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NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database

Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Joaquin, TX

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

19 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Joaquin, Texas since 1851, 2 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Laura in 2020. Since 1950, 126 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 12 of them rated EF3 or stronger.

Hurricanes
2

within 75 mi, since 1851

Tropical storms
17

below hurricane strength

Tornadoes
126

within 25 mi, since 1950

EF3 or stronger
12

27 deaths in all

Tropical storms and hurricanes near Joaquin

Tropical systems that passed within 75 miles of Joaquin, Texas, newest first
YearStormClosestStrength when closestPeak
2020LauraAug 2754 miCategory 1 (85 mph)Category 4
2019BarryJul 1430 miTropical storm (40 mph)Category 1
2017CindyJun 2218 miTropical storm (39 mph)Tropical storm
2008IkeSep 1368 miTropical storm (53 mph)Category 4
2008GustavSep 268 miTropical storm (46 mph)Category 4
2005RitaSep 24overheadTropical storm (48 mph)Category 5
1994JohnSep 839 miCategory 1 (78 mph)Category 5
1957AudreyJun 2766 miTropical storm (72 mph)Category 3
1949Unnamed 1949 stormOct 550 miTropical storm (40 mph)Category 2
1947Unnamed 1947 stormSep 205 miTropical storm (45 mph)Category 4
1941Unnamed 1941 stormSep 2422 miTropical storm (44 mph)Category 3
1940Unnamed 1940 stormAug 926 miTropical storm (39 mph)Category 2
1938Unnamed 1938 stormAug 1571 miTropical storm (40 mph)Category 2
1918Unnamed 1918 stormAug 723 miTropical storm (58 mph)Category 3
1891Unnamed 1891 stormJul 610 miTropical storm (56 mph)Category 1
1886Unnamed 1886 stormOct 1329 miTropical storm (63 mph)Category 3
1879Unnamed 1879 stormAug 239 miTropical storm (63 mph)Category 2
1871Unnamed 1871 stormJun 1057 miTropical storm (39 mph)Tropical storm
1865Unnamed 1865 stormSep 1436 miTropical storm (55 mph)Category 2

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

By decade

  • 2020s26
  • 2010s21
  • 2000s6
  • 1990s17(1 EF3+)
  • 1980s20(5 EF3+)
  • 1970s11(1 EF3+)
  • 1960s14(3 EF3+)
  • 1950s11(2 EF3+)
Strongest tornadoes near Joaquin, Texas
DateRatingDistancePathKilled / injured
Feb 12, 1950F44 mi82.6 mi18 / 77
Feb 12, 1950F313 mi1.9 mi3 / 15
Mar 27, 1961F323 mi13.8 mi2 / 4
Nov 15, 1987F33 mi48 mi1 / 116
Apr 3, 1999F32 mi5.4 mi0 / 1
Jun 7, 1989F317 mi6 mi0 / 0
May 2, 1984F323 mi61 mi0 / 9
Apr 25, 1982F319 mi7 mi0 / 0
Apr 25, 1982F319 mi7 mi0 / 0
Mar 20, 1974F317 mi44.7 mi0 / 18
Feb 11, 1965F32 mi42.7 mi0 / 0
Feb 11, 1965F316 mi33 mi0 / 3

The strongest 12 of 126, 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 Joaquin 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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