Uploaded November 2023 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
Ask any resident who was living in Topeka, Kansas on June 8, 1966 and you will receive a litany of personal accounts about the tornado of that evening. This significant tornado barreled into the Kansas capitol just after 7 p.m. 17 individuals perished in the barrage of airborne debris, over 500 other people sustained serious injuries and over $200 million in property damage transpired. The tornado was applied a F5 damage rating on the new Fujita-Pearson scale a few years afterward.
These films were taken by a WIBW-TV newsman as the tornado moved off Burnett's Mound and later dissipated near the airport Weather Bureau office. Other home movies of the tornado exist along with audio recordings, however for posterity, these are the most visual views from that evening.
The full WIBW-TV documentary "The Eighth of June" that aired a year after the tornado in 1967 is accessible here: youtube.com/watch?v=g_NmVdipdgs
Information on the June 8, 1966 F5 Topeka, Kansas tornado: weather.gov/top/1966TopekaTornado
Video courtesy WIBW-TV. All Rights Reserved.
Silent 16mm color to video.
Ask any resident who was living in Topeka, Kansas on June 8, 1966 and you will receive a litany of personal accounts about the tornado of that evening. This significant tornado barreled into the Kansas capitol just after 7 p.m. 17 individuals perished in the barrage of airborne debris, over 500 other people sustained serious injuries and over $200 million in property damage transpired. The tornado was applied a F5 damage rating on the new Fujita-Pearson scale a few years afterward.
These films were taken by a WIBW-TV newsman as the tornado moved off Burnett's Mound and later dissipated near the airport Weather Bureau office. Other home movies of the tornado exist along with audio recordings, however for posterity, these are the most visual views from that evening.
The full WIBW-TV documentary "The Eighth of June" that aired a year after the tornado in 1967 is accessible here: youtube.com/watch?v=g_NmVdipdgs
Information on the June 8, 1966 F5 Topeka, Kansas tornado: weather.gov/top/1966TopekaTornado
Video courtesy WIBW-TV. All Rights Reserved.
Silent 16mm color to video.
