Tornadoes are some of the most destructive force in the world.
Although hurricanes do occur from time to time in other countries, unfortunately, the United States has more hurricanes than anywhere else in the world.
Because of this, all of the worst hurricanes ever recorded occurred in the United States.
Although there have been more storms than those on this list, these are the only storms where the width is seen, which is the criteria we used to compile the list.
Tri-State Tornado
Date: March 18, 1925
Maximum Wind: Unknown, but speeds greater than 73 mph (117.48 km/h)
Source: Wikimedia Commons
Although not the largest tornado, the Tri-State Tornado is known for holding many other records, including being the deadliest tornado ever recorded in the United States.
There were 695 deaths, twice as many as the second deadliest tornado in the U.S. Since the Tri-State Tornado struck in 1925, it was reclassified as a Category 5 tornado on the original Fujita scale.
The Tri-State Tornado holds the record for longest path, estimated to be between 151 – 235 miles (243 – 378.3 km).
Additionally, the Tri-State Tornado has the longest known tornado duration of any tornado at 3 hours and 37 minutes.
Although the Tri-State Tornado was strong, it was relatively small compared to other tornadoes on this list and only reached a maximum width of about one mile (1.61 kilometers).
No one knows for sure if the Tri-State Tornado was just one tornado or if it was actually a series of tornadoes that caused the reported damage.
Bridge Creek-Moore Tornado
Location: Grady, McClain, Cleveland, Oklahoma, Oklahoma, USA
Duration: 1 hour, 25 minutes
Duration: 1 hour, 25 minutes
Source: Wikimedia Commons by Erin D.
The Bridge Creek-Moore River was part of the Great Plains Tornado outbreak that occurred on May 3 – 4, 1999.
As the storm’s name suggests, the storm was strongest in the town of Bridge Creek.
When the storm reached the city, it reached a maximum width of between 1 – 1.4 kilometers (1.61 – 2.315 miles).
Unfortunately, the storm’s path destroyed a large number of mobile homes in Bridge Creek and about 200 homes/mobile homes were completely destroyed.
The Bridge Creek-Moore River is also more than an hour long and passes through several towns.
By the end of the devastation, 36 people had died and nearly 600 people were injured across the affected areas.
In total, the Bridge Creek-Moore Tornado destroyed an estimated 1,800 homes, damaged approximately 2,500 homes, and caused approximately $1 billion in damage.
Mulhall Tornado
Location: Mulhall, Oklahoma
Source: news9.com
According to the source, the Mulhall Tornado is a contender for being the largest tornado ever recorded.
Various sources report that the Mulhall Tornado was over 1.5 miles (2.4 km) wide and up to 4.38 miles (7.05 km) wide.
Like all tornadoes on this list, the Mulhall Tornado did a lot of damage.
Every house in the town of Mulhall was damaged in some way by the devastating storm.
Amazingly only one resident of Mulhall was seriously injured.
Despite the size of the Mulhall Tornado, there were no deaths because the tornado passed through the countryside, where there were no people.
Hallam Tornado
Location: Jefferson, Saline, Gage, Lancaster, and Otoe counties in Nebraska, USA
Prior to the 2013 tornado in El Reno, Oklahoma the Hallam Tornado was the widest tornado on record with a maximum width of 2.5 miles (4 km).
Although the Hallam Tornado passed through many areas, the town of Hallam, named after it, was the hardest hit.
The storm destroyed nearly every home and business in Hallam.
Fortunately, the Hallam Tornado usually passes through populated areas.
By the end of the storm, one person died and about 40 people were injured.
According to reports, the Hallam Tornado was so wide that many people did not realize they were seeing a tornado.
El Reno Tornado
Location: Canadian County, Oklahoma, USA – mainly south of El Reno
Date: May 31, 2013
Date: May 31, 2013
Date: May 31, 2013
Date: May 31, 2013
Time: 40 minutes
Maximum: EF3
The 2013 El Reno Tornado is considered the largest tornado ever recorded, based on width.
However, according to some sources the Mulhall Tornado is larger.
At its peak, the El Reno Tornado reached a width of 2.6 miles (4.2 km) and a speed of 301 mph (484 km/h).
Despite its strength, the El Reno Tornado was only classified as an EF3.
The El Reno Tornado lasted about 40 minutes and in the end eight people were killed, all in their vehicles.
In addition to the deaths, the El Reno Tornado injured more than 150 people.
In 2015, scientists built new equipment that allowed them to collect video footage from the event and see what was happening inside the El Reno Tornado.