China experiences dozens of tornadoes each year, most often in the summer in the country's south, east, and northeast. Several tornadoes have been deadly, including the 2016 Funing tornado, which killed 98 people. In 2021, an outbreak of 13 tornadoes killed at least 12 people.
Climatology
Dozens of tornadoes touch down in China each year, with an average of 44 based on a survey from 2003 to 2019. The country's areas most commonly affected are in the south, east, and northeast. Tornadoes most typically affect the country in the summer, with a peak in July, followed by August. The earliest event in a calendar year was 12 January, 1996, in Guangdong. The latest was on 20 December, 1977, in Inner Mongolia Province.
Events EventDateAreaTornadoesCasualtiesNotesSourcesShanghai, China tornado outbreak24 September 1956Shanghai368 fatalities, 842 injuriesThree tornadoes hit Shanghai, one of which was estimated at wide. Numerous residential buildings were demolished, a 60-ton crane was toppled, and a 10-ton empty oil tank was thrown , wounding 5 people who were hiding inside. Elsewhere, 37 people were killed and 150 injured at the Shanghai Polytechnic University, where buildings were collapsed, including a 4-story building which was "cut in half" by the tornado.Hubei, China tornado22 April 1958Hanchuan, Hubei Province, China–133 fatalitiesTornado rated at least F3 on the Fujita scale.Shandong, China tornado5 July 1958Zaozhuang, Shandong Province, China–63 fatalitiesHubei, China tornado31 July 1964Xiaogan, Hubei Province, China–82 fatalitiesJiangsu, China tornado3 March 1966Yancheng, Jiangsu Province, China–74–87 fatalitiesTornado moved northeast and was over 1 kilometer wide. A total of 30 river vessels were left missing, and thousands of buildings were damaged. Tornado rated around F4 on the Fujita scale.Bazhou–Tianjin, China tornadoes28–29 August 1969Bazhou, Hebei Province, China–Tianjin2146 fatalities, >1,610 injuriesOn 28 August, a tornado moved from the Hongqiao District to the Nankai District of Tianjin. Six boats were overturned and sank. On the following day, a tornado touched down near Chuhegang Village before moving into Tianjin, dissipating near the Finance and Economics School. The second tornado was much more intense - along the path, trees were uprooted, chimney stacks were toppled, and concrete factories were severely damaged or leveled. The auditorium of the Finance and Economics School was also destroyed. The two tornadoes killed 146 people, of which 52 died in Tianjin and 94 in Chu Hegang Village. Second tornado was rated a high-end F4 (an low-end F5 intensity is plausible) on the Fujita scale.Hubei, China tornado outbreak16 April 1977Hubei Province, China≥3118 fatalities, 1,100+ injuriesThree tornadoes touched down in Hubei Province. Xiaogan, Huangpi, and Huanggang counties were affected. Concrete buildings were destroyed by the tornadoes and numerous trees were uprooted. In Huanggang County, the auditorium of Zongluzui High School was destroyed during a movie viewing, killing 86 people and injuring hundreds. The Huanggang County tornado alone killed 103 people, and was rated at least F3 on the Fujita scale.Shaanxi, China tornado14 April 1978Xianyang, Shaanxi Province, China184 fatalities, 334 injuriesA 15-minute, 300 metres (980 ft) wide tornado destroyed 90% of houses in Zhoucheng village. The tornado was rated EF3. The tornado path was about 7 kilometres (4.3 mi) long. A total of 945 houses were destroyed, and more than 6,000 trees were damaged.Hunan, China tornado17 April 1979Changde, Hunan Province, China–59 fatalitiesHunan, China tornado27 April 1983Xiangyin County, Miluo City and Pingjiang County, Hunan Province, China181 fatalities, 970 injuriesA large tornado affected several counties, leaving a trail of catastrophic destruction. Rated EF4, the tornado uprooted an ancient camphor tree with a diameter at breast height of 3.15 metres (10.3 ft), ripped a 110‑kV high‑tension power pole from the ground and hurled it 6 metres (20 ft) from its base, toppled an installed 50‑kVA transformer and carried it over 10 metres (33 ft), flattened a newly built single‑story brick‑and‑wood courtyard house covering more than 1,000 square metres (10,800 sq ft), and shattered a 60‑square‑metre (650 sq ft) concrete slab into pieces and swept them more than 100 metres (330 ft) away. Elsewhere along its path, the tornado collapsed 2,600 homes and "destroyed" more than 300,000 trees. Two school pupils died after being thrown over 300 metres (980 ft). Fish and shrimp were deposited in nearby mountains. The direct economic loss totaled 12.711 million yuan.Shanghai, China tornadoes11 July 1986Shanghai431 fatalities, 168 injuriesSeveral tornadoes, described as being similar in strength to the ones in 1956, affected Shanghai. The tornadoes destroyed 4,800 buildings, 11 schools and 14 factories.Heilongjiang, China tornado outbreak31 July 1987Heilongjiang Province, China10+16 fatalities, 442 injuriesA tornado outbreak affected Heilongjiang Province. Fourteen counties and cities were affected. An EF4 tornadoes occurred across Hailun. Another EF4 tornado struck Keshan Farm, and an EF2 struck Baiquan County.Guangdong Province, China tornado19 April 1995Guangdong Province, China–7 fatalitiesSouth China tornado20 April 2003Tiaofeng Town of Leizhou City, Guangdong Province, ChinaUnclear how many houses destroyed since more houses are listed as destroyed than affected ("affected 423 homes and destroyed 793 houses"), and if that many houses were actually destroyed, the deaths and injuries may have been under-reported.Hong Kong Airport Tornado20 May 2003Hong Kong1NoneA weak tornado struck Hong Kong International Airport.Hong Kong Airport Tornado6 September 2004Hong Kong1NoneAn anticyclonic tornado briefly touched down at the Hong Kong International Airport.Guangdong, China tornado11 May 2005Huilai County and Lufeng, Guangdong Province, China6 fatalities, 100+ injuries204 houses destroyed, 28,310 people affected, 31 million yuan in economic lossesJiangsu, China tornado14 June 2005Shuyang County, Jiangsu Province, China7 fatalities, 223+ injuries"Several hundred were injured", 194,487 houses destroyed, 825,000 people affected, 1.2 billion yuan in economic lossesHunan, China tornado27 July 2005Hengyang and Hengnan counties, Hunan Province, China7 fatalities, 207 injuries2,430 houses destroyed, 700 families homeless, some injuries caused by chemical leaks associated with the stormAnhui, China tornado30 July 2005Anhui Province, China15 fatalities, 46 injuries42.1 million yuan in economic lossesNanyang, Henan, China tornado3 August 200520 townships, Nanyang city, Henan Province, China2 fatalities, 35 injuries15,000 trees uprooted, 136 million yuan in economic lossesGuangdong, China tornado11–15 August 2005Qishi Township and 384 villages in Zhanjiang, Guangdong Province, China3 fatalities, 195 injuries20 people missing- unknown if found from news accountsShanghai, China tornado13 August 2005Dongjie Village of Huangdu Town, Jiading, Qingpu and Baoshan districts, Shanghai, ChinaCaused power outage for 3,760 families and 124 businesses. Tornado also knocked down five high-voltage power lines, causing more widespread power outages.Guangdong, China tornado8 September 200517 villages in Lianjiang City, Guangdong Province, ChinaNo casualties, injuries unknown, 10,000 people affected, 480 houses destroyed, 12.8 million yuan in economic losses.Hainan, China tornado27 September 2005Lingao County, Hainan Province, China6 fatalities, 15 injuries6 houses destroyed, 70 others damagedJiangsu, China tornado29 November 2005Suzhou, Jiangsu Province, China6 fatalities, 52 injuriesAnhui, China tornado6 December 2005Wuwei County, Anhui Province, China16 fatalities, 162 injuries715 houses destroyed, 24 million yuan in economic lossesGuangdong, China tornado1 March 2006Leizhou City, Guangdong Province, China510 houses destroyed.Shanghai, China tornado13 March 2006Pudong New Area, Shanghai, ChinaShenzhen, China tornado27 March 2006Longgang and Pingshan districts, Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, China5 fatalities, 12 injuriesAnhui, China tornado29 June 2006Sixian County, Anhui Province China3 fatalities, 46 injuriesDeaths from the collapse of a school roof on students.Southeast China tornado3 July 2007Gaoyou City, Jiangsu Province and Tianchang City, Anhui Province, China14 fatalities, 151 injuriesZhejiang, China tornado18 August 2007Wenzhou, Zhejiang Province, China11 fatalities, 62 injuries156 houses destroyed.Heilongjiang, China tornado25 May 2008Wuchang City, Heilongjiang Province, China1 fatality, 36 injuriesF2 tornado and hailstorm hit 7 towns. A total of 433 houses damaged.Guangdong, China tornado6 June 2008Wuchuan, Guangdong, ChinaAnhui, China tornado20 June 2008Lingbi County, Anhui Province, China1 fatality, 49 injuries650 houses destroyed and 960 damaged, 950 people relocated.East China Sea tornado5 July 2008East China Sea, China3 fatalitiesFishing boat capsized, 4 people still missingJiangsu, China tornado30 July 2008Linze Town, Jiangsu Province, China4 fatalities, 90+ injuriesAssociated with Tropical Storm Fung-wong, 751,600 people were evacuated in advanceChongqing, China tornado6 May 2010Dianjiang and Liangping counties, Chongqing Municipality, China39 fatalities, 200 injuriesHeilongjiang, China tornado15 May 2010Suihua City, Heilongjiang Province, China7 fatalities, 98 injuriesJiangxi, China tornado20 July 2010Yongxiu County, Jiangxi Province, ChinaUnknown mortality and damages from news article found.Guangdong, China tornado2 May 2011Dabu Town of Ruyuan Yao Nationality Autonomous County, Guangdong Province China1 house destroyed, 53 damaged, injuries unknown.Hunan, China tornado9 May 2012Lianyuan, Hunan Province, China4 fatalities, 30 injuries5,000 people in the area forced to relocate, up to 1,000 collapsed houses.Jiangxi, China tornado17–22 July 2012Yunsyu County, Jiangxi Province and Anhui Province, China1 fatality, numerous injuriesTotal loss of life and property unclear from the news report. Number of wounded unclear from article. A total of 580,000 people affected by severe weather.Guangxi, China tornado17 April 2013Qixing District, Guilin and Rong'an County, Liuzhou, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, ChinaHunan, China tornado20 March 2013Dao County, Hunan Province, China3 fatalities, 52 injuriesGuangdong, China tornado21 March 2013Fujian Province and Dongguan, Guangdong Province, China24 fatalities, 148 injuriesCapsized a river ferry, killing 11; 215,000 people in the area forced to relocate because of severe weather.Jiangsu & Anhui, China tornado7 July 2013Yuhu Village, Gaoyou City and Yizheng City, Jiangsu Province, and Tianchang City, Anhui Province, China500 houses damaged, some rows of houses completely leveled to foundations.Foshan City, China tornado4 October 2015Shunde District, Foshan City, Guangdong Province, China3 fatalities, 80 injuriesAssociated with Typhoon Mujigae.Jiangxi, China tornado16 April 2016Yichin City and Shangu Town, Jing'an County and Gao'an County, Jiangxi Province, China258 houses damaged, 27 million yuan in damages.Jiangsu tornado23 June 2016Yancheng, Jiangsu Province, China≥299 fatalities, 846 injuriesAn EF4 tornado accompanied by a hailstorm killed at least 98 people and injured 846 others. The same supercell later produced a second tornado that killed one personWuhan tornado outbreak14-15 May 2021Wuhan, China≥1315 fatalities, 400 injuriesAt least 12 people were killed and hundreds were injured in a major tornado outbreak across the Wuhan and Jiangsu provinces of China. At least one EF3 tornado was confirmed.Typhoon Maysak (2026)4-6 July 2026Southeastern China312 fatalities, >331 injuries12 people were killed by 2 separate tornadoes, the deadliest was a preliminary rated EF3 in Huanggang City, Hubei, killing 10 and injuring over 331 others. Another killer EF3 tornado was also reported in Daye, Hubei with 2 additional fatalities.
See also