Tornadoes in America: the 10 deadliest in history

(CNN) -

Tornadoes are capable of tremendous destruction and can have devastating consequences.

They are most common in the central plains and southeastern United States, but have been reported in all 50 states, according to the National Weather Service.

Tornadoes kill an average of 60 people a year in the United States, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

Many of the deaths are caused by flying debris or falling to the ground.

This is a list of the 10 deadliest tornadoes in the United States, according to figures from NOAA.

1. The Tri-State Tornado - It

passed through Missouri, Illinois and Indiana on March 18, 1925. It killed 695 people and injured 2,027, traveling more than 300 miles through the three states.

It was considered a Category 5 tornado, the maximum of the old Fujita scale, with winds of more than 400 kilometers per hour.

2. The Natchez Tornado -

Killed 317 people and injured 109 on May 6, 1840 along the Mississippi River in Louisiana and Mississippi.

The official death toll did not include slaves, according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

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3. The Saint Louis tornado -

Killed 225 people and injured 1,000 on May 27, 1896 in Missouri and Illinois.

It had winds of between 330 and 415 kilometers per hour.

• Watch: Storm clouds turn into a tornado in Texas

4. The Tupelo tornado -

It caused the death of 216 people and 700 were injured on April 5, 1936, in said city in the northeast of the state of Mississippi.

5. The Gainesville tornado -

It was formed by a pair of storms that converged on April 6, 1936 in that city in north Georgia, causing 203 deaths and more than 1,600 injuries.

The tornado destroyed four blocks and 750 houses.

6. The Woodward Tornado -

Caused destruction in parts of Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas on April 9, 1947. The tornado, which killed 181 people and injured 970, was more than a mile wide.

• Watch A Reporter's Diary: Coverage of Alabama Tornadoes

7. The Joplin Tornado - It

swept through that Missouri city.

On May 22, 2011, he killed 158 people and injured more than 1,000.

The storm had winds of over 200 miles per hour and moved ashore 35 miles.

8. The Amite / Pine / Purvis tornado -

Killed 143 people and injured 770 on April 24, 1908. The phenomenon left only seven houses intact in Purvis, Mississippi, and also caused damage in Amite, Louisiana.

9. The New Richmond tornado -

Killed 117 people and injured 200 on June 12, 1899 in New Richmond, Wisconsin.

10. The Flint tornado -

Killed 115 people and injured 844 on June 8, 1953 in that city in the state of Michigan.

The tornado so far is the one that has caused the most deaths in that state.

Tornadoes USA