NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Brownsville, TX
Every tropical system within 75 miles since 1851 and every tornado within 25 miles since 1950.
44 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Brownsville, Texas since 1851, 24 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Nicholas in 2021. Since 1950, 58 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 2 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 24
- Tropical storms
- 20
- Tornadoes
- 58
- EF3 or stronger
- 2
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
1 deaths in all
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Brownsville
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | NicholasSep 13 | 48 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2020 | HannaJul 25 | 53 mi | Category 1 (92 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2018 | HectorAug 13 | 53 mi | Tropical storm (51 mph) | Category 4 |
| 2010 | HermineSep 7 | 9 mi | Tropical storm (66 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2008 | DollyJul 23 | 32 mi | Category 1 (81 mph) | Category 2 |
| 2003 | ErikaAug 16 | 43 mi | Category 1 (74 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1999 | BretAug 22 | 60 mi | Category 4 (130 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1993 | ArleneJun 20 | 54 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1988 | UlekiSep 8 | 55 mi | Category 2 (104 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1983 | BarryAug 28 | 37 mi | Category 1 (81 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1980 | AllenAug 10 | 19 mi | Category 3 (114 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1978 | AmeliaJul 30 | 18 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1971 | EdithSep 15 | 58 mi | Tropical storm (61 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1968 | CandyJun 23 | 60 mi | Tropical storm (56 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1967 | BeulahSep 20 | 11 mi | Category 3 (120 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1960 | Unnamed 1960 stormJun 23 | 31 mi | Tropical storm (56 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1958 | GerdaSep 20 | 21 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1958 | AlmaJun 15 | 46 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1954 | AliceJun 25 | 45 mi | Category 1 (83 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1947 | Unnamed 1947 stormAug 2 | 15 mi | Tropical storm (49 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1945 | Unnamed 1945 stormAug 26 | 63 mi | Category 2 (106 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1944 | Unnamed 1944 stormAug 22 | 68 mi | Tropical storm (51 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1936 | Unnamed 1936 stormSep 13 | 15 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1933 | Unnamed 1933 stormSep 5 | 11 mi | Category 2 (106 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1933 | Unnamed 1933 stormAug 5 | 17 mi | Category 1 (79 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1931 | Unnamed 1931 stormJun 27 | 46 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1925 | Unnamed 1925 stormSep 7 | 36 mi | Tropical storm (48 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1916 | Unnamed 1916 stormAug 18 | 65 mi | Category 4 (132 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1913 | Unnamed 1913 stormJun 27 | 72 mi | Category 1 (75 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1912 | Unnamed 1912 stormOct 16 | 47 mi | Category 2 (98 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1910 | Unnamed 1910 stormSep 14 | 66 mi | Category 2 (104 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1910 | Unnamed 1910 stormAug 31 | 22 mi | Tropical storm (45 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1909 | Unnamed 1909 stormJun 29 | 10 mi | Category 1 (86 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormJun 26 | 32 mi | Category 1 (77 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1895 | Unnamed 1895 stormOct 6 | 66 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1895 | Unnamed 1895 stormAug 30 | 68 mi | Category 1 (87 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1887 | Unnamed 1887 stormSep 21 | 9 mi | Category 1 (81 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1886 | Unnamed 1886 stormSep 23 | 15 mi | Category 2 (97 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1885 | Unnamed 1885 stormSep 18 | 68 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1880 | Unnamed 1880 stormAug 13 | 6 mi | Category 4 (133 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1874 | Unnamed 1874 stormSep 4 | 28 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1867 | Unnamed 1867 stormOct 2 | 23 mi | Category 2 (104 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1857 | Unnamed 1857 stormSep 30 | 3 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1854 | Unnamed 1854 stormJun 26 | 22 mi | Category 1 (74 mph) | Category 1 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Brownsville: a hurricane's worst winds sit within a few dozen miles of its centre, and inland cities are usually past that.
Tornadoes within 25 miles of Brownsville
By decade
- 2020s3
- 2010s8
- 2000s10
- 1990s9
- 1980s8
- 1970s12
- 1960s8(2 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 12, 1969 | F3 | 14 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 12, 1969 | F3 | 24 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 9, 1980 | F2 | 5 mi | 4.6 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 24, 1970 | F2 | 25 mi | 25.5 mi | 0 / 1 |
| May 12, 1969 | F2 | 4 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 13, 2023 | EF1 | 16 mi | 0.45 mi | 1 / 11 |
| Apr 4, 1997 | F1 | 2 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 16, 1988 | F1 | 22 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 21, 1977 | F1 | 17 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 16, 1977 | F1 | 19 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 1, 1970 | F1 | 16 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 13, 1969 | F1 | 18 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 58, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
How to read this page
A storm is listed when the centre of its track passed within 75 miles of Brownsville while it was at least a tropical storm, which is the reach of damaging wind and rain for a typical hurricane. Being on the list does not mean the city took a direct hit; the "closest" column says how near the centre came. Tornadoes are counted when any part of the path came within 25 miles.
Tornado records before the 1990s are thinner, because weak tornadoes in open country often went unreported before Doppler radar and mobile phones. A rise in the decade counts is mostly better reporting, not a change in the weather.
Tracks come from the National Hurricane Center's HURDAT2 database, tornadoes from the Storm Prediction Center's database. Both are the official federal records and both are revised as old storms are re-analysed.