Enderlin tornado upgraded to EF5 after damage analysis

The National Weather Service in Grand Forks on Monday upgraded the tornado that struck Enderlin, North Dakota, on June 20, 2025, to an EF5, the most powerful rating on the Enhanced Fujita scale. The storm, which officials say produced estimated winds greater than 210 miles per hour, killed three people and carved a path of destruction across roughly 12 miles of rural southeastern North Dakota.

The upgrade follows an extended forensic damage investigation that reexamined wreckage and environmental indicators along the tornado track. Survey teams and wind damage experts found evidence consistent with EF5 intensity, including the tipping of several fully loaded grain hopper railcars, the lofting of tanker cars and the tossing of an empty tanker roughly 476 feet. Investigators also documented extensive tree damage along the Maple River, including debarking and uprooted trees with attached root balls, and a farmstead where the foundation was essentially swept clean and debris scattered downwind.

Meteorologists said radar data from the KMVX WSR88D station showed storm relative velocity signatures consistent with the peak wind estimates calculated from the damage. The tornado reached a...