Kearney County, Nebraska
Tornadoes, hail, floods and severe storms recorded here between 1955 and 2026, from NOAA's Storm Events Database. Search an address to see which tornadoes came closest to it.
30
Tornado reports
178
Hail reports
11
Floods since 1996
614
All events
0
Deaths
$57.2M
Property damage
Tornado paths in Kearney County
The part of each tornado’s path NOAA recorded in this county, 30 in all. Zoom in and the paths widen to their surveyed width.
EF0EF1EF2EF3EF4EF5Unrated
Year by year
All storm eventsTornadoes
NOAA's storm database records tornadoes back to 1950 and hail and thunderstorm wind back to 1955, but floods only from 1996 on. Older floods are missing here. For those, the U.S. Geological Survey's stream gauge records and flood reports are the place to look.
Most significant events
The strongest tornadoes, deadliest events and biggest damage here, up to 50.
Wind gusts peaked around 100 MPH along this path, with the most significant damage occurring approximately one mile east of Minden to two miles north-northeast of Minden. Numerous irrigation pivots were flipped and large tree limbs were downed. Along with multiple power poles bei…
Wind gusts estimated to reach near 80 MPH at times moved through the county, resulting in numerous overturned irrigation pivots and downed trees.
Drought Drought
High Wind High Wind
Sustained speeds near 40 MPH and wind gusts exceeding 50 MPH were common throughout the day. The peak measured wind gust was 62 MPH, measured by a mesonet station located five miles south-southwest of Kearney, which also measured a separate gust of 58 MPH. A gust of 59 MPH was me…
Thunderstorm Wind Thunderstorm Wind
A wind gust of 62 MPH was measured by a mesonet located four miles west-southwest of Minden.
Thunderstorm Wind Thunderstorm Wind
A wind gust of 73 MPH was measured by a mesonet station located three miles north-northeast of Hildreth.
Thunderstorm Wind Thunderstorm Wind
A wind gust of 58 MPH was measured by a mesonet station located eight miles south-southeast of Kearney.
Drought Drought
Blizzard Blizzard
Snowfall amounts ranged anywhere from 4 to 7 inches. The highest reported totals included 6.0 inches from Minden. This snow, combined with the strong northerly winds, resulted in widespread white-out conditions.
High Wind High Wind
Wind gusts anywhere from 55 to near 70 MPH were common across the area, based off of surrounding observations.
High Wind High Wind
A wind gust of 59 MPH was measured by a mesonet station located two miles southeast of Heartwell.
High Wind High Wind
The peak measured wind gust was 63 MPH, recorded by a mesonet station located six miles north-northwest of Minden.
High Wind High Wind
A wind gust of 58 MPH was measured by a mesonet station located three miles north-northwest of Upland.
Winter Weather Winter Weather
Snowfall totals across the county were generally in the 2 to 5 inch range, with the highest reported total of 4.0 inches from the NWS Cooperative Observer in Minden.
Extreme Cold/Wind Chill Extreme Cold/Wind Chill
Some of the coldest wind chills of the event were recorded across the county, including -43 degrees by a Nebraska Mesonet station located five miles northeast of Axtell and -42 degrees by a mesonet station located near Heartwell.
Winter Weather Winter Weather
Snowfall totals across the county generally ranged from 1 to 3 inches.
Winter Weather Winter Weather
Snowfall totals across the county were generally in the 2 to 4 inch range, with the highest reported total of 3.0 inches from the NWS Cooperative Observer in Minden.
Winter Weather Winter Weather
Storm total amounts generally in the 2 to 4 inch range were reported across the county.
Drought Drought
Thunderstorm Wind Thunderstorm Wind
Wind gusts estimated to be near 65 MPH resulted in the collapse of an old barn.
Hail Hail
Hail Hail
Hail Hail
Thunderstorm Wind Thunderstorm Wind
A wind gust of 72 MPH was measured by a mesonet station located four miles west-southwest of Minden.
Thunderstorm Wind Thunderstorm Wind
Wind gusts estimated to be as high as 80 MPH resulted in widespread tree damage across the southern half of Minden. Small and large tree limbs were snapped, tree trunks were snapped, and a few trees were uprooted.
Hail Hail
Tornado EF1 Tornado
This tornado touched down in the area of the golf course, then moved southeast through the northeast part of town, just south of the airport. The ground circulation was likely small and somewhat disorganized at this stage, as most of the damage in town was to trees. The tornado g…
Tornado EF1 Tornado
A small tornado touched down near a farmstead northwest of Norman and caused large tree limbs to fall onto a house. The tornado continued southeast where it snapped four power poles along K Road, overturned pivots, and carried a small brain bin over 500 yards from its original lo…
Tornado EFU Tornado
This tornado was a brief touchdown reported by storm chasers and an off-duty NWS employee. No rating nor wind speed was assigned due to the lack of quality damage indicators in the area. The location was based off of video and photos.
Thunderstorm Wind Thunderstorm Wind
Peak wind gusts were estimated to be around 75 MPH, with one measured gust of 66 MPH from a mesonet station located two miles southwest of Axtell. These wind gusts caused widespread tree damage in Axtell, with several large branches downed and some trees split in two. One portion…
Thunderstorm Wind Thunderstorm Wind
Wind gusts estimated to be near 60 MPH resulted in scattered downed tree limbs in Minden, the largest being up to six inches in diameter.
Hail Hail
Hail Hail
Hail ranging in size from quarters up to two inches in diameter was reported along and within a few miles on each side of this path.
Hail Hail
Thunderstorm Wind Thunderstorm Wind
A wind gust of 69 MPH was measured by a mesonet station located one mile south-southeast of Minden.
Thunderstorm Wind Thunderstorm Wind
A wind gust of 67 MPH was measured by a mesonet station located one mile east of Wilcox. A social media report noted tree limbs down in Wilcox.
Thunderstorm Wind Thunderstorm Wind
Wind gusts were estimated to be near 60 MPH, blowing dust resulted in lowered visibility.
High Wind High Wind
A wind gust of 60 MPH was measured by a mesonet station located 4 miles west-southwest of Minden. This gust occurred in stratiform rain behind the main line of thunderstorms.
Thunderstorm Wind Thunderstorm Wind
A wind gust of 85 MPH was measured by a mesonet station located one mile west of Heartwell.
Tornado EF0 Tornado
This EF0 rated tornado damaged a handful of irrigation pivots and trees along its over eight mile path. The peak wind speed was estimated to be 85 MPH, based upon tree damage near the middle of the path. This tornado was also noted by a drop in the WSR-88D correlation coefficient…
Tornado EF0 Tornado
A local resident reported damage to an irrigation pivot and soybean field north of Axtell. Subsequent radar review showed a circulation in the same area and time as the report, supporting a tornado. The location of the path was estimated based upon radar and the local resident re…
Hail Hail
Hail Hail
Thunderstorm Wind Thunderstorm Wind
A wind gust o63 MPH was measured by a mesonet station located two miles north-northeast of Norman.
Thunderstorm Wind Thunderstorm Wind
Report via broadcast media of tree damage across Minden, with some large limbed downed. Power line and pivot damage was reported just northeast of town.
Events by year, as a table
| Year | Events | Tornadoes |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 2 | 0 |
| 2025 | 14 | 0 |
| 2024 | 45 | 5 |
| 2023 | 30 | 1 |
| 2022 | 36 | 1 |
| 2021 | 22 | 3 |
| 2020 | 27 | 0 |
| 2019 | 21 | 0 |
| 2018 | 29 | 0 |
| 2017 | 18 | 0 |
| 2016 | 14 | 1 |
| 2015 | 8 | 0 |
| 2014 | 12 | 0 |
| 2013 | 20 | 0 |
| 2012 | 13 | 0 |
| 2011 | 14 | 0 |
| 2010 | 13 | 0 |
| 2009 | 11 | 0 |
| 2008 | 9 | 0 |
| 2007 | 17 | 0 |
| 2006 | 14 | 0 |
| 2005 | 12 | 1 |
| 2004 | 8 | 0 |
| 2003 | 7 | 0 |
| 2002 | 17 | 0 |
| 2001 | 7 | 0 |
| 2000 | 16 | 0 |
| 1999 | 17 | 2 |
| 1998 | 15 | 2 |
| 1997 | 19 | 0 |
| 1996 | 8 | 0 |
| 1995 | 2 | 0 |
| 1994 | 10 | 0 |
| 1992 | 5 | 0 |
| 1991 | 2 | 0 |
| 1990 | 8 | 4 |
| 1989 | 4 | 1 |
| 1987 | 1 | 0 |
| 1986 | 8 | 5 |
| 1985 | 2 | 0 |
| 1984 | 1 | 0 |
| 1983 | 1 | 0 |
| 1982 | 4 | 1 |
| 1980 | 1 | 0 |
| 1979 | 3 | 0 |
| 1978 | 1 | 0 |
| 1977 | 4 | 0 |
| 1976 | 1 | 0 |
| 1975 | 2 | 1 |
| 1974 | 1 | 0 |
| 1973 | 6 | 0 |
| 1971 | 2 | 1 |
| 1970 | 2 | 0 |
| 1969 | 3 | 0 |
| 1968 | 6 | 0 |
| 1967 | 1 | 0 |
| 1965 | 4 | 0 |
| 1964 | 1 | 0 |
| 1963 | 1 | 0 |
| 1962 | 2 | 0 |
| 1961 | 1 | 0 |
| 1960 | 3 | 0 |
| 1959 | 1 | 0 |
| 1957 | 1 | 0 |
| 1956 | 3 | 0 |
| 1955 | 1 | 1 |
Search your address
See every tornado that passed within 25 miles of a place in Kearney County, measured to its path.
We couldn’t get your location. Check that location access is allowed for this site, or type an address.