May 1968 tornado outbreak

Tornado outbreak of May 1968

An F5 tornado near Charles City, Iowa on May 15, 1968
Type	Tornado outbreak
Duration	May 15–16, 1968
Tornadoes confirmed	46 confirmed
Max rating1	F5 tornado
Duration of tornado outbreak2	27 hours, 32 minutes
Damage	>$52.5 million
Areas affected	Central and Southern United States
1Most severe tornado damage; see Fujita scale 2Time from first tornado to last tornado

¹Most severe tornado damage; see Fujita scale

The Tornado outbreak of May 1968 was a significant and deadly tornado outbreak that struck most of the central and southern United States from May 15 to May 16, 1968. Producing 46 tornadoes, the outbreak killed at least 72 people, including 45 in Arkansas alone. The outbreak also produced two F5s in Iowa. It was one of the deadliest tornado outbreaks in the United States since the 1960s and is one of the deadliest outbreaks in Iowa history.

Severe weather activity started during the afternoon of May 15 as a low pressure system crossed the area. The first tornado touchdowns were across the Midwestern States including the two Iowa F5s that hit central and eastern parts of the state about 45 minutes apart during the late afternoon. Both tornadoes killed 18 in total. The first F5 tornado moved through five counties and 65 miles (105 km). It affected the town of Charles City just before 5 PM destroying much of the area. Damage figures were pegged at $30 million in Charles City alone while $1.5 million of damage was recorded elsewhere. This tornado killed 13 and injured 462 others. The second F5 tornado affected Fayette County and damaged or destroyed nearly 1000 homes. The hardest hit areas were Oelwein and Maynard where homes were completely swept away from their foundations. Five people were killed while 156 others were injured. Damage was estimated at $21 million. These were two of four F5 tornadoes across the country in 1968, the others being in southeastern Ohio on April 23 and in southwestern Minnesota on June 13. The next F5 tornados in Iowa took place in Jordan in 1976 and Parkersburg in 2008.