Orange, CA Tornado History — 49 Tornadoes Since 1950
How many tornadoes has Orange, CA had?
Orange has had 49 tornadoes on record within 25 miles since 1950.
When was the most recent tornado near Orange?
The most recent tornado within 25 miles of Orange was an EF0 on March 13, 2025.
When is tornado season in Orange?
January is historically the peak month for tornadoes near Orange, with 10 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 Orange
The last 20 years of confirmed tornadoes within 25 miles — 7 total, averaging 0.3 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 Orange been fatal?
No fatalities are on record within 25 miles of Orange from any of the 49 tornadoes since 1950, though 19 injuries have been reported. NOAA Storm Prediction Center records.
Notable Tornadoes Near Orange
About Tornadoes in Orange
This overview was written July 29, 2026. The tornado counts and notable-event figures elsewhere on this page reflect the latest data and may differ from this summary.
Orange sits in the flat interior of Orange County, where tornadoes tend to arrive not with springtime supercells but with the Pacific storm systems of the cool season — the city's events cluster in the months from November through March.
On November 7, 1966, an F2 tornado carved a 10.3-mile path roughly 50 yards wide through the area, injuring 10 people and causing $275,000 in property damage; a second, much briefer F2 and an F1 touched down that same day. Another destructive cool-season episode came on November 9, 1982, when an F2 tracked 10 miles with a width of 1,300 yards and did $2,750,000 in property damage, with weaker F0 and F1 tornadoes also touching down that day.
More recent activity has stayed toward the weaker end of the scale. An EF1 struck on January 19, 2010, and 2023 brought a flurry of touchdowns: an EF0 on February 23, an EF1 on March 22, and EF0s on May 4. Most recently, an EF0 touched down on March 13, 2025 — a reminder that even coastal Southern California's mild, wet winters can occasionally spin up a tornado.