County Hazards

Storm events on record through

Tornado events in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania The tornado events on record, by date and by year

This page is a county record of past events and claims. It does not show the flood zone or the risk of an address. For the flood map of an address, use FEMA's address search (opens in a new tab).

NCEI has 39 tornado events on record for Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, from 1950 through 30 Jun 2026.

The newest tornado event on record is on 14 Jun 2026.

From 2016 through 2025, NCEI has 7 tornado events on record for the county.

The NWS collects event reports from a variety of sources, which include (but are not limited to): county, state, and federal emergency management officials, local law enforcement officials, SKYWARN spotters, NWS damage surveys, newspaper clipping services, the insurance industry, and the general public, among others.

The National Weather Service reports property and crop damage estimates using available data at the time of event reporting. These values should therefore be considered broad estimates. Damage amounts are not adjusted for inflation.

The words of the agency. Source: NOAA NCEI, Storm Events Database, page "Frequently Asked Questions", copied on .

Date of the data: NCEI storm events through . Event types on this page: Tornado.

Newest tornado events on record

TornadoEF1

2 miles WSW of KIRKWOOD. Damage estimate: $50 thousand

TornadoEF0

2 miles NE of MECHANICS GROVE. Damage estimate: $10 thousand

TornadoEF0

1 mile S of REINHOLDS. Damage estimate: $30 thousand

TornadoEF0

At RAWLINSVILLE

TornadoEF1

At KIRKWOOD. Damage estimate: $325 thousand

TornadoEF1

4 miles ENE of CHURCHTOWN. Damage estimate: $25 thousand

TornadoEF1

1 mile SE of SCHOENECK. Damage estimate: $100 thousand

TornadoEF2

2 miles N of GAP. Damage estimate: $8.0 million

TornadoEF1

At ROHRERSTOWN. Damage estimate: $4.0 million

TornadoEF1

1 mile NNE of FISHING CREEK. Damage estimate: $6.0 million

TornadoEF0

1 mile S of KINZERS. Damage estimate: $15 thousand

TornadoEF1

At LITITZ. Damage estimate: $1.0 million

TornadoF0

3 miles W of MANHEIM. Damage estimate: $5 thousand

TornadoF1

At WILLOW STREET. Damage estimate: $100 thousand

TornadoF1

At LANCASTER

TornadoF0

At WHITE HORSE. Damage estimate: $5 thousand

TornadoF0

At GORDONVILLE

TornadoF0

10 miles W of STRASBURG

TornadoF2

At QUARRYVILLE

TornadoF2

At Millersville

TornadoF1

At Schoeneck

TornadoF2

No place on record. Damage estimate: $250 thousand

TornadoF0

No place on record. Damage estimate: $25 thousand

TornadoF2

No place on record. Damage estimate: $2.5 million

TornadoF2

No place on record. Damage estimate: $250 thousand

A place is the text of the NCEI record: a distance and a direction from a reference place. The site does not show a place text that names a private property or reads as a person. A tornado before February 2007 has a rating on the Fujita scale (F). A later tornado has a rating on the Enhanced Fujita scale (EF).

Tornado events by year

Tornado events on record for Lancaster County by year, 1950 to 2026
DecadeYear that ends in 0Year that ends in 1Year that ends in 2Year that ends in 3Year that ends in 4Year that ends in 5Year that ends in 6Year that ends in 7Year that ends in 8Year that ends in 9All
1950s10010011004
1960s02000000002
1970s20001010015
1980s10000200025
1990s11000200105
2000s21003000017
2010s10100110026
2020s0011021 (part of the year)5

A darker cell has a larger count. The number is in each cell.

Tornado events are on record from 1950. The year 2026 has the events through 30 Jun 2026 only.

By month, all years

  1. Jan0 events
  2. Feb1 event
  3. Mar1 event
  4. Apr1 event
  5. May11 events
  6. Jun8 events
  7. Jul5 events
  8. Aug4 events
  9. Sep4 events
  10. Oct1 event
  11. Nov3 events
  12. Dec0 events

Magnitudes on record

Tornado events on record for Lancaster County by rating
RatingWind estimate of the scaleEvents
EF0 or F065 to 85 mph (EF0)9
EF1 or F186 to 110 mph (EF1)18
EF2 or F2111 to 135 mph (EF2)11
EF3 or F3136 to 165 mph (EF3)1
EF4 or F4166 to 200 mph (EF4)0
EF5 or F5more than 200 mph (EF5)0
Unratedno rating on record0

Tornadoes may contain multiple segments. A tornado that crosses a county line or state line is considered a separate segment.

The words of the agency. Source: NOAA NCEI, Storm Events Database, page "Frequently Asked Questions", copied on .

The Enhanced F-scale still is a set of wind estimates (not measurements) based on damage.

The words of the agency. Source: NOAA NWS Storm Prediction Center, Enhanced Fujita Tornado Damage Scale, copied on .

The wind estimates are those of the Enhanced Fujita scale.

Beside the other counties

Tornado events on record: Lancaster County beside the total of the counties of Pennsylvania and of the United States
MeasureLancasterAll counties of PennsylvaniaAll counties of the United States
Tornado events, 1950 to 2026391,09181,254
Events for each 100 square miles4.12.42.3
Events for each 10,000 residents0.70.82.4

The columns for the state and the United States total the counties. They count the events of each county in the same way as the county column. A forecast zone with another name than a county counts for the state only.

More tornado events on record

Tornado events on record for Lancaster County, newest first, without the 25 newest events above
DateEvent typeMagnitudeDamage estimateDeathsInjuriesOn record for
TornadoF1$250 thousand00County
TornadoF2$250 thousand02County
TornadoF1$25 thousand00County
TornadoF1$25 thousand00County
TornadoF1$25 thousand00County
TornadoF2$25 thousand00County
TornadoF2$25 thousand00County
TornadoF1$250 thousand00County
TornadoF2$2.5 million02County
TornadoF1$3 thousand03County
TornadoF1$3 thousand00County
TornadoF1$3 thousand01County
TornadoF2$3 thousand00County
TornadoF3$250 thousand01County

The table has all other events on record. A damage figure is an estimate in the NCEI record.

Official channels

These links open the pages of the agencies. The site checked the links on .

Cite this page

County Hazards. "Tornado events on record for Lancaster County, Pennsylvania". https://countyhazards.com/county/pa/lancaster/tornado/. Data: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database through 30 Jun 2026. Page made on .

Questions

Which month has the most tornado events on record for Lancaster County?
May has 11 of the 39 tornado events on record from 1950 through 30 Jun 2026.
How many tornado events are on record for Pennsylvania?
NCEI has 1,091 tornado events on record for Pennsylvania from 1950 through 30 Jun 2026. That count has every forecast zone of the state.
How does Lancaster County compare with the other counties of Pennsylvania?
The counties of Pennsylvania have 2.4 tornado events for each 100 square miles. Lancaster County has 4.1.
Which tornado ratings are on record for Lancaster County?
27 tornado events have a rating of EF0, F0, EF1 or F1. 12 events have a higher rating.