43
Recorded events
1
Direct deaths
41
Direct injuries
$79.1M
Property damage
Tornado in Labette County, Kansas: 43 recorded events between 1954 and 2019. The strongest on record measured F4. That places the county #537 nationally and #58 statewide for this hazard.
Decade by decade
Tornado in Labette County, Kansas: events per decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
The busiest decade for tornado in Labette County is the 2000s, when 19 of the county's 43 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 Labette County archive, tornado makes up 7.1% of all recorded severe weather across 8 hazard types. Nationally the county sits at #537 for this hazard and #58 within Kansas, putting it in the 81.4 percentile of all U.S. counties.
Seasonality
Events by month
May is the peak month for tornado in Labette County with 14 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1959-09-27 | EF4 | 20.4 mi | 440 yd | Crossed in |
| 1982-03-15 | EF3 | 30.0 mi | 167 yd | Touched down here |
| 2000-04-19 | EF3 | 34.0 mi | 290 yd | Crossed in |
| 1958-05-31 | EF3 | 0.3 mi | 100 yd | Touched down here |
| 1973-05-11 | EF2 | 0.1 mi | 300 yd | Crossed in |
| 1959-09-27 | EF2 | 7.2 mi | 440 yd | Touched down here |
| 1954-05-01 | EF2 | 5.1 mi | 10 yd | Touched down here |
| 1954-07-22 | EF2 | 11.2 mi | 440 yd | Touched down here |
| 2006-04-06 | EF1 | 11.5 mi | 40 yd | Crossed in |
| 2003-05-04 | EF1 | 12.0 mi | 220 yd | Crossed in |
Significant events
Deadliest on record
| Date | Location | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 28, 1959 | F4 | 1 | 1 | $25K | |
| Apr 20, 2000 | DENNIS | F3 | 0 | 27 | $71.0M |
| Apr 7, 2006 | CHETOPA | F1 | 0 | 12 | $225K |
| May 4, 2003 | BARTLETT | F1 | 0 | 1 | $2.5M |
Most recent
Latest recorded events
| Date | Location | Magnitude | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 30, 2019 | BARTLETT | EFU | $0 |
| Oct 6, 2016 | BARTLETT | EF0 | $0 |
| Oct 6, 2016 | BARTLETT | EF0 | $0 |
| Jun 12, 2015 | EDNA | EF0 | $0 |
| Apr 3, 2015 | CHETOPA | EF0 | $0 |
| Apr 3, 2015 | MOUND VLY | EF0 | $5K |
| Apr 3, 2015 | LABETTE | EF0 | $0 |
| Apr 3, 2015 | PARSONS | EF0 | $0 |
| May 22, 2011 | PARSONS | EF0 | $0 |
| May 14, 2009 | CHETOPA | EF0 | $0 |
Other hazards here
More from Labette County
- Hail 233
- Thunderstorm Wind 230
- Flash Flood 40
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
The same tornado that formed 3 miles south of Cherryvale at 1930 CST in eastern Montgomery County, the tornado entered western Labette County at 1934 CST, 10 miles southwest of Dennis. Moving northeast around 35 mph, the tornado passed 4 miles south of Dennis at 1940 CST. At 1945 CST, the tornado entered southwest Parsons where it inflicted major damage to a law enforcement center, a movie theater, and a carnival. In all, 750 buildings were damaged of which 633 were homes. Of the homes, 53 were destroyed, 112 sustained major damage and 468 received minor damage. Of the 117 commercial buildings that sustained damage, 20 were destroyed, 28 received major damage, and 69 received minor damage. Total damage estimate: $40 million. A total of 27 people were injured, most were minor. Though inflicting F3 damage when it hit Parsons, the tornado possessed F1 intensity for most of it's track. This same tornado would continue moving northeast, clipping southeast Neosho County. Area newspapers contributed to this report.
An F1 tornado entered Labette County from Oklahoma near Victory road about 3 miles southwest of Chetopa. The tornado tracked to the east-northeast where it struck 2 homes and a mobile home. The mobile home was destroyed and the 2 other homes were damaged. Twelve minor injuries occurred when the tornado damaged the homes and destroyed the mobile home south of Chetopa. The tornado also flipped a tractor trailer on highway 59. The tornado exited Labette County about 1 mile south of highway 166 and moved into Crawford County.
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many tornado events are on record in Labette County, Kansas?
43 tornado events are recorded in Labette County between 1954 and 2019, causing 1 direct deaths.
What is the strongest tornado recorded in Labette County?
The strongest tornado on record in Labette County measured F4.
Where does the tornado data for Labette 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 Labette County, Kansas.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/kansas/labette-county/tornado/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.