5 Violent EF4 Tornadoes Have Now Hit The US In 2025. Is That Unusual?

weather.com ^ | 05/21/2025 | Chris Dolce

[ChicagoConservative27]

Five tornadoes rated EF4 have struck the U.S. so far in 2025 after two more were confirmed following the most recent siege of severe weather in mid-May. Tornadoes in the violent category like these makeup less than 1% of twisters this century, so how does this year's number stack up compared to the average?

Big Picture -Defining Violent Tornadoes: While all tornadoes are dangerous, meteorologists reserve "violent" for those with the two highest ratings on the Enhanced-Fujita scale - EF4 or EF5. That's because these strongest tornadoes are capable of devastating damage, such as crushing and throwing vehicles, leveling well-built homes, even sweeping foundations clean. These select few tornadoes are estimated to have peak winds of 166 mph or higher.

-This Year's EF4 Tornadoes: Two of them struck northern Arkansas on the night of March 14. The following day, EF4 damage was found from a tornado that tracked from Tangipahoa Parish, Louisiana, to Covington County, Mississippi. May 16 had two EF4s, one south of Marion, Illinois, and another that devastated parts of Pulaski and Laurel counties in southeast Kentucky.

-More Than The 10-Year Average: There have been anywhere from zero to six EF4-rated tornadoes each year from 2015 through 2024, so this year is on the higher end of that range for the past decade. The average over that time is about 3 per year, which is 2 fewer than we've seen in 2025.

[hinckley buzzard]

The historic trend for strong tornadoes has been in decline the last fifty years or more. We may have an uptick this year, but the trend is down. There is a slight uptick for mild tornadoes F1 and F2, considered to be due largely to improved detection.

[pfflier]

It’s obvious that the increase in tornados is cause by wide spread use of weather radars.

Also their relative strength is determined arbitrarily by a NWS investigative team sent to the site.

The worst damage I ever saw growing up in Oklahoma, was an EF-2 that hit a trailer park. (There was no shortage of EF2s or trailer parks in Oklahoma BTW).

[Governor Dinwiddie]

True. It always varies year to year, especially in years when the el nino cycle is flipping.

[21twelve]

Tornadoes are caused by the convergence of cold air and hot air. Due to global warming there is no more cold air anymore, hence the reason the trend is down. (Send me my Global Warming research grant check!)

[Qwapisking]

Extended family lived in xenia at the time. Pretty spooky to listen to their firsthand accounts. Took years to recover.

[Republican Wildcat]

Maybe, maybe not. The scale is based on damage to confirm how strong the storm is...so it can depend on where the storms strike in any given year.

[If You Want It Fixed - Fix It]

We must burrow, become subterrainian. Go. Quick.

[EnderWiggin1970]

So I take it the 12-year streak of NO F5 tornadoes anywhere in the world is continuing. Something the global warming fascists desperately keep avoiding while they hype whatever else they can.

I had an F4 hit near me last year and I did cleanup on it as a cutter on a chainsaw disaster relief crew. They are tremendously scary and deadly, but the reality that F5's have gone extinct should be acknowledged and celebrated.

[MacNaughton]

This ...

The prevalence of observation and recording capacity and general human density and movement is just observing/recording the true seasonal numbers.

[Tymesup]

Chuck Norris once round house kicked a Twister game, which set off a tornado. He stopped it by holding up a picture of Helen Thomas.