The St. Louis metropolitan area has a history of tornadoes. The third-deadliest, and the costliest in United States history, the 1896 St. Louis–East St. Louis tornado, injured more than one thousand people and caused at least 255 fatalities in the City of St. Louis and in East St. Louis. The second-costliest tornado also occurred in St. Louis in September 1927. More tornado fatalities occurred in St. Louis than any other city in the United States. Also noteworthy is that destructive tornadoes occurred in winter and autumn, as well as the typical months of spring. Additionally, damaging tornadoes occurred in the morning and late at night, as well as the more common late-afternoon to early-evening maximum period.
In April 2011, an EF4 tornado on Good Friday caused widespread damage along a 22 mi (35 km) track across the northern part of the St. Louis metropolitan area; including significant damage to Lambert International Airport, causing a complete shutdown for over 24 hours, but no deaths. Prior to that event, a F4 tornado also struck the northern metro, and killed three in January 1967. Another F4 tornado struck the Granite City and Edwardsville, Illinois area in April 1981.
City of St. Louis tornadoes
| Date |
Location |
Rating |
Casualties |
Notes |
| March 8, 1871 |
St. Louis - East St. Louis - St. Clair County, Illinois |
F3 |
9 fatalities, 60 injuries |
See: 1871 St. Louis tornado |
| March 29, 1872 |
7th Street |
F1 |
2 possible fatalities, 8 injuries |
|
| January 12, 1890 |
St. Louis - Madison County, Illinois |
F2 |
4 fatalities, 15 injuries |
|
| May 27, 1896 |
St. Louis - East St. Louis - St. Clair County |
F4 |
255 fatalities, 1000 injuries |
Costliest and third-deadliest tornado in U.S. history (see: 1896 St. Louis–East St. Louis tornado) |
| August 19, 1904 |
St. Louis - Madison County |
F2 |
3 fatalities, 10 injuries |
|
| September 29, 1927 |
Webster Groves - St. Louis |
F3 |
72-79+ fatalities, 550+ injuries |
2nd-costliest. and among top 30 deadliest tornado in U.S. history (see: 1927 St. Louis–East St. Louis tornado) |
| September 16, 1958 |
St. Louis |
F1 |
0 fatalities |
|
| February 10, 1959 |
Crescent - St. Louis - Madison County |
F4 |
21 fatalities, 345 injuries |
Very similar path to 1871, 1896, 1927 tornadoes. (see: St. Louis tornado outbreak of February 1959) |
| May 1, 1983 |
St. Louis - Madison County |
F2 |
3 injuries |
|
| March 31, 2007 |
Midtown St. Louis |
EF0 |
5 injuries |
Late-March 2007 tornado outbreak |
| December 31, 2010 |
North St. Louis |
EF1 |
0 fatalities |
2010 New Year's Eve tornado outbreak |
| April 22, 2011 |
Riverview, St. Louis |
EF4 |
0 fatalities, some injuries |
2011 St. Louis tornado during tornado outbreak sequence of April 19–24, 2011 |
| April 10, 2013 |
The Hill, St. Louis |
EF0 |
0 fatalities |
|
| May 31, 2013 |
Riverview, St. Louis |
EF3 |
2 injuries |
St. Charles County to St. Louis County to extreme northern St. Louis City at 32.5 mi (52.3 km) over 35 min with max width 1 mi (1.6 km) (see: Tornado outbreak of May 26–31, 2013) |
Greater St. Louis-area tornadoes
These tables describe the tornado history for Greater St. Louis. In Missouri, this includes the counties of St. Louis, St. Charles, Franklin, and Jefferson. In Illinois, this includes the counties of Madison, St. Clair, and Monroe. Data for the independent city of St. Louis is not part of these tables unless part of the path of the tornado striking these counties also struck the city.
1870–1950
| Date |
Location |
Counties |
Rating |
Casualties |
Notes |
| July 13, 1870 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
| March 8, 1871 |
|
St. Louis City, St. Clair |
F3 |
9 fatalities, 60 injuries |
1871 St. Louis tornado |
| June 30, 1877 |
|
St. Louis |
|
|
|
| May 18, 1878 |
|
St. Louis |
|
|
|
| January 12, 1890 |
|
St. Louis |
|
|
|
| March 27, 1890 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
| May 27, 1896 |
St. Louis, East St. Louis, IL |
St. Louis City, Madison |
F4 |
255+ fatalities, 1000+ injuries |
1896 St. Louis–East St. Louis tornado |
| May 27, 1896 |
New Baden, IL |
St. Clair, Clinton |
F4 |
24 fatalities, 125 injuries |
Tornado outbreak sequence of May 1896 |
| May 14, 1909 |
|
St. Louis |
|
|
|
| September 29, 1927 |
|
St. Louis |
F3 |
72-79+ fatalities, 550+ injuries |
|
| September 1, 1931 |
|
St. Louis |
|
|
|
| March 15, 1938 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
| March 15, 1938 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
| May 21, 1949 |
|
St. Louis |
|
|
|
| May 21, 1949 |
|
St. Louis |
|
|
|
1950s
| Date |
Location |
Counties |
Rating |
Casualties |
Notes |
| January 3, 1950 |
|
St. Louis |
F3 |
|
|
| May 24, 1952 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
| March 25, 1954 |
|
St. Louis |
|
|
|
| October 6, 1955 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
| October 6, 1955 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
| February 24, 1956 |
Pacific, MO, Lebanon, IL |
St. Louis, St. Clair |
F4 |
6 fatalities, 36 injuries |
Traveled 77.6 miles (124.9 km). |
| February 25, 1956 |
Pacific, MO |
St. Clair |
F1 |
None |
|
| September 15, 1956 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
| August 30, 1956 |
|
St. Louis |
|
|
|
| April 25, 1957 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
| May 9, 1957 |
|
St. Louis |
|
|
|
| May 21, 1957 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
| May 22, 1957 |
|
St. Louis |
|
|
|
| April 5, 1958 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
| April 23, 1958 |
|
St. Louis |
|
|
|
| May 3, 1958 |
|
St. Louis |
|
|
|
| May 3, 1958 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
| May 31, 1958 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
| June 1, 1958 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
| February 10, 1959 |
Southeastern Flourissant, MO |
St. Louis |
F0 |
None |
Minor damage to homes. |
| February 10, 1959 |
Sherman, MO, Warson Woods, MO |
St. Louis |
F4 |
21 fatalities, 345 injuries |
Damaged or destroyed numerous structures, ripped part of the roof of the St. Louis Arena, and blew down a TV tower before causing catastrophic damage in Downtown St. Louis. |
| May 10, 1959 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
1960–1980
| Date |
Location |
Counties |
Rating |
Casualties |
Notes |
| March 29, 1960 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
| September 24, 1961 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
| January 24, 1967 |
|
St. Louis |
F4 |
3 deaths, 216 injured |
Fourth-worst tornado in history to hit the St. Louis Metropolitan Area, last F4 tornado to affect St. Louis County or City until April 22, 2011. See 1967 St. Louis tornado outbreak. |
| August 3, 1967 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
| October 24, 1967 |
|
St. Louis |
|
|
|
| April 3, 1968 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
| May 15, 1968 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
| August 15, 1968 |
|
St. Louis |
|
|
|
| June 1, 1970 |
|
St. Louis |
|
|
|
| May 7, 1973 |
|
St. Louis |
|
|
|
| May 26, 1973 |
|
St. Louis |
|
|
|
| June 4, 1973 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
| March 7, 1975 |
|
St. Louis |
|
|
|
| March 20, 1976 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
| February 23, 1977 |
|
St. Louis |
|
|
|
| May 12, 1978 |
|
St. Louis |
|
|
|
1980–2000
| Date |
Location |
Counties |
Rating |
Casualties |
Notes |
| April 7, 1980 |
St. Charles |
St. Charles & St. Louis |
F3 |
A tornado causing F3 damaged affected St. Louis and St. Charles counties producing 2.5 million dollars in damage |
|
| April 3, 1981 |
Edwardsville |
Madison |
F4 |
|
|
| May 1, 1983 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
| April 3, 1984 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
| May 25, 1984 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
| November 15, 1988 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
| November 15. 1988 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
| November 26, 1990 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
| May 10, 1991 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
| May 11, 1991 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
| July 4, 1992 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
| May 9, 1995 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
| May 18, 1995 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
| May 18, 1995 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
| April 19, 1996 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
| June 10, 1996 |
|
St. Louis |
|
|
|
| April 13, 1998 |
|
St. Louis |
|
|
|
| April 15, 1998 |
|
St. Clair, Madison |
|
|
|
| April 15, 1998 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
2000—present
| Date |
Location |
Counties |
Rating |
Casualties |
Notes |
| June 24, 2000 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
| April 10, 2001 |
|
St. Louis |
|
|
Costliest hailstorm in U.S. history. 4 in (100 mm) dia. hail in Florissant. |
| April 27, 2002 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
| June 10, 2003 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
| June 10, 2003 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
| June 10, 2003 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
| June 10, 2003 |
|
St. Clair |
|
|
|
| November 27, 2005 |
Webster Groves, Maplewood |
St. Louis |
F0 |
0 |
Late-November 2005 tornado outbreak |
| January 2, 2006 |
Creve Coeur |
St. Louis |
F1 |
0 |
|
| March 11, 2006 |
Festus, Missouri |
Jefferson |
F3 |
0 |
Part of a three-day tornado outbreak across Missouri |
| April 2, 2006 |
Fairview Heights, O'Fallon, Illinois |
St. Clair |
EF2 |
1 |
|
| July 23, 2006 |
Troy, Illinois |
Madison |
F1 |
0 |
Part of the July 2006 derechoes event |
| June 8, 2009 |
|
St. Clair |
EF2 |
|
|
| December 31, 2010 |
Byrnes Mill |
Jefferson |
|
|
|
| December 31, 2010 |
Fenton |
St. Louis |
|
|
|
| December 31, 2010 |
Ballwin |
St. Louis |
|
|
|
| December 31, 2010 |
Sunset Hills, Missouri |
St. Louis |
EF3 |
1 |
2010 New Year's Eve tornado outbreak |
| February 27, 2011 |
Troy, Illinois |
Madison |
EF1 |
0 |
|
| April 22, 2011 |
Foristell, New Melle, Maryland Heights, Bridgeton, St. Ann, Edmundson, Kinloch, Berkeley, Ferguson, Dellwood, Bellefontaine Neighbors, Moline Acres, Riverview, St. Louis, Pontoon Beach, Granite City |
St. Charles, St. Louis, St. Louis City, St. Clair, Madison |
EF4 |
0 fatalities, some injuries |
Main article: 2011 St. Louis tornado. Significant damage in North St. Louis County in Maryland Heights, St. Ann, Bridgeton, Berkeley, and Ferguson. Lambert International Airport (EF2) closed due to widespread damage, windows blown out, and the destruction of Concourse C. |
| April 10, 2013 |
St. Albans |
Franklin |
EF1 |
0 fatalities |
|
| April 10, 2013 |
Bridgeton, Hazelwood, Florissant |
St. Louis |
EF2 |
0 fatalities |
|
| May 31, 2013 |
Harvester, Earth City, Bridgeton, Ferguson, Bellefontaine Neighbors, St. Louis |
St. Charles, St. Louis, St. Louis City |
EF3 |
2 injuries |
32.5 mi (52.3 km) path over 35 min and 1 mi (1.6 km) max width |
| May 31, 2013 |
South Roxanna |
Madison |
EF3 |
0 |
|
| May 31, 2013 |
Byrnes Mill, Scotsdale |
Jefferson |
EF1 |
0 |
|
| May 31, 2013 |
|
Franklin |
EF1 |
0 |
|
| April 3, 2014 |
Olivette, University City |
St. Louis |
EF1 |
0 |
At ~5:20 am, about 100 buildings damaged over 0.6-mile (0.97 km) path length and 100-yard (91 m) path width |
| June 7, 2014 |
St. Peters |
St. Charles |
EF0 |
0 |
Roof damage to an Arby's and a Club Fitness |
| June 28, 2015 |
|
St. Charles |
EF2 |
0 |
Destroyed an outbuilding and damaged multiple homes, one at EF2 strength. |
| April 26, 2016 |
WSW of New Melle |
St. Charles |
EF0 |
0 |
Damaged the roof of an outbuilding. |
| March 6, 2017 |
Wentzville |
St. Charles |
EF1 |
0 fatalities, 3 injuries |
Tornado caused minor damage to several businesses. |
| April 29, 2017 |
Orchard Farm |
St. Charles |
EF0 |
0 |
Several homes sustained minor roof damage. |
| May 21, 2019 |
Augusta |
Franklin, St. Charles |
EF1 |
0 |
Caused extensive tree damage. |
| March 27, 2021 |
Highland |
Madison |
EF1 |
0 |
Minor roof damage to homes, and a shed was completely destroyed. |
| December 10, 2021 |
Defiance, Chesterfield, Maryland Heights |
St. Charles, St. Louis |
EF3 |
1 fatality, 2 injuries |
Tornado destroyed 2 homes at high-end EF3 strength east of Defiance. Part of the Tornado outbreak of December 10–11, 2021. |
| December 10, 2021 |
Pontoon Beach, Edwardsville |
Madison |
EF3 |
6 fatalities, 1 injury |
Destroyed an Amazon warehouse, killing 6 people. Part of the Tornado outbreak of December 10–11, 2021. |
| May 19, 2022 |
Kirkwood |
St. Louis |
EF0 |
0 |
|
| May 19, 2022 |
Frontenac |
St. Louis |
EF0 |
0 |
|
| May 19, 2022 |
Creve Coeur |
St. Louis |
EF0 |
0 |
|
