Overview

• Officials confirmed three fatalities from the Enderlin tornado, which tracked just over 12 miles, reached about 1.05 miles wide, and remained on the ground for roughly 19 minutes.
• Investigators found several fully loaded grain hoppers tipped and an empty tanker thrown about 475 feet, along with extensive tree debarking along the Maple River and a farmstead swept from its foundation.
• The tornado was initially rated EF-3, then upgraded after months of reanalysis that incorporated radar-derived velocity data and input from wind-damage experts, including the Northern Tornadoes Project.
• The storm struck during a broader June 20–21 derecho and tornado outbreak across North Dakota and western Minnesota that caused widespread damaging winds and power outages.
• The designation ends a 12-year gap without a U.S. EF-5 and underscores both the rarity of such events and the challenges of a damage-based rating system for high-end tornadoes.