62
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
8
Direct injuries
$8.6M
Property damage
Tornado in Sheridan County, Nebraska: 62 recorded events between 1953 and 2023. The strongest on record measured F3. That places the county #221 nationally and #11 statewide for this hazard.
Decade by decade
Tornado in Sheridan County, Nebraska: events per decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
The busiest decade for tornado in Sheridan County is the 1990s, when 20 of the county's 62 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 Sheridan County archive, tornado makes up 7.6% of all recorded severe weather across 8 hazard types. Nationally the county sits at #221 for this hazard and #11 within Nebraska, putting it in the 92.3 percentile of all U.S. counties.
Seasonality
Events by month
Jun is the peak month for tornado in Sheridan County with 32 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1994-06-04 | EF3 | 12.0 mi | 500 yd | Touched down here |
| 1993-05-05 | EF3 | 13.0 mi | 250 yd | Touched down here |
| 2025-04-27 | EF2 | 19.1 mi | 2,250 yd | Crossed in |
| 2016-07-26 | EF2 | 1.0 mi | 100 yd | Touched down here |
| 1982-05-23 | EF2 | 0.3 mi | 30 yd | Touched down here |
| 1980-08-10 | EF2 | 11.3 mi | 30 yd | Touched down here |
| 1978-06-25 | EF2 | 11.1 mi | 300 yd | Touched down here |
| 1962-06-15 | EF2 | 21.3 mi | 10 yd | Crossed in |
| 1962-05-20 | EF2 | 3.6 mi | 10 yd | Touched down here |
| 1957-04-08 | EF2 | 9.8 mi | 880 yd | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest on record
| Date | Location | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 25, 1978 | F2 | 0 | 8 | $2.5M |
Most recent
Latest recorded events
| Date | Location | Magnitude | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 18, 2023 | ELLSWORTH | EFU | $0 |
| Jun 5, 2022 | HAY SPGS | EFU | $0 |
| Jul 3, 2021 | CLINTON | EFU | $0 |
| Jun 13, 2017 | ANTIOCH | EF1 | $21K |
| Jun 13, 2017 | ANTIOCH | EF1 | $21K |
| Jun 13, 2017 | ANTIOCH | EF1 | $21K |
| Jul 27, 2016 | GORDON | EF0 | $0 |
| Jul 27, 2016 | CLINTON | EF2 | $25K |
| Jul 6, 2016 | ELLSWORTH | EF0 | $0 |
| Jul 6, 2016 | HAY SPGS | EF0 | $0 |
Other hazards here
More from Sheridan County
- Hail 546
- Thunderstorm Wind 193
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
A tornado started approximately 12 miles south of Hay Springs and eventually ended northeast of town. One home was destroyed and three other homes were damaged as the tornado went through town. Trees were uprooted and grain bins were also destroyed. Loss of livestock included 40 lambs and 8 cattle on a farm south of town. The damage to the Northwest Rural Public Power District was estimated at $65,000. Total damage from the tornado was near $1,000,000.
An anti-cyclonic left-moving supercell produced a brief, weak tornado that ripped off the roof of a home, destroyed the attached two car garage, moved outbuildings, and destroyed metal cattle shields. Debris from the destroyed home impacted a large metal machine shed and was scattered along a 1 mile path northeast of the farmstead. The home was a complete loss as the chimney fell into the house breaking floor joists.
A tornado formed 5 miles south southeast of Gordon at 1731MST in a corn field. It moved southeast for a path length of three quarters of a mile where a center irrigation pivot system was damaged and crop destroyed in the path. In addition, six power poles were pulled out of the ground and a tree line damaged before dissipating at 1739MST. The tornado was rated an EF0 with an average path width of .20 yards.
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many tornado events are on record in Sheridan County, Nebraska?
62 tornado events are recorded in Sheridan County between 1953 and 2023, causing 0 direct deaths.
What is the strongest tornado recorded in Sheridan County?
The strongest tornado on record in Sheridan County measured F3.
Where does the tornado data for Sheridan 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 Sheridan County, Nebraska.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/nebraska/sheridan-county/tornado/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.