98
Recorded events
26
Direct deaths
510
Direct injuries
$264.2M
Property damage
Tornado in Lubbock County, Texas: 98 recorded events between 1955 and 2025. The strongest on record measured F5. That places the county #53 nationally and #9 statewide for this hazard.
Decade by decade
Tornado in Lubbock County, Texas: events per decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
The busiest decade for tornado in Lubbock County is the 1970s, when 23 of the county's 98 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 Lubbock County archive, tornado makes up 7.4% of all recorded severe weather across 10 hazard types. Nationally the county sits at #53 for this hazard and #9 within Texas, putting it in the 98.2 percentile of all U.S. counties.
Seasonality
Events by month
May is the peak month for tornado in Lubbock 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970-05-11 | EF5 | 8.4 mi | 1,333 yd | Touched down here |
| 1957-04-21 | EF4 | 15.5 mi | 100 yd | Touched down here |
| 1957-05-24 | EF3 | 37.3 mi | 200 yd | Crossed in |
| 2025-06-05 | EF2 | 3.3 mi | 968 yd | Crossed in |
| 1987-05-29 | EF2 | 8.0 mi | 80 yd | Touched down here |
| 1978-04-08 | EF2 | 2.0 mi | 30 yd | Touched down here |
| 1971-05-08 | EF2 | 2.0 mi | 67 yd | Touched down here |
| 1967-06-01 | EF2 | 2.0 mi | 67 yd | Touched down here |
| 1967-06-01 | EF2 | 0.1 mi | 67 yd | Touched down here |
| 1965-05-13 | EF2 | 0.5 mi | 10 yd | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest on record
| Date | Location | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 12, 1970 | F5 | 26 | 500 | $250.0M | |
| Apr 22, 1957 | F4 | 0 | 6 | $2.5M | |
| May 29, 1987 | F2 | 0 | 3 | $250K | |
| Jun 1, 1967 | F2 | 0 | 1 | $0 |
Most recent
Latest recorded events
| Date | Location | Magnitude | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 6, 2025 | (REE)REESE AFB LUBBO | EF1 | $0 |
| Jun 6, 2025 | (REE)REESE AFB LUBBO | EF2 | $0 |
| Mar 12, 2021 | CALDWELL | EFU | $0 |
| Sep 2, 2018 | LUBBOCK AIRPARK | EFU | $0 |
| Aug 7, 2013 | WOLFFORTH | EF0 | $0 |
| Aug 1, 2013 | (LBB)LUBBOCK INTL AR | EF0 | $0 |
| Aug 1, 2013 | (LBB)LUBBOCK INTL AR | EF0 | $0 |
| Apr 30, 2013 | WOODROW | EF0 | $0 |
| Aug 25, 2011 | WOLFFORTH | EF0 | $0 |
| Aug 26, 2009 | LUBBOCK | EF0 | $0 |
Other hazards here
More from Lubbock County
- Hail 666
- Thunderstorm Wind 428
- Flash Flood 50
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
A relatively broad, but weak, tornadic circulation developed beneath a well-defined wall cloud near the north Loop 289 and Interstate 27 interchange in north Lubbock shortly after 15:00 CST. The brief tornado, which was photographed by a National Weather Service meteorologist, struck the Beck Steel industrial facilities and severely damaged the roof of a large metal warehouse-type structure. Car windows in a nearby parking lot also were blown out. Damage was consistent with 70 to 80 mph wind speeds via estimates using the Enhanced-Fujita Scale. No injuries were reported.
|A brief tornado was observed to cause damage in the west part of Lubbock between 13:00 and 13:03 CST. A local man photographed a condensation funnel extending a short distance out of the parent cloud base. Meanwhile, an automotive business sustained damage as the tornadic circulation broke tree limbs and ripped sheet medal from a few structures near the intersections of U.S. Highway 84 and Quaker Avenue and University and Kent. No injuries were reported.
As the Terry County Supercell moved across Lubbock County, it left a swath of severe weather. Golfball-size hail was reported at Reese Air Force Base and near the Carlisle community. As the storm moved across western and northern sections of Lubbock, a series of downbursts and two weak tornadoes occurred. The downbursts damaged several light and telephone poles, the roof of an elementary school suffered minor damage, and approximately 100 vehicles had window damage. The first tornado touched down in the west-central part of Lubbock. Some buildings at Lubbock Christian University suffered damage, and windows were blown out at a Junior High School north of LCU. The second tornado struck north-central Lubbock, near the Lubbock State School. Damage in this area was confined mainly to windows. As the storm passed Lubbock International Airport, the NWS Office's wind equipment measured a wind gust to 77 mph. Total damage from the storm is estimated at $400,000.
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many tornado events are on record in Lubbock County, Texas?
98 tornado events are recorded in Lubbock County between 1955 and 2025, causing 26 direct deaths.
What is the strongest tornado recorded in Lubbock County?
The strongest tornado on record in Lubbock County measured F5.
Where does the tornado data for Lubbock 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 Lubbock County, Texas.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/texas/lubbock-county/tornado/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.