From the Weather Center
by John Simon
September 2021
TORNADOES IN NEW YORK STATE
The National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration has been tracking tornadoes for decades, from January of 1950 to April 30, 2021. Their study shows Sullivan County has seen a lot of EF-Zero tornadoes and one EF-2 tornado during that time period.
Our county doesn’t typically have powerful tornados because of the surrounding mountains and because of our higher elevation.
The total number of tornadoes to hit New York State during that time is 486. There have been 317 direct injuries from those tornadoes and even one death. Property damage amounted to almost $479 million and crop damage was estimated at $883,000.
The 25 tornadoes in 1992 made that the peak year for the number of tornadoes in New York State, but the 18 tornadoes spawned in 1989 caused the most property damage, $175 million.
The 91 people who were directly injured by the tornadoes of 1998 is the largest for New York State since 1950.