Data Story · Severe Weather

Where Tornadoes Kill

Every killer tornado since 2008, mapped from the Storm Prediction Center's fatality records. The Deep South carries the highest toll and mobile homes account for more than a third of all deaths. Hover a state for its numbers or open the full report for the rankings, the strength breakdown and the deadliest individual storms.

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Open the Full Tornado Report →

Economic Data

The Numbers

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Outlook

+1.9%% YoY

U.S. Economic Activity YoYtrending up, favorable

Composite of jobs, hours, wages and sales (Philadelphia Fed), 12-month change

Outlook

+0.3%% YoY

U.S. Jobs YoYtrending up, favorable

BLS total nonfarm payroll employment, year-over-year change

Outlook

4.2%%

U.S. Unemployment ratetrending down, favorable

BLS U-3 national unemployment rate, monthly

Inflation

+3.7%% YoY

U.S. Consumer Prices YoYtrending down, favorable

Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (BLS), year-over-year

WeatherTornadoes do not kill people evenly, and the pattern is fixableBy Midwest Safety News·June 22, 2026

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Where the Economy Is Hot and Cold

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Each state's color shows its overall economic + safety + outcomes health (green = good, yellow = mixed, red = struggling). The nine bars per state cover economic activity, jobs, unemployment vs. the U.S., how long homes sit on the market, migration, gas prices, consumer-price inflation, the homicide rate vs. the U.S. and Grade 4 reading scores vs. the U.S. Hover a state for exact numbers or click to open its dashboard.

Grading

Rank each state against the others. Top performers green, worst red.

Focus

Color by the average of every metric (current state + trend together).

Economic activity 12-moJobs YoYUnemployment vs U.S.Homes sitting longer YoYNet domestic migrationGas YTDConsumer prices YoYMurders vs U.S.Reading vs U.S.good directionbad direction(direction varies by metric — e.g., higher unemployment than U.S. is bad)

CDC Records

Murder Rates by State

All crime data

1District of ColumbiaHomicides per 100k, 202425.3

2MississippiHomicides per 100k, 202418.6

3LouisianaHomicides per 100k, 202414.4

4New MexicoHomicides per 100k, 202412.7

5AlabamaHomicides per 100k, 202412.6

FBI Records

Deadliest Cities in America

Full ranking

1Vinita Park, MOHomicides per 100k93.3

2Helena-West Helena, ARHomicides per 100k83.1

3Jackson, MSHomicides per 100k80.5

4Salem, NJHomicides per 100k79.0

5Berkeley, MOHomicides per 100k76.7

6College Park, GAHomicides per 100k73.4

7Rockingham, NCHomicides per 100k68.9

8St. Louis, MOHomicides per 100k68.0

9Gary, INHomicides per 100k67.3

10Chester, PAHomicides per 100k66.1

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The Deadliest Cities, Mapped

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Every U.S. city of 5,000 or more, ranked by murders per 100,000 residents averaged across 2020 through 2024 from FBI agency data. The largest mass shootings are excluded and disclosed. Tap a bubble for any city or zoom in to pull crowded metros apart.

Annualized murders per 100,000:under 5(3,958)5 to 10(691)10 to 20(394)20 to 35(115)35 to 50(40)50 or more(21)

Dark red (50+) is sized by rate (max on this map: 93); bubbles grow as you zoom in, and the basemap fills in streets and city names so you can place each one. Use the zoom buttons, a double-click or pinch to move around. Hover or tap a red or orange bubble for details or search the table below for any city.

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The Most Dangerous States to Live

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One score for four very different risks: murder, police line-of-duty deaths, tornadoes and the road. Each is ranked across all 50 states and DC then averaged, so a state high on every list rises to the top. Green is safest and red is most dangerous. Hover a state or open the full map to pull the hazards apart.

SaferMore dangerous

Most Dangerous Overall

1MississippiComposite risk index99/100

2LouisianaComposite risk index89/100

3TennesseeComposite risk index87/100

4ArkansasComposite risk index87/100

5AlabamaComposite risk index86/100

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The Deadliest States for Police Officers

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Line-of-duty police officer deaths by state, 2005–2026, from the Officer Down Memorial Page. Green is safest and red is deadliest. The default view adjusts for population and excludes COVID-19 and 9/11 illness so the ranking is not a one-time-event artifact. Toggle either tail back on or click a state for its detail page.

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The Deadliest States for Driving

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Traffic deaths per 100 million vehicle miles traveled, so a rural state with long empty highways is compared fairly against a dense urban one. Hover a state for its numbers or click through for the full rankings and trends.