Abstract: Tornado-induced disasters are intense and have been attracting great social attention. This article provides an overview of recent research on tornado mechanisms, tornado intensity classifications, and advances in damage surveys in China. It highlights the formation mechanisms of tornadic vortex, difficult aspects of field surveys and challenges in estimating tornado intensity and presents a prospect on future research. The favorable environmental conditions for mesocyclone tornadoes are quite clear, yet the necessity of low-level atmospheric humidity condition under cold vortex setting, the role of convective available potential energy in tropical cyclone tornado formation, and the favorable environmental conditions for tornado outbreak still require further studies. The formation of mesocyclone tornadoes is pivotal, involving the development of low-level mesocyclones, the generation and organization of near-surface vortex patches and their enhancement, and the influence of surface friction that leads to the development of tornadoes with vortex boundary layers and corner flow regions. The topographic influence on tornadoes is very complex. In general, tornadoes weaken when moving uphill and intensify when descending downhill. The dissipation mechanism of different tornadoes may be different, and any factors that are not favorable for the maintenance of tornadoes may cause their dissipation. Common tornado intensity scales include F-scale, EF-scale, and T-scale. The T-scale has the most detailed categorization with 11 levels, while the EF-scale is the most widely adopted. China’s national standard of tornado intensity classification is directly aligned with the EF-scale. The methods and steps for damage surveys of severe wind disasters have been developed significantly, and a substantial amount of tornado survey data has been collected in China. The disaster-causing mechanisms of tornadoes are complex, and great uncertainty remains in their intensity rating. On going advancements are needed in fine-scale observations and damage surveys, mechanism studies, and forecasting and warning capabilities for tornadoes.