Tornado History

Ottawa Tornado History

This county-level tornado history page focuses on Ottawa, Michigan. The records below identify 25 tornadoes from 1956 through 2025, including a highest listed rating of F5 (Incredible damage). NOAA damage estimates in this group total at least $4.6M, with 14 deaths and 202 injuries recorded across the listed events.

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25recorded tornadoes
F5 (Incredible damage)highest rating
$4.6Mminimum property damage
May 15, 2025latest tornado
21.2 milongest listed path
2000 ydwidest listed path

Historical Track Sketch

F5 April 3, 19561956F4 April 11, 19651965F3 April 3, 19561956F2 March 6, 19561956F2 June 22, 19571957F2 September 22, 19611961F2 September 4, 19651965F2 July 12, 19661966EF1 August 20, 20162016F1 March 12, 19761976F1 June 15, 19761976F1 August 9, 19791979F1 August 9, 19791979F1 May 30, 19911991EF0 June 21, 2010EF0 June 26, 2021F0 May 21, 2001F0 June 17, 1975F0 August 9, 1979F0 July 9, 1987F0 May 13, 1978F0 June 17, 1992F0 April 11, 2001EF0 May 15, 2025EFU October 13, 2024© OpenStreetMap contributors

Rating Breakdown

  • F5 (Incredible damage)1
  • F4 (Devastating damage)1
  • F3 (Severe damage)1
  • F2 (Considerable damage)5
  • F1 (Moderate damage)5
  • EF1 (Moderate damage)1
  • F0 (Light damage)7
  • EF0 (Light damage)3
  • Unknown rating1

Most Active Years

  • 19563
  • 19793
  • 19652
  • 19762
  • 20012
  • 19571
  • 19611
  • 19661

Notable Tornado Records

The table highlights the strongest and most damaging records in this page's local dataset. Damage totals are NOAA-reported minimum estimates where available.

DateRatingAreaLengthWidthDeathsInjuriesMin. property damage
April 3, 1956F5Ottawa, Michigan15.1 mi400 yd14200$250K
April 11, 1965F4Ottawa, Michigan6.2 mi300 yd00$25K
April 3, 1956F3Ottawa, Michigan21.2 mi200 yd00$2.5M
March 6, 1956F2Ottawa, Michigan8 mi100 yd00$25K
June 22, 1957F2Ottawa, Michigan0 mi33 yd00$25K
September 22, 1961F2Ottawa, Michigan2.7 mi2000 yd01$25K
September 4, 1965F2Ottawa, Michigan4.1 mi33 yd00$25K
July 12, 1966F2Ottawa, Michigan2 mi33 yd00$25K
August 20, 2016EF1Ottawa, Michigan4.08 mi100 yd00$500K
March 12, 1976F1Ottawa, Michigan12 mi83 yd01$250K
June 15, 1976F1Ottawa, Michigan12 mi33 yd00$250K
August 9, 1979F1Ottawa, Michigan0.3 mi100 yd00$250K

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Source And Limits

Data source: NOAA/NCEI. TornadoTrace summarizes historical records for screening and research. Coordinates, damage estimates, narratives, and event details can be approximate, incomplete, revised, or missing. Do not use this page as legal, insurance, engineering, real estate, emergency management, or safety advice.