Cape Girardeau County tornado history

52 tornadoes touched Cape Girardeau County, Missouri between 1950 and 2025 — about 0.7 a year. The strongest was rated F3 (May 6, 2003). Tornadoes here killed 6 and injured 13 people.

52tornadoes since 1950

F3strongest rating

6killed · 13 injured

31.9 milongest path · 2012

(E)F0(E)F1(E)F2(E)F3(E)F4(E)F5· dots = start point only

By rating

(E)F015

(E)F122

(E)F214

(E)F31

(E)F40

(E)F50

By month

JFMAMJJASOND

Peak month: May.

By decade

’50’60’70’80’90’00’10’20

Strongest tornadoes

Date	Rating	Path	Width	Injured	Killed
May 6, 2003	F3	2 mi	50 yd	2	0
Apr 5, 2023	EF2	20.7 mi	150 yd	4	5
Apr 29, 1963	F2	10.7 mi	50 yd	3	1
Feb 29, 2012	EF2	31.9 mi	300 yd	1	0
Dec 18, 1957	F2	15.8 mi	700 yd	1	0
Apr 2, 2025	EF2	14.7 mi	600 yd	0	0
May 24, 1981	F2	9.1 mi	400 yd	1	0
Jan 11, 2020	EF2	9.1 mi	300 yd	0	0
Feb 29, 2012	EF2	7.7 mi	120 yd	0	0
Mar 14, 1971	F2	6.6 mi	23 yd	0	0
Mar 18, 1952	F2	6.2 mi	500 yd	0	0
Apr 24, 2004	F2	5.4 mi	200 yd	0	0

Most recent tornadoes

Date	Rating	Path	Width	Injured	Killed
Jun 7, 2025	EF1	3.5 mi	50 yd	0	0
Jun 7, 2025	EF1	1.6 mi	125 yd	0	0
May 20, 2025	EF1	1.7 mi	150 yd	0	0
May 16, 2025	EF2	1.4 mi	225 yd	0	0
Apr 2, 2025	EF2	14.7 mi	600 yd	0	0
Apr 2, 2025	EF1	8 mi	150 yd	0	0
May 8, 2024	EF0	0.2 mi	50 yd	0	0
Apr 2, 2024	EF0	0.4 mi	150 yd	0	0
Apr 5, 2023	EF2	20.7 mi	150 yd	4	5
Jan 11, 2020	EF2	9.1 mi	300 yd	0	0
May 31, 2018	EF1	2.2 mi	150 yd	0	0
Apr 9, 2015	EF0	1.8 mi	150 yd	0	0

Deadliest: Apr 5, 2023, EF2, 5 killed.

Nearby counties

Bollinger County, MO32 Alexander County, IL17 Perry County, MO27 Scott County, MO49 Union County, IL25 Jackson County, IL41 Pulaski County, IL12 Madison County, MO37

Questions

How many tornadoes has Cape Girardeau County, Missouri had?

52 tornadoes touched Cape Girardeau County, Missouri between 1950 and 2025 in the NOAA Storm Prediction Center database — about 0.7 per year.

What was the strongest tornado in Cape Girardeau County?

The strongest rating recorded was F3 on May 6, 2003, with a 2-mile path.

When is tornado season in Cape Girardeau County?

Most of its tornadoes happened in May (16 of 52). Tornadoes can occur in any month, so keep alerts on year-round.

Right now: live tornado warnings map · alerts for your location. Dates link to that day’s full storm reports where available (2004 onward).