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NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database

Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Cleveland Heights, OH

Every tropical system within 75 miles since 1851 and every tornado within 25 miles since 1950.

6 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Cleveland Heights, Ohio since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Sandy in 2012. Since 1950, 62 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 6 of them rated EF3 or stronger.

Hurricanes
0

within 75 mi, since 1851

Tropical storms
6

below hurricane strength

Tornadoes
62

within 25 mi, since 1950

EF3 or stronger
6

40 deaths in all

Tropical storms and hurricanes near Cleveland Heights

Tropical systems that passed within 75 miles of Cleveland Heights, Ohio, newest first
YearStormClosestStrength when closestPeak
2012SandyOct 3170 miTropical storm (40 mph)Category 3
2003IsabelSep 1958 miTropical storm (39 mph)Category 5
1995OpalOct 617 miTropical storm (46 mph)Category 4
1989HugoSep 2252 miTropical storm (41 mph)Category 5
1915Unnamed 1915 stormAug 2259 miTropical storm (40 mph)Category 4
1902Unnamed 1902 stormJun 293 miTropical storm (40 mph)Category 1

Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Cleveland Heights: 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 Cleveland Heights

By decade

  • 2020s15
  • 2010s11
  • 2000s3
  • 1990s8(1 EF3+)
  • 1980s3(1 EF3+)
  • 1970s10(1 EF3+)
  • 1960s8(2 EF3+)
  • 1950s4(1 EF3+)
Strongest tornadoes near Cleveland Heights, Ohio
DateRatingDistancePathKilled / injured
Apr 11, 1965F418 mi22 mi18 / 200
Jun 8, 1953F49 mi118 mi17 / 379
May 2, 1983F310 mi12 mi1 / 25
Jul 12, 1992F324 mi8 mi0 / 0
Jun 3, 1973F322 mi12.9 mi0 / 1
Sep 29, 1966F33 mi4.5 mi0 / 20
Aug 20, 1962F214 mi0.5 mi4 / 20
Aug 24, 2023EF224 mi0.69 mi0 / 0
Aug 24, 2023EF25 mi1.52 mi0 / 0
Nov 10, 2002F210 mi10.1 mi0 / 0
Jul 15, 1970F217 mi0.1 mi0 / 1
Oct 6, 1959F220 mi10.5 mi0 / 0

The strongest 12 of 62, 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 Cleveland Heights 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.

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