6 most costly tornadoes to hit the U.S.
Tornado season is ramping up in the United States.
As cool, dry air from Canada collides with warm, moist air from the Gulf, it creates ideal conditions for tornadoes. Recently, the National Weather Service issued an unusually far-in-advance alert, covering a wide swath of the Midwest and the South, from Cincinnati, Ohio, to Birmingham, Alabama. The Storm Prediction Center warned of a “moist warm sector” that could suggest “severe storms including supercells, and attendant, all-hazards severe potential.”
A tornado that hits a populated area can cause damage in the billions of dollars and cause fatalities. Here are six of the costliest U.S. tornadoes.
Damage: $2,800,000,000 (adjusted for inflation: $3,788,061,000)
The F5 tornado that chewed through Joplin, Missouri, in 2011 remains the costliest twister in U.S. history. The tornado, which claimed over 150 lives, will be revisited in a Netflix (NFLX) documentary released this month, “The Twister: Caught in the Storm.” According to the Associated Press, the tornado scattered X-rays and medical records from one of the city’s destroyed hospitals 75 miles away, and winds roared at an estimated 200-plus mph.
Tuscaloosa, Alabama
Damage: $2,450,000,000 (adjusted for inflation: $3,330,027,000)
A month before Joplin’s costly and deadly tornado, a strong F4 tornado ripped through Tuscaloosa. With winds peaking at 190 mph and a path over 1.5 miles wide, this tornado laid waste to the city, causing over 60 deaths.
Damage: $2,000,000,000 (adjusted for inflation: $2,624,577,000)
In early June 2013, an F5 tornado laid waste to Moore, killing over 20 residents. Moore sits in the heart of the “tornado alley,” so this wasn’t the city’s first brush with a deadly twister.
Topeka, Kansas
Damage: $250,000,000 (adjusted for inflation: $2,358,727,000)
According to the National Weather Service, the massive 1966 Topeka tornado killed 17 people and injured over 500. At the time, it was the costliest tornado in American history, and with inflation factored in, it still ranks as one of the costliest on record.
About 800 homes were completely destroyed citywide, and nearly 3,000 were damaged — the state Capitol dome sustained damage from flying debris, as did many downtown buildings. The intense destruction classified the tornado as an F5 (the top of the Fujita Intensity Scale) with winds estimated at over 250 mph.
Lubbock, Texas
Damage: $250,000,000 (adjusted for inflation: 1,979,864,000)
A devastating tornado struck Lubbock on May 11, 1970. It was the second of two that struck the city that night — it touched down around 9:30 p.m. southwest of downtown and moved northeast, causing catastrophic damage along its path, until it lifted around the Lubbock Municipal Airport shortly after 10:00 pm.
The F5 tornado killed 26 people and injured more than 1,500 along its 8.5-mile track.
Dallas, Texas
Damage: $1,550,000,000 (adjusted for inflation: $1,841,183,000)
This tornado that hit Dallas on October 19, 2019, proved that destructive tornadoes don’t just happen in the spring.
According to the local NBC (CMCSA) affiliate, the tornado was on the ground for 32 minutes, carving out a 15-mile path of destruction in north Dallas. Hundreds of structures were damaged or destroyed, including schools, large retailers, homes, and infrastructure. The storm caused an estimated $1.5 billion in damage, making it the costliest tornado event in Texas history.
The tornado was an F3, but it was such a costly one because it hit a densely populated area. Remarkably, there were no fatalities.