1953 Waco tornado
Path of the Waco tornado | |
| Meteorological history | |
|---|---|
| Formed | May 11, 1953, 4:10 p.m. CST (22:10 UTC) |
| F5 tornado | |
| on the Fujita scale | |
| Highest winds | >261 mph (420 km/h) |
| Overall effects | |
| Fatalities | 114 |
| Injuries | 597 |
| Damage | $41 million (1953 USD) $611 million (2025 USD) |
| Areas affected | Lorena, Waco, Bellmead and Axtell, Texas |
Part of the 1953 Waco tornado outbreak and tornadoes of 1953 | |
On the afternoon of May 11, 1953, a powerful and deadly tornado directly struck the city of Waco, Texas, killing 114 people and injuring 597 more. The tornado was the deadliest to hit Texas since 1900, with the same amount of fatalities but more injuries than the 1902 Goliad, Texas, tornado. The tornado eventually received an F5 rating, one of five in the devastating 1953 tornado season. It was the second deadliest tornado of that season, behind the 1953 Flint–Beecher tornado. It was also the first tornado to be officially rated F5 in the United States.