Tornadoes in the U.S. state of New York are relatively rare, with roughly 31 tornadoes occurring every year since 1900, the year with the first ever recorded event in the state.

Climatology

New York is located on the East Coast of the United States. New York experiences respectable seasonality despite being situated in the immediate vicinity of a large body of water, the Atlantic Ocean. The resulting 'clashing of warm and cold air' that occurs during seasonal transition does not translate to a high annual tornado count (despite the popular misconception). The vast majority of tornadoes are produced in organized thunderstorms (supercells and squall lines). Organized convection requires a combination of atmospheric conditions including moisture, conditional instability, vertical wind shear and some forcing for ascent. These ingredients coincide most frequently in the central United States, largely due to the influence the unique geography has on these variables. In New York, it is less common for these ingredients to coincide. Appreciable moisture and instability are rare during the cold season, but are not uncommon during the warm season in New York. As a result, tornadoes are most common in New York in the warm season, specifically between the months of May and September. Tornado events are not strictly limited to these months. Several notable events have occurred in "cool season" months (e.g., October 2, 2018; November 13, 2021). Some work suggests severe weather environments during the cold season may be occurring more often due to climate change, but this remains one of the more low confidence impacts.

Events

Pre-1950

August 7, 1900 – A strong, unrated tornado struck the city of New Rochelle, New York. Along its path of around , trees were snapped and defoliated, signs were torn from the ground and tossed, and numerous buildings were damaged or destroyed. Airborne debris shattered windows in a large number of structures, and the high winds caught people walking in the streets off-guard, knocking several down and pelting many with debris; however, none of the injuries were reported to be serious. July 16, 1904 – A large F2 tornado tracked through Westchester County, killing 2 people and injuring a further 6. Multiple structures were completely wiped off of their foundations, and the tornado caused $100,000 (1904 USD) in damages in the town of Chappaqua.

1950–1959

May 6, 1952 – A brief F2 tornado touched down near Lake Placid, damaging trees and other smaller structures.

1960–1969

May 9, 1961 – A strong F2 tornado hit Liberty, damaging multiple resorts and destroying various other structures, including a house. The tornado caused an estimated $2.5 million (1961 USD) in damages, and injured 3-4 people. June 9, 1966 – A brief F0 tornado caused minor damage in Erie County.

1970–1979

April 3, 1974 – A brief F1 tornado tracked through Chautauqua County, causing minor damage to structures in Frewsburg.

1980–1989

May 2, 1983 – A F3 tornado touched down in Boonville, New York, the most intense tornado recorded in Oneida County. May 31, 1985 – A large F4 tornado touched down in Erie County in Pennsylvania, before crossing the Pennsylvania-New York state line into Chautauqua County. Over 50 buildings were damaged or destroyed, and a dump truck was thrown over a mile away. No injuries were reported, and most of the damage was centered in Pennsylvania. A brief F3 tornado tracked through areas near Jamestown, damaging and destroying various homes. A brief F1 tornado touched down near Norfolk, causing little damage to crops and trees. July 10, 1989 – A weak F1 tornado touched down outside of Ogdensburg, causing minor damage and injuring one person. A violent F4 tornado hit Ames, destroying multiple homes and slabbing a poorly built farmhouse. Other smaller structures were also destroyed. The tornado caused an estimated $20,000,000 (1989 USD) in damages.Data from the Storm Prediction Center archives, which are accessible through SeverePlot , free software created and maintained by John Hart, lead forecaster for the SPC. A brief F2 tornado hit areas near Carmel Hamlet, damaging condominiums and injuring 5 people. Another brief but strong F2 tornado hit Moriches, damaging a trailer and injuring a person who was sheltering inside. November 16, 1989 – A small and brief F0 tornado touched down near Georgetown, causing little damage. Another F0 tornado hit areas around Peekskill, causing minor damage to crops. A relatively brief F1 tornado tracked through Sullivan County, damaging trees and other small structures. A weak but deadly F1 tornado hit Orange County, killing 9 people and injuring another 18. The event has been widely referred to as the "East Coldenham Elementary School disaster", as all 9 fatalities occurred when a wall located in the cafeteria of the East Coldenham Elementary collapsed, killing 9 students who were eating lunch. The tornado has also been studied, and these studies have suggested that the tornado may have been a downburst. A brief F0 tornado hit Long Lake, causing little to no damage. Two F1 tornadoes touched down in Saratoga County, causing minor damage to trees. An F0 tornado hit Buskirk, causing minor damage.

1990-1999

June 2, 1998 – A strong multi-vortex F2 tornado tracked through Wyoming County, destroying several buildings and damaging multiple aircraft, including a helicopter. The tornado also uprooted trees and downed power lines. A brief F1 tornado hit Pitcher, damaging the roof of a house before lifting. Another F1 tornado tracked through areas east of Pitcher, uprooting and snapping hundreds of trees. May 31, 1998 – A strong F3 tornado tracked through Saratoga and Rensselaer counties, damaging an estimated 350 homes and injuring 68 people. The tornado caused $70 million (1998 USD) in damages before crossing the New York-Vermont state line, producing mainly F2 damage in Bennington County in Vermont. September 7, 1998 – A derecho spawned an F2 tornado that hit Lynbrook, injuring 6 people and causing an estimated $1 million (1998 USD) in damages. 3 other smaller tornadoes were reported to have touched down, but none were confirmed. An F1 tornado tracked through Albany County, causing minor damage to structures and uprooting trees. A brief F0 tornado touched down in the Davenport area, causing $150,000 (1998 USD) in damages but injuring nobody. An F1 tornado hit Brocton, damaging a house and causing 2 injuries. A long-tracked F3 tornado moved through Tioga, Broome and Delaware counties, damaging multiple structures. A TV station was heavily damaged, and multiple homes were destroyed. Multiple people were injured, and the tornado caused an estimated $2 million (1998 USD) in damages. 2 tornadoes, an F2 and an F0, moved through Chenango County, uprooting trees and damaging barns. An F2 tornado tracked through portions of Otsego County, inflicting minor damage to structures and uprooting trees. A large multi-vortex F3 tornado hit Silver Lake, destroying mobile homes and denuding trees. 3 people were injured, and the tornado caused $800,000 (1998 USD) in damages. An F2 tornado tracked through Rensselaer County, causing damage to trees and mobile homes before lifting.

2000–2009

April 28, 2002 – A brief F0 tornado damaged multiple structures and homes near Springville. A strong F2 tornado moved through Allegany County, destroying a house and damaging multiple barns. July 12, 2006 – A destructive and strong F2 tornado moved through Rockland and Westchester counties, destroying homes and barns. 6 people were injured, and the tornado caused an estimated $12.1 million (2006 USD) in damages. August 8, 2007 – A strong EF2 tornado tracked through New York City, damaging thousands of structures from Staten Island to Brooklyn. 9 people were injured and the tornado was estimated to have caused $20 million (2007 USD) in damages.

2010–2019

July 25, 2010 – A rare EF1 tornado hit The Bronx, damaging hundreds of buildings and uprooting trees. 1 person was indirectly killed, and 7 were injured. The tornado caused $150,000 (2010 USD) in damages, and was the second tornado ever recorded to hit The Bronx area. September 16, 2010 – Two rare EF0 and EF1 tornadoes hit Brooklyn and Queens, damaging hundreds of buildings and killing 1 person.Tornadoes in New York, 2010, DailyRecord Many trees that were uprooted by the tornadoes landed on vehicles, indirectly injuring multiple people. April 27, 2011 – An EF1 tornado tracked through Steuben County, damaging multiple homes and uprooting hundreds of trees. An EF2 tornado touched down near Erin, damaging multiple homes and destroying several small structures. An EF1 tornado moved through Tompkins County, destroying an outbuilding and damaging homes. A strong EF2 tornado hit Pharsalia, destroying a mobile home and downing hundreds of trees. 2 EF1 tornadoes moved through Chenango County, damaging several houses but injuring nobody. An EF1 tornado hit Frankfort, damaging small structures and downing power lines before lifting. September 8, 2012 – A waterspout was observed off the coast of Queens, and it caused an unknown amount of damage. As it moved onshore, it developed into a high-end EF1 tornado, downing power lines and uprooting trees. May 31, 2017 – An EF0 hit an apartment complex in Wappingers Falls/Poughkeepsie in Dutchess County. May 15, 2018 – During a destructive severe weather outbreak that caused both extensive straight-line wind damage and large hail, four tornadoes touched down across the state of New York. The first tornado was an EF1 with an estimated maximum wind speed of . It touched down along NY 212, moving east and into the southern end of Saugerties in Ulster County. Trees fell onto homes, power lines and blocked roads. The tornado crossed the Hudson River, and lifted after it came onshore near Tivoli. A second tornado touched down in Newburgh, where some trees were sheared or uprooted. One person was killed when the tornado caused a tree to crush their car. It was rated an EF0. Shortly after the Newburgh tornado dissipated, an EF2 touched down in Kent Hills, a hamlet in Kent, and tracked alongside NY 52 where dozens of large trees were uprooted and snapped. The estimated maximum wind speeds on the Kent tornado were , the strongest out of the four that touched down. The final tornado was an EF1 that caused intermittent damage near Patterson, where a majority of the damage was trees being uprooted and snapped. It lifted before reaching the New York-Connecticut state line. October 2, 2018 – Three tornadoes touched down across the state, produced by severe thunderstorms ahead of a cold front. Two EF1s that touched down on opposite sides of the Hudson River, and one EF0 touched down in Suffolk County. The first EF1 touched down in a wooded area near the Harriman State Park before crossing the Palisades Interstate Parkway and into Stony Point, where it uprooted numerous trees. The other EF1 packed wind speeds of up to . Touching down near the hamlet of Millwood, numerous trees suffered some form of damage. Additionally, roofs of houses were damaged. The last tornado touched down in the late evening hours in Ronkonkoma, a hamlet in western Suffolk County. Numerous homes suffered minor damage, whether it was damage to siding, gutters or outdoor furniture being moved. A few trees were sheared and a few were toppled, landing on cars. Elsewhere, 16 tornadoes touched down in Pennsylvania, and two tornadoes touched down in Connecticut. August 21st 2019 – An EF1 tornado touched down in Saratoga county New York within the town of Wilton

2020–present May 15th 2020 – A EF1 tornado touched down in Saratoga County.