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Pettis County, Missouri severe weather history spans 495 recorded events between 1952 and 2025. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 43.4% of all recorded events. It ranks #897 nationally and #39 in Missouri.
495
Recorded events
3
Direct deaths
101
Direct injuries
$88.0M
Property damage
The record
What the Pettis County, Missouri severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Pettis County, Missouri severe weather history averages 6.8 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 140 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 108 events fall before 1990 and 387 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Pettis County, Missouri record is tornado, responsible for 3 direct deaths. The costliest is tornado, with $85.5M in reported property damage. In total, 6 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Pettis County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 215 | 0 | $411K | 74 | 1958–2025 |
| Hail | 201 | 0 | $2.1M | 3.5 | 1959–2025 |
| Tornado | 41 | 3 | $85.5M | F3 | 1952–2024 |
| Flash Flood | 30 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1996–2019 |
| Flood | 5 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1997–2015 |
| Lightning | 3 | 0 | $40K | 0 | 2000–2000 |
Decade by decade
Pettis County, Missouri severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
43 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 34 touched down inside it and 9 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980-05-12 | EF3 | 0 | 23 | 15.8 mi | Touched down here |
| 1977-05-04 | EF3 | 0 | 24 | 11.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 1973-04-20 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 10.1 mi | Crossed in |
| 1973-04-20 | EF3 | 0 | 4 | 19.4 mi | Crossed in |
| 2006-03-12 | EF2 | 1 | 6 | 11.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 1952-08-21 | EF2 | 1 | 13 | 1.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2011-05-25 | EF2 | 0 | 20 | 2.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2006-03-12 | EF2 | 0 | 4 | 12.8 mi | Crossed in |
| 2006-03-12 | EF2 | 0 | 6 | 20.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1973-04-20 | EF2 | 0 | 8 | 2.0 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Pettis County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 21, 1952 | Tornado | 1 | 13 | $25.0M | |
| Mar 12, 2006 | Tornado | GREEN RIDGE | 1 | 6 | $2.5M |
| Mar 31, 2006 | Tornado | GREEN RIDGE | 1 | 0 | $450K |
| May 4, 1977 | Tornado | 0 | 24 | $25.0M | |
| May 12, 1980 | Tornado | 0 | 23 | $25.0M | |
| May 25, 2011 | Tornado | SEDALIA | 0 | 20 | $4.0M |
| Apr 21, 1973 | Tornado | 0 | 8 | $2.5M | |
| Aug 14, 2010 | Thunderstorm Wind | LAMONTE | 0 | 3 | $500 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
F2 tornado touched down 6.5 miles east of Green Ridge at 1612 CST and moved northeast. The tornado caused the death of one woman…when the trailer she was fleeing was blown on top of her. Another 6 people were injured as well. Numerous homes suffered varying degrees of damage. The tornado lifted one mile southwest of Smithton at 1625 CST.
Tornado touched down at 2028 CST 2 miles northwest of green Ridge producing damage to trees. The tornado traveled northeast and crossed Highway 50 just west of Sedalia. It produced high end F0 damage to a Morton Building and to a farmstead. Low end F1 damage was noted to a home 3 miles north of Sedalia…just west of Highway 65…where a modular home lost its roof and a large calenabra on a broadcast tower was bent. The tornado damaged a total of 57 homes, with one being completely destroyed. The tornado lifted after this at 2042 CST. A 66 year old man injured in the tornado, died from his injuries on June 15th.
At 1122CST an EF2 tornado touched down 2.7 miles south southeast of Sedalia. The tornado traveled north, and lifted 0.7 miles southeast of Sedalia at 1128CST. Heavy damage to several businesses, was observed along highway 65, with 70 mobile homes in two different mobile home parks, destroyed or heavily damaged. Several homes were also damaged or destroyed. A tanker truck was overturned. Power poles were snapped off. Twenty people suffered minor injuries.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
43,397
Population (ACS)
$166K
Median home value
21
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 26, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Aug 7, 2015 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND FLOODING | DR |
| May 9, 2011 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Mar 23, 2011 | Severe Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM AND SNOWSTORM | DR |
| Feb 3, 2011 | Severe Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Sedalia 126
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Pettis County, Missouri?
495 events are on record between 1952 and 2025, causing 3 direct deaths and $88.0M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Pettis County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 215 recorded events — 43.4% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Pettis County?
43 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 34 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Pettis County?
21 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Pettis County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Pettis County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Pettis County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 62 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Pettis County, Missouri severe weather history data come from?
Every figure is drawn from United States federal public-domain records: NOAA/NCEI Storm Events for the event archive, NOAA SPC SVRGIS for mapped tornado paths, FEMA for disaster declarations and risk ratings, and the U.S. Census for population context. Dates are shown in UTC and recent entries may still be revised by NOAA.
Nearby
Neighbouring counties
- Perry County 253
- Phelps County 566
- Pemiscot County 273
- Pike County 285
- Ozark County 713
- Platte County 669
Cite this page
“Pettis County, Missouri.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/missouri/pettis-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.