Waterbury, CT Tornado History — 59 Tornadoes Since 1950
How many tornadoes has Waterbury, CT had?
Waterbury has had 59 tornadoes on record within 25 miles since 1950, including 3 violent (EF3+) tornadoes.
When was the most recent tornado near Waterbury?
The most recent tornado within 25 miles of Waterbury was an EF0 on June 21, 2024.
When is tornado season in Waterbury?
July is historically the peak month for tornadoes near Waterbury, with 23 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 Waterbury
The last 20 years of confirmed tornadoes within 25 miles — 21 total, averaging 1.1 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
Casualties on Record Near Waterbury
1 fatality has been recorded within 25 miles of Waterbury since 1950, across 1 event. 184 injuries have been reported across all events. 1962 was the deadliest year on record.
The deadliest single event was a F3 on May 24, 1962, which caused 1 fatality along a 11.6-mile track.
Notable Tornadoes Near Waterbury
About Tornadoes in Waterbury
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.
Waterbury lies in the Naugatuck River valley of New Haven County, in the hilly interior of western Connecticut, and the tornadoes documented around the city have overwhelmingly come out of summer thunderstorms, with June, July, and August dominating the calendar.
On July 10, 1989, an F4 tornado tore a three-mile path through the area, injuring 40 people and causing $275 million in property damage; F2 tornadoes struck the region that same day, one of them injuring 70 people along a five-mile track. An earlier generation lived through a deadly F3 on May 24, 1962, which killed one person and injured 50 along an 11.6-mile path, and on August 21, 1951, an F2 tracked 43.9 miles through the area, injuring nine.
Recent decades have brought mostly weaker tornadoes in the same warm-season window: EF1 tornadoes touched down around the area on July 21, 2010, and again on May 15, 2018, and EF0 and EF1 tornadoes struck on August 27, 2020. The pattern is not strictly a summer one, either. F2 and F1 tornadoes struck on October 24, 1955, and EF0 tornadoes were confirmed on November 13, 2021. As recently as June 21, 2024, an EF0 touched down in the area, a reminder that these valleys and ridgelines still see tornado weather in the present day.