Lake Butler, FL Tornado History — 128 Tornadoes Since 1950
How many tornadoes has Lake Butler, FL had?
Lake Butler has had 128 tornadoes on record within 25 miles since 1950, including 5 violent (EF3+) tornadoes.
When was the most recent tornado near Lake Butler?
The most recent tornado within 25 miles of Lake Butler was an EF0 on May 26, 2025.
When is tornado season in Lake Butler?
June is historically the peak month for tornadoes near Lake Butler, with 22 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 Lake Butler
The last 20 years of confirmed tornadoes within 25 miles — 26 total, averaging 1.3 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
Casualties on Record Near Lake Butler
55 fatalities have been recorded within 25 miles of Lake Butler since 1950, across 7 events. 967 injuries have been reported across all events. 1998 was the deadliest year on record.
The deadliest single event was a F3 on February 23, 1998, which caused 25 fatalities along a 28.0-mile track.
Notable Tornadoes Near Lake Butler
About Tornadoes in Lake Butler
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.
Lake Butler, the Union County seat in north-central Florida, sits in a part of the state where tornadoes tend to arrive in two distinct moods: brief, weak spin-ups during the humid summer months, and far more dangerous storms spawned by cool-season systems from late winter into spring.
The area's history includes genuinely violent weather. On April 4, 1966, an F4 tornado swept through the region on a 135.8-mile track, killing 11 people and injuring 530. Another deadly episode came on February 23, 1998, when F3 tornadoes moved across the area; one carved a 28-mile path and killed 25 people, while another claimed 13 lives. An F2 on March 13, 1993 ran 30 miles and killed one person, and an F2 on April 15, 1987 also proved fatal, injuring 7 more.
The cool-season pattern recurs across the decades here: F2 and F3 tornadoes struck on March 19, 1981, damaging F2s hit on January 28, 1973 and January 8, 1978, and an EF2 on March 10, 2025 cut a 4-mile path up to 300 yards wide, causing $3.9 million in property damage. Summer brings quieter but persistent activity, mostly short-lived EF0s like those that touched down on June 6, 2020 and again on May 26, 2025 — a reminder that even outside the stormy cool season, Union County skies can still turn.