NWS upgrades Enderlin, ND Tornado to EF-5, ending EF-5 drought

It's been 12 long years, 12 years since the United States last observed an EF-5 tornado. 

That drought officially ended yesterday when the National Weather Service (NWS) in Grand Forks, ND upgraded the June 20, 2025 Enderlin, North Dakota tornado to EF-5, with estimated peak winds exceeding 210 mph.

This upgrades comes after wind damage experts dived into the evidence further, citing several high-end damage indicators. This includes tipping fully loaded grain hopper cars, lofting tanker cars distances of 475 ft (145 m), total destruction of a farmstead with debris swept clean, and severe debarking of trees near the Maple River. Initially, the lack of proper anchoring on the farmstead limited the rating severity in that location.

North Dakota is the 7th U.S state to observe an EF-5 tornado, joining Iowa, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Mississippi, and Alabama. Illinois has come close with the Fairdale/Rochelle tornado which ended up with an EF-4 rating with estimated peak winds up to 200 mph. An EF-5 is 201+ mph.