or destroyed 10 homes, a grain elevator, many outbuildings, a tractor and a feedlot. During the weaker moments of the tornado, it moved a 14,000 pound tractor 30 yards. One modular constructed home on a concrete slab was completely destroyed with the remains carried 1/2 of a mile. A steel I-beam from a concrete building travelled several hundred yards, eventually crashing into a grain elevator. Three empty anhydrous ammonia tanks were moved causing a leak of a benign amount of vapour. An injury occurred to a male driving a tractor-trailer rig on Interstate 70.
A tornado moved in from Trego county at 2209 and moved into Rooks county at 2238. It took out 50 power poles in Ellis county and damaged 13 farms. Roofs were removed on several homes and there was extensive damage done to several outbuildings and trailers. Two semis were overturned on I-70 west of Ellis causing several minor injuries. Reports of the infamous "roar" were noted in the Ellis community.
This tornado entered Ellis county from Trego county at 440 PM and continued a a northeast and easterly track. It did speed up at the end of it's life and as is typical, decreased in size. Another tornado was video taped just north and west of this tornado (during the same time), but was just across the county line. A brick building (that was very sturdy) was destroyed and strewn for hundreds of yards into a field. "Huge" cottonwood trees were either uprooted or snapped off at about five feet. A 250 gallon oil tank was moved 1.5 miles and was found lodged into a grove of trees.
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many tornado events are on record in Ellis County, Kansas?
66 tornado events are recorded in Ellis County between 1951 and 2021, causing 0 direct deaths.
What is the strongest tornado recorded in Ellis County?
The strongest tornado on record in Ellis County measured F3.
Where does the tornado data for Ellis 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 Ellis County, Kansas.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/kansas/ellis-county/tornado/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.