1953

421 tornadoes in 1953, with 0 hail and 0 wind reports, from the NOAA SPC severe weather database.

Tornado recordHail + windDaily reportsStorm Events narrativesEF ScaleMax path width

523

Tornado deaths

Hail reports

Wind reports

F0 66 F1 159 F2 134 F3 40 F4 17 F5 5

Hail and wind show significant reports only (2 in or larger, 65 kt or stronger). Click a legend item to show or hide it, or "only" to see just that. Select anything on the map to open its record.

Tornadoes by month

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec

Storm days

Every day with a tornado, hail or wind report. Warmer colors mean more tornadoes; gray days had hail or wind only; a white ring marks a day with an F4/EF4 or stronger tornado.

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

Jun

Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

Nov

Dec

Running count

1953 against the years around it and the 1991 to 2020 average

19531991 to 2020 average1950 to 1958 (other years)

421 tornadoes in 1953, 66% below the 1991 to 2020 average of 1,231.

Counts by storm day (12Z to 12Z). Reporting changed a great deal over the decades, so years far from 1991 to 2020 are not a like-for-like comparison with the average.

Busiest tornado days

#	Day	Tornadoes	F/EF4+	Deaths	Strongest	States
1	06/07/53	34	1	11	F4	CO, IA, KS, MN, MT, NE, SD
2	05/09/53	16	0	5	F3	KS, NE, OK, SD
3	06/05/53	13	0	0	F3	FL, KS, MI, NE, OK, TX, UT
4	06/08/53	12	4	142	F5	MI, NE, OH
5	05/10/53	12	3	12	F4	AR, IA, MN, MO, NE, WI
6	03/14/53	11	0	1	F3	IL, IN, MO, MS, TN
7	03/13/53	10	1	20	F4	AR, OK, TX
8	12/02/53	10	1	11	F4	LA, MS, OK, TX
9	05/29/53	9	1	2	F5	KS, ND, NE, SD, WY
10	02/20/53	9	0	1	F3	AL, AR, MS
11	06/19/53	9	0	0	F2	KS, NE, OK, TX
12	04/30/53	8	1	20	F4	GA, NC, VA
13	04/28/53	7	1	3	F4	NE, OK, TX
14	05/01/53	6	3	13	F4	AL, TN
15	02/19/53	6	0	0	F1	OK, TX

Busiest severe weather days

tornado, hail and wind reports together

#	Day	All reports	Tornadoes	Largest hail	Top gust
1	06/07/53	34	34	–	–
2	05/09/53	16	16	–	–
3	06/05/53	13	13	–	–
4	05/10/53	12	12	–	–
5	06/08/53	12	12	–	–
6	03/14/53	11	11	–	–
7	03/13/53	10	10	–	–
8	12/02/53	10	10	–	–
9	02/20/53	9	9	–	–
10	05/29/53	9	9	–	–
11	06/19/53	9	9	–	–
12	04/30/53	8	8	–	–
13	04/28/53	7	7	–	–
14	02/19/53	6	6	–	–
15	03/21/53	6	6	–	–

F4/EF4 and stronger

Date	Rating	Tornado	State	Length	Width	Deaths	Injuries
03/13/53	F4	Rule to Knox City, Texas	TX	13.9 mi	50 yd	17	25
04/28/53	F4	Helotes, Texas	TX	1.0 mi	1,760 yd	2	15
04/30/53	F4	Warner Robins, Georgia	GA	1.0 mi	333 yd	18	300
05/01/53	F4	Ashland to Lineville, Alabama	AL	12.1 mi	440 yd	7	12
05/01/53	F4	Butler, Alabama	AL	0.1 mi	100 yd	2	3
05/02/53	F4	Decatur, Tennessee	TN	4.2 mi	33 yd	4	8
05/10/53	F4	Corydon to Russell, Iowa	IA	6.4 mi	10 yd	0	0
05/10/53	F4	Garner to Lake Mills, Iowa	IA	26.6 mi	10 yd	0	3
05/10/53	F4	Le Roy, MN to Prentice, WI	IA, MN, WI	162 mi	100 yd	2	24
05/11/53	F4	San Angelo, Texas	TX	9.9 mi	880 yd	13	159
05/11/53	F5	Beverly Hills to Hubbard, Texas	TX	20.9 mi	583 yd	114	597
05/21/53	F4	Marysville to Port Huron, Michigan	MI	10.0 mi	1,760 yd	2	68
05/29/53	F5	Lincoln, North Dakota	ND	14.8 mi	600 yd	2	20
06/07/53	F4	Loup City to Ord, Nebraska	NE	15.0 mi	440 yd	11	0
06/08/53	F4	Luna Pier, Michigan	MI	5.4 mi	200 yd	4	18
06/08/53	F4	Deshler to Cleveland, Ohio	OH	118 mi	100 yd	17	379
06/08/53	F5	Flushing to Columbiaville, Michigan	MI	18.9 mi	833 yd	116	844
06/08/53	F4	North Branch to Lexington, Michigan	MI	33.8 mi	833 yd	0	23
06/09/53	F4	Gardner to Marlborough, Massachusetts	MA	34.9 mi	900 yd	94	1,228
06/27/53	F5	Anita, Iowa	IA	0.1 mi	100 yd	1	2
12/03/53	F4	New Llano to Urania, Louisiana	LA	85.5 mi	300 yd	9	50
12/05/53	F5	Vicksburg, Mississippi	MS	9.0 mi	500 yd	38	270

Deadliest tornadoes

Date	Rating	Tornado	State	Length	Width	Deaths	Injuries
06/08/53	F5	Flushing to Columbiaville, Michigan	MI	18.9 mi	833 yd	116	844
05/11/53	F5	Beverly Hills to Hubbard, Texas	TX	20.9 mi	583 yd	114	597
06/09/53	F4	Gardner to Marlborough, Massachusetts	MA	34.9 mi	900 yd	94	1,228
12/05/53	F5	Vicksburg, Mississippi	MS	9.0 mi	500 yd	38	270
04/30/53	F4	Warner Robins, Georgia	GA	1.0 mi	333 yd	18	300
03/13/53	F4	Rule to Knox City, Texas	TX	13.9 mi	50 yd	17	25
06/08/53	F4	Deshler to Cleveland, Ohio	OH	118 mi	100 yd	17	379
05/11/53	F4	San Angelo, Texas	TX	9.9 mi	880 yd	13	159
06/07/53	F4	Loup City to Ord, Nebraska	NE	15.0 mi	440 yd	11	0
12/03/53	F4	New Llano to Urania, Louisiana	LA	85.5 mi	300 yd	9	50
04/18/53	F3	Auburn, AL to Columbus, GA	AL, GA	39.8 mi	400 yd	8	495
05/01/53	F4	Ashland to Lineville, Alabama	AL	12.1 mi	440 yd	7	12
05/10/53	F2	Clarks Grove to Blooming Prairie, Minnesota	MN	6.9 mi	67 yd	6	3
05/09/53	F3	Hebron to Milford, Nebraska	NE	46.9 mi	880 yd	5	82
05/02/53	F4	Decatur, Tennessee	TN	4.2 mi	33 yd	4	8

Storm days. A day here runs from 12Z to 12Z (6 a.m. CST to 6 a.m. CST the next morning), the way SPC counts storm days, so an overnight tornado counts with the afternoon and evening before it.
Reporting changed over time. Tornado counts rose from the 1990s on as Doppler radar, spotter networks and cameras caught more weak tornadoes. Counts from different decades are not directly comparable, especially for the weakest ratings.
F and EF ratings. The Enhanced Fujita (EF) Scale replaced the Fujita (F) Scale on 02/01/07. Both estimate wind speed from damage, but they use different damage indicators, so each rating is shown with its own scale.
Ratings before the mid 1970s. The F Scale came into use in the early 1970s. Tornadoes from 1950 until then were rated afterward from newspaper accounts, photos and records, which tends to make those ratings less certain.

Titan Archive · a Tornado Titans project Data: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather database · updated 10/03/26