Tornadoes in China
China gets tornadoes — many of them — concentrated on the humid eastern plains. Most are weak, but the country has suffered violent, deadly tornadoes, including the catastrophic 2016 Yancheng tornado in Jiangsu. Here is China's tornado picture.
At a glance
| Where | Eastern plains: Jiangsu, Anhui, Guangdong, the north-east |
|---|---|
| Peak season | Spring and summer (Apr–Aug) |
| Deadliest modern event | 23 June 2016, Yancheng (Jiangsu) — EF4 |
| Chinese name | 龙卷风 (lóngjuǎnfēng) |
China's tornado hotspots
Tornadoes are more common in China than many people expect. They cluster in the flat, humid, densely farmed plains of eastern China — especially Jiangsu, Anhui, and Shanghai along the lower Yangtze, the Pearl River Delta in Guangdong, and the north-eastern provinces. Most are weak and brief, but the exposure of huge rural and urban populations makes even moderate tornadoes dangerous.
The 2016 Yancheng tornado
On 23 June 2016, an EF4 tornado tore through Funing County near Yancheng in Jiangsu Province, killing nearly a hundred people and injuring hundreds more. It was China's deadliest tornado in around half a century and drew national attention to tornado risk and warning gaps. It has its own detailed page: the 2016 Yancheng tornado.
Other notable tornadoes
China has seen other significant tornadoes in recent years, including a strong tornado at Kaiyuan in Liaoning in 2019 and two damaging tornadoes on the same day in 2021 — one near Wuhan and one at Shengze near Suzhou. Together they underline that tornadoes are a recurring, nationwide hazard, not a one-off.
Warnings and safety
Tornado warnings in China are issued by the China Meteorological Administration and local bureaus, though warning lead times for fast-developing tornadoes remain a challenge. The universal advice in our tornado safety guide applies: get to the lowest floor of a sturdy building, away from windows.
Sources & further reading
- China Meteorological Administration (CMA)
- Published accounts and damage surveys of the 23 June 2016 Yancheng tornado
- Peer-reviewed studies of tornado climatology in China
Figures such as casualties and ratings reflect widely published accounts from national weather services and the European Severe Storms Laboratory, and may be revised as records are re-analysed.