Tornado record · Original Fujita scale
F4 tornado, Mercer County, Missouri, April 21, 1973
RatingF4
Deaths0
Injuries1
Length14.6 mi
Width440 yd
Path
Drawn as a straight line from the recorded start point (40.33, -93.55) to the end point (40.47, -93.32), which is all NOAA's record holds. The real track may have curved.
The record
- Date
- April 21, 1973, 2:00 PM (as recorded, Central Standard Time)
- Rating
- F4
- States
- Missouri
- Counties
- Mercer County, Putnam County
- Path
- 14.6 miles long, up to 440 yards wide
- Casualties
- 0 deaths, 1 injuries
Other tornadoes on April 21, 1973
| Date | Rating | State | Path length | Width | Deaths | Injuries |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 21, 1973 | F2 | Iowa | 13.2 mi | 10 yd | 0 | 6 |
| Apr 21, 1973 | F2 | Illinois | 30.2 mi | 10 yd | 0 | 2 |
| Apr 21, 1973 | F2 | Illinois | 0.2 mi | 10 yd | 0 | 0 |
| Apr 21, 1973 | F2 | Missouri | 5 mi | 100 yd | 0 | 2 |
| Apr 21, 1973 | F1 | Iowa | 4.1 mi | 250 yd | 0 | 0 |
| Apr 21, 1973 | F1 | Oklahoma | 0.1 mi | 120 yd | 0 | 0 |
| Apr 21, 1973 | F1 | Oklahoma | 5.1 mi | 40 yd | 0 | 0 |
| Apr 21, 1973 | F1 | Illinois | 0.2 mi | 10 yd | 0 | 0 |
| Apr 21, 1973 | F1 | Iowa | 1 mi | 150 yd | 0 | 0 |
| Apr 21, 1973 | F1 | Illinois | 11.6 mi | 10 yd | 0 | 0 |
| Apr 21, 1973 | F1 | Illinois | 8.6 mi | 60 yd | 0 | 0 |
Tornado history nearby
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather database, 1950 to 2025.