Clay County tornado history

53 tornadoes touched Clay County, Nebraska between 1950 and 2025 — about 0.7 a year. The strongest was rated F5 (May 5, 1964). Tornadoes here killed 4 and injured 58 people.

53tornadoes since 1950

F5strongest rating

4killed · 58 injured

131 milongest path · 1990

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

By rating

(E)F025

(E)F113

(E)F27

(E)F35

(E)F41

(E)F51

unrated1

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 5, 1964	F5	79.7 mi	880 yd	50	4
Mar 13, 1990	F4	131 mi	440 yd	8	0
May 7, 1993	F3	75 mi	2,633 yd	0	0
Apr 25, 1957	F3	34.7 mi	220 yd	0	0
May 11, 2014	EF3	20.2 mi	1,300 yd	0	0
Sep 22, 2001	F3	10 mi	1,250 yd	0	0
Sep 11, 1977	F3	6.6 mi	10 yd	0	0
Jun 2, 1975	F2	35.5 mi	300 yd	0	0
May 22, 2004	F2	23 mi	700 yd	0	0
Apr 11, 1991	F2	21 mi	73 yd	0	0
Apr 15, 1976	F2	11.1 mi	100 yd	0	0
Apr 5, 1978	F2	11 mi	80 yd	0	0

Most recent tornadoes

Date	Rating	Path	Width
Jul 6, 2024	EF1	1.9 mi	400 yd
Jul 29, 2023	EF1	1.6 mi	260 yd
Dec 15, 2021	EF0	7.2 mi	60 yd
May 5, 2021	unrated	—	40 yd
Aug 14, 2020	EF0	1.2 mi	35 yd
Aug 14, 2020	EF0	0.1 mi	25 yd
May 17, 2017	EF1	2.2 mi	50 yd
May 9, 2016	EF0	2.7 mi	35 yd
May 11, 2014	EF0	0.1 mi	150 yd
May 11, 2014	EF3	20.2 mi	1,300 yd
May 29, 2013	EF0	0.5 mi	25 yd
May 29, 2013	EF0	—	15 yd

Deadliest: May 5, 1964, F5, 4 killed.

Nearby counties

Adams County, NE59 Fillmore County, NE44 Nuckolls County, NE47 Hamilton County, NE65 Webster County, NE38 Hall County, NE79 York County, NE48 Thayer County, NE67

Questions

How many tornadoes has Clay County, Nebraska had?

53 tornadoes touched Clay County, Nebraska between 1950 and 2025 in the NOAA Storm Prediction Center database — about 0.7 per year.

What was the strongest tornado in Clay County?

The strongest rating recorded was F5 on May 5, 1964, with a 79.7-mile path and 4 deaths.

When is tornado season in Clay County?

Most of its tornadoes happened in May (17 of 53). 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.