Counties with the most tornadoes in Missouri

It's been a busy year for tornadoes in the U.S. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, as many as 1,155 twisters have touched down across the country since the start of the year, above the average for this time of year.

A single day can drive up tornado counts. March 31, 2023, accounted for 163 tornadoes across the Midwest and South. Tornado activity usually peaks in the spring and early summer, and the pace of tornadoes usually slows around late summer. A smaller-scale second tornado season emerges in the fall, mostly in the Gulf Coast states.

Stacker used data from NOAA's National Centers for Environmental Information to find the counties in Missouri that have experienced the most tornadoes since 2000. While data is available going back to 1950, tornado tracking by the National Weather Service became more robust and accurate in the 1990s. Since counties can vary in size, they are ranked by the number of tornadoes per 100 square miles. Counties that experienced less than five tornadoes are not included.

The counties that encounter the most tornadoes aren't all in the infamous Tornado Alley. When adjusted for county area, the top 10 counties that experienced the most tornadoes since 2000 are from nine different states, all in the Southeast with the exception of Cleveland County, Oklahoma.

Research has shown that Tornado Alley is shifting due to warming temperatures fueled by climate change. In the future, the Southeast could become the region that receives the bulk of the country's tornadoes. It's a concerning trend as the South is more populated than the Great Plains and has a higher concentration of mobile homes than other parts of the country, making the storms potentially deadlier and costlier.

As of August 2023, 75 people have died from tornadoes this year, and over 60% of those deaths occurred in mobile homes.

The best way to stay protected during tornadoes is to have multiple ways of receiving storm updates including social media, radio, television, and sirens, and to immediately seek shelter in a basement or interior room without windows when a tornado watch escalates to a warning.

Read on to see which counties experience the most tornadoes in Missouri.

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#50. Ozark County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 15 (2.01 per 100 square miles)
- #1,047 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#49. Miller County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 12 (2.02 per 100 square miles)
- #1,041 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#48. Dunklin County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 11 (2.03 per 100 square miles)
- #1,034 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#47. Howell County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 19 (2.05 per 100 square miles)
- #1,019 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#46. Wright County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 14 (2.05 per 100 square miles)
- #1,017 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#45. Ralls County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 10 (2.13 per 100 square miles)
- #968 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#44. St. Francois County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 10 (2.21 per 100 square miles)
- #918 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#43. McDonald County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 12 (2.22 per 100 square miles)
- #908 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#42. Lafayette County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 14 (2.23 per 100 square miles)
- #904 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#41. Marion County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 10 (2.29 per 100 square miles)
- #861 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#40. Cedar County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 11 (2.32 per 100 square miles)
- #848 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#39. Perry County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 11 (2.32 per 100 square miles)
- #847 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#38. Jasper County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 15 (2.35 per 100 square miles)
- #826 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#37. Taney County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 15 (2.37 per 100 square miles)
- #812 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#36. Clinton County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 10 (2.39 per 100 square miles)
- #798 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#35. Callaway County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 20 (2.40 per 100 square miles)
- #792 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#34. Johnson County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 20 (2.41 per 100 square miles)
- #779 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#33. Stoddard County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 20 (2.43 per 100 square miles)
- #765 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#32. Grundy County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 11 (2.53 per 100 square miles)
- #717 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 1

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#31. Phelps County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 17 (2.53 per 100 square miles)
- #712 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#30. DeKalb County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 11 (2.61 per 100 square miles)
- #675 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#29. Montgomery County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 14 (2.61 per 100 square miles)
- #673 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#28. Buchanan County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 11 (2.70 per 100 square miles)
- #633 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#27. Cass County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 20 (2.87 per 100 square miles)
- #560 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#26. Jefferson County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 19 (2.89 per 100 square miles)
- #546 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 3

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#25. Monroe County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 19 (2.93 per 100 square miles)
- #533 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#24. Lawrence County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 18 (2.94 per 100 square miles)
- #526 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#23. New Madrid County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 20 (2.96 per 100 square miles)
- #517 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#22. Jackson County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 18 (2.98 per 100 square miles)
- #503 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#21. Douglas County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 26 (3.20 per 100 square miles)
- #416 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#20. Pettis County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 22 (3.22 per 100 square miles)
- #404 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#19. Hickory County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 13 (3.26 per 100 square miles)
- #397 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#18. Dade County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 16 (3.27 per 100 square miles)
- #394 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 2

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#17. Barton County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 20 (3.38 per 100 square miles)
- #357 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#16. St. Charles County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 19 (3.39 per 100 square miles)
- #351 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#15. Pemiscot County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 17 (3.45 per 100 square miles)
- #340 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#14. Bollinger County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 22 (3.56 per 100 square miles)
- #311 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 1

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#13. Butler County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 25 (3.60 per 100 square miles)
- #306 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#12. Scott County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 16 (3.81 per 100 square miles)
- #265 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#11. Madison County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 19 (3.84 per 100 square miles)
- #260 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#10. Webster County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 23 (3.88 per 100 square miles)
- #252 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#9. Cape Girardeau County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 23 (3.98 per 100 square miles)
- #236 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 1

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#8. Polk County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 26 (4.09 per 100 square miles)
- #217 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#7. Barry County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 32 (4.11 per 100 square miles)
- #212 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#6. Clay County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 17 (4.28 per 100 square miles)
- #188 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#5. Stone County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 20 (4.31 per 100 square miles)
- #181 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#4. Christian County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 26 (4.62 per 100 square miles)
- #137 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 0

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#3. Newton County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 29 (4.64 per 100 square miles)
- #133 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 1

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#2. Greene County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 32 (4.74 per 100 square miles)
- #125 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 1

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#1. St. Louis County

- Tornadoes since 2000: 25 (4.92 per 100 square miles)
- #113 nationally
- Tornadoes this year, as of May 31: 1

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