Mesa, AZ Tornado History — 51 Tornadoes Since 1950
How many tornadoes has Mesa, AZ had?
Mesa has had 51 tornadoes on record within 25 miles since 1950.
When was the most recent tornado near Mesa?
The most recent tornado within 25 miles of Mesa was an EF0 on October 16, 2022.
When is tornado season in Mesa?
June is historically the peak month for tornadoes near Mesa, with 6 on record. Spring through early summer (April–June) generally sees the highest activity across most of the central and southern United States.
At a Glance
Recent Tornado Activity Near Mesa
The last 20 years of confirmed tornadoes within 25 miles — 9 total, averaging 0.5 per year over this window.
Tornadoes by Decade
Tornadoes by Enhanced Fujita Rating
F0–F5 ratings (pre-2007) are grouped with their EF equivalents. The Enhanced Fujita scale replaced the original Fujita scale in February 2007.
Tornadoes by Month
Have any tornadoes near Mesa been fatal?
No fatalities are on record within 25 miles of Mesa from any of the 51 tornadoes since 1950, though 52 injuries have been reported. NOAA Storm Prediction Center records.
Notable Tornadoes Near Mesa
About Tornadoes in Mesa
This overview was written July 28, 2026. The tornado counts and notable-event figures elsewhere on this page reflect the latest data and may differ from this summary.
Mesa sits in Maricopa County, in the flat Sonoran Desert terrain of the Phoenix area's East Valley, where tornadoes tend to arrive with the summer monsoon, when moisture surging north from the Gulf of California destabilizes the desert air. Its tornado dates cluster in June through September, though winter and late-autumn systems have produced them as well.
The monsoon's capacity for damage showed on August 31, 1971, when an F2 tornado tore a 4.7-mile path up to 400 yards wide near the city, injuring 41 people and causing $2,750,000 in property damage. On June 22, 1972, another F2 tracked 13.5 miles and caused $27,500,000 in damage, and on July 5, 1968, a brief F2 injured two people along a path of roughly a tenth of a mile.
Cool-season tornadoes have struck as well. On January 17, 1993, an F2 carved a 2.1-mile path and caused $2,750,000 in damage, and clusters of weak tornadoes touched down in January and February 1992. On November 29, 2019, a late-autumn storm spawned EF0 tornadoes near the city. Recent activity has stayed on the weak end of the scale, with EF0 tornadoes on July 30, 2019, July 24, 2020, and October 16, 2022.