Dear Tom,
When was the last time there was a tornado in winter, anywhere in the United States?
Katie Schoeling
Dear Katie,
Considering winter to be Dec., Jan. and Feb., the last winter tornadoes (there were 14 of them) occurred on Feb. 28, 2007 in Kansas, Missouri and Florida. While infrequent when compared to warm season tornadoes, recent statistics indicate that winter twisters account for about 5% of the total number of tornadoes in the U.S. each year. The same storm systems that bring heavy snow and ice to the northern U.S. often produce tornadoes on their southern flank, typically across the Southeast. Though the immediate Chicago area has never recorded a winter tornado, one has occurred as early as March 4, 1961 and as late as Nov. 13, 1951. And just to the south at Momence in Kankakee County, an F2 tornado struck on an unseasonably warm Jan. 25, 1950.
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Tom Skilling is chief meteorologist at WGN-TV. His forecasts can be seen Monday through Friday on WGN-TV News at noon and 9 p.m.
WGN-TV meteorologists Steve Kahn, Richard Koeneman and Paul Dailey plus weather producer Bill Snyder contribute to this page.
