79
Recorded events
1
Direct deaths
7
Direct injuries
$5.9M
Property damage
Tornado in Russell County, Kansas: 79 recorded events between 1952 and 2024. The strongest on record measured F4. That places the county #118 nationally and #10 statewide for this hazard.
Decade by decade
Tornado in Russell County, Kansas: events per decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
The busiest decade for tornado in Russell County is the 2000s, when 33 of the county's 79 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 Russell County archive, tornado makes up 7.3% of all recorded severe weather across 8 hazard types. Nationally the county sits at #118 for this hazard and #10 within Kansas, putting it in the 96.1 percentile of all U.S. counties.
Seasonality
Events by month
May is the peak month for tornado in Russell County with 30 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1993-05-07 | EF4 | 25.5 mi | 880 yd | Touched down here |
| 1956-10-29 | EF3 | 28.7 mi | 200 yd | Touched down here |
| 1952-08-07 | EF3 | 4.7 mi | 10 yd | Touched down here |
| 2019-05-28 | EF2 | 24.4 mi | 880 yd | Touched down here |
| 2012-05-25 | EF2 | 0.2 mi | 150 yd | Touched down here |
| 1974-08-30 | EF2 | 4.7 mi | 67 yd | Touched down here |
| 1964-08-31 | EF2 | 0.1 mi | 10 yd | Touched down here |
| 1964-05-05 | EF2 | 10.6 mi | 1,320 yd | Crossed in |
| 1964-06-12 | EF2 | 24.1 mi | 10 yd | Crossed in |
| 2024-05-19 | EF1 | 1.6 mi | 15 yd | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest on record
| Date | Location | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 7, 1993 | Dorrance | F4 | 1 | 6 | $5.0M |
| Aug 31, 1964 | F1 | 0 | 1 | $0 |
Most recent
Latest recorded events
| Date | Location | Magnitude | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|
| May 19, 2024 | RUSSELL | EF1 | $0 |
| Jul 16, 2023 | BUNKER HILL | EF0 | $0 |
| Jun 23, 2022 | DORRANCE | EFU | $0 |
| Jun 23, 2022 | BUNKER HILL | EFU | $0 |
| May 28, 2019 | WALDO | EF2 | $0 |
| Apr 24, 2015 | PARADISE | EF0 | $0 |
| Aug 28, 2014 | MILBERGER | EF1 | $0 |
| May 8, 2013 | GORHAM | EF0 | $0 |
| Apr 7, 2013 | PARADISE | EF0 | $0 |
| May 26, 2012 | RUSSELL | EF2 | $0 |
Other hazards here
More from Russell County
- Hail 485
- Thunderstorm Wind 471
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
At approximately 1705 CST a half mile wide tornado touched down 1.5 miles southwest of the MINOOKA PARK area on the south shore of Wilson Lake. The tornado ravaged Ken's Marina and the MINOOKA PARK area around 1710 CST by destroying the marina building, numerous boats, motors, and trailers plus campers, motor homes, vehicles, and buildings at MINOOKA PARK. As the tornado passed through, flying debris killed a 79 year old female and injured two other people. By 1720 CST the tornado crossed Highway 223, one mile east and 3 miles south of Lucas where four homes and a power sub- station were severely damaged. The other four injuries were sustained by the occupants of these homes. By 1725 CST the tornado passed 1.5 miles east of Lucas where three more homes received moderate damage. About 1745 CST the tornado crossed into southeast Osborne County destroying one farmstead before dissipating about 1755 CST. (F79O)
This was a second tornado that hit the same farmstead. The first one hit the barn across the road, and this one did some damage to trees and tore a few shingles off the roof of the home. Some small barns were also damaged.
Tornado touched down 3 W Lucas and moved east along Highway 18 and then lifted as it left the town of Lucas. It destroyed a 100,000 buildings, grain bins partially removed the roof of a feed store and downed numerous trees and power lines.
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many tornado events are on record in Russell County, Kansas?
79 tornado events are recorded in Russell County between 1952 and 2024, causing 1 direct deaths.
What is the strongest tornado recorded in Russell County?
The strongest tornado on record in Russell County measured F4.
Where does the tornado data for Russell 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 Russell County, Kansas.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/kansas/russell-county/tornado/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.